Tweet Like the Social Media Experts
Twitter is a great tool for companies of all sizes. It can serve a number of purposes: enhancing public relations activities, driving marketing programs and powering lead generation initiatives.
Importantly, like most social media, Twitter is absolutely free and not hard to do. It just takes a little knowledge, a bit of time and a dash of commitment.
If you've got those covered, just follow these 5 tips to get yourself tweeting like the social media experts.
How to Tweet Like the Social Media Experts
- Tweet with a purpose. Social media experts know that to use Twitter effectively, you've got to have a plan. Twitter is a great way to drive traffic to your website. So, one approach may be using Twitter to enhance your content marketing strategy. It can also be used to get additional exposure for your PR clips, making them more valuable. The key is to know why you're tweeting. This will keep your program focused.
- Build your followers strategically. A Twitter program is only as effective as the followers you have. So, put some real thought into whom those people should be. If you are looking to engage prospective clients or customers, follow people who fit that profile. There are lots of search tools and lists to help you find the right folks. Then, it's just a matter of following them and creating interesting tweets so they follow you back.
- Tweet consistently. Social media experts know that consistency on Twitter is critical to success. Commit to tweeting a certain number of times a day. Somewhere between 5 and 10 should get you going. This need not be a burden. There are tools that allow you to write a day's worth of tweets ahead of time and schedule them for posting at specific times of day. This is a great way to make sure you cover all your topics.
- Don't put Twitter on autopilot. If you write your tweets ahead of time, make sure to keep an eye on your Twitter app and respond to what's going on among your followers. Retweet your followers when they post something interesting. Ask a question every now and then. Work to engage with your followers when you have time. You don't have to do this 24/7. But a little will go a long way.
- Provide useful information. This is absolutely key. When you tweet, create posts that will be helpful to your followers. If you write a blog or whitepaper that contains good advice, by all means tweet it out. Your followers will be appreciative. On the flipside, if you're being overly promotional in your tweets, your followers will get the idea quickly enough and unfollow you. It pays to be a good Twitizen.
There are certainly lots of ways to improve your Twitter efforts. But if you start with these five, your Twitter program will be off and running and you'll soon be tweeting like the social media experts.
