Tips for Using Twitter for Digital Marketing
Whether you’re the President of a Bay Area Startup with five employees, or the VP of a large company with hundreds of employees, you want your business to succeed and ‘get your name out there.’ You may know the ins-and-outs of your line of work, but this whole Social Media Marketing concept hasn’t gone beyond the Facebook page you setup months ago. Have no fear, with these tips you’ll be tweeting in no time!
1. Define Your Purpose
Are you using Twitter to connect with others in your industry or just to get news? Businesses use the microblogging site to build their brand and get leads. Others use it to share their blogs and see what others are writing about. Some use it strictly to see what their friends and celebrities are up to, and others just want to post articles they find interesting. In order to stand out from the millions of other Twitter users, you need to figure out what your purpose or passion is, and stick to that. Don’t get lost in all the noise! If you don’t stay focused, you will gain meaningless followers that aren’t going to stick around.
2. Complete Your Profile
Before you start tweeting or following, set up your profile so you can be easily identified. Utilize the 160 characters allotted for your bio, enter a location and add your company’s website. Be sure to choose a profile picture that represents you or your brand well (i.e. company logo or photo of yourself). Choose a cover photo and a background photo that reflects your brand’s persona. When you follow someone, they look at your profile to see if you’re worth following back, and this is when first impressions count!
3. Understand How to Use Twitter
Twitter, tweeting, retweeting, “twittering?” its all a bunch of ‘twit’ this and ‘tweet’ that, but what does it all mean? Twitter is the name of the real-time social network. Tweeting is the action of posting a tweet: a short post of less than 140 characters. Mentioning (or MT) is when you send someone a tweet by including their Twitter name in the post. For example, “Thank you @SEOPRObayarea for the Twitter tips!” Retweeting (or RT) is when you repost another’s tweet, usually by using the “retweet” button.
4. Follow the Right People
There are various ways to choose who to follow. Start with companies who are in the similar field. This doesn’t mean to go follow your competitors. Start by determining what interests you and what you will share with your followers. Where is the best news coming from? Who is keeping their followers engaged? Figure out who is “doing it best” and emulate them. If you’re in the remodeling business, follow interior designers, home improvement sites (Bob Vila, Houzz), decor magazines and architectural digests. Sharing information from those sources will help associate your brand with great home design. Feed the creative juices of homeowners who are looking to upgrade their home.
5. Use Hashtags [Sparingly]
Hashtags are a tool for conversations and searches. They are properly used when a # is placed before a word or phrase that pertains to the post’s topic. Before you use one, search it. Is it a topic that others are talking about? Rule number one, make it relevant. Rule number two, use them sparingly. Never use more than 3 in a post (we prefer one or two, but sometimes three is okay). If you’re sharing an article, use one in the title (before the link) then one after. For example,Top 5 Home #Remodeling Trends for 2014: link via @soandso #HomeImprovement. This way, your tweet can be found when someone searches remodeling or home improvement related posts.
Get Help With Your Bay Area Online Marketing
Twitter is a massive social media network with unlimited potential. If you find it overwhelming and want help with your social media marketing efforts, don’t be afraid to ask for help. Our social media marketing team has experience managing a plethora of Bay Area business’s digital marketing. If you want your company to stand out from the others, give us a call today at 1-866-797-5656 or fill out our online contact form. We are more than happy to strategize and do all the work for you, so you can focus on what you do best.