If you plan to use Twitter as part of your business’s social media strategy, here are some things that are essential to marketing your company’s products and services.
Maintain a Regular Twitter Presence
To effectively use Twitter for business purposes, first set up an account and use it regularly. It won’t do to set up an account and leave it idle or post only every several months. Followers — and customers — need fresh updates and content. The good news is that with Twitter, you’ll only need to send short updates of 140 characters or less.
You can include longer updates by using TwitLonger on occasion if needed. The main thing is to keep your Twitter account regularly updated with information that customers or potential customers will want to know about.
If you have a business blog (and you should already have one), post updates to Twitter each and every time you publish a new blog. That way, you’re keeping followers updated and gaining new blog subscribers as well.
Use Twitter to connect social media dots to increase your profits.
Interact Regularly with Your Followers
In addition to updating your Twitter account with regular tweets, you need to interact with your followers on a regular basis. You may receive retweets, direct messages, and @ (at) messages on occasion. When you do, it’s important to respond as soon as you can — within reason. Building relationships with your customers and future customers will depend on it.
If possible, respond within one day to people who have contacted you. To become more customer-friendly, you can also ask for feedback on the information you’ve posted, such as what your customers think of new products and services you’ve unveiled.
With a little time investment, your business can become a world-class tweeter.
Employ Twitter Search
Not only is it important to be aware of what you’re tweeting to followers, but you should also get an idea of what other tweeters are saying about your company. By using a Twitter search, you can do just that. Search for your company’s name and see what conversations are taking place. If possible, and without it looking too awkward, you may want to engage in the conversation since it involves your business.
Manage — and Market — Your Company’s Reputation Through Targeted Tweets
Maintaining a positive image in the minds of existing customers is integral to keeping current business as well as attracting new clients. With Twitter, you can manage your professional reputation and market yourself at the same time by directly addressing questions or concerns.
Be sure to share success stories, but also demonstrate how you are committed to resolving problems should they arise. Unlike your competitors, who may choose to avoid sticky issues when they come up, instill confidence in Twitter observers by meeting conflicts head-on and with professional grace.
How does managing your reputation and being transparent with your followers help market your business? Simply put, when you aim for transparency and show good faith along with a willingness to put customers first, you are sending a powerful message to consumers that your company is one they can trust. They will know that if a problem arises with an order or if there is a less-than-satisfactory experience (however rare), you are more focused on solving the problem than blaming the customer.
Positive promotion based on a foundation of integrity sticks in people’s minds. The next time they need a product or service your company provides, your business will likely be at the top of their contact list.
Although originally launched as a social platform, Twitter can reap measurable benefits for your business. You can harness the power of this social media platform to not only reach out to your existing blog readers and customers but cultivate new ones as well.