“I don’t have time for Twitter” is the phrase I often hear when presenting Social Media for business. Twitter need not take up any more time than face to face networking if you understand why you are using it, who you what to talk to and what is your marketing message. Twitter can help market your business in a number of ways including:
– Brand building. More people know about Concise Training because of Twitter than would know about me if I didn’t use it. I have been given testimonials on Twitter, my tips have been forwarded to others and people know who am I when I walk into a room because my face is on Twitter. The buzz that has been generated about the quality of my training through Twitter has definitely resulted in people approaching me for work and partnerships. I have 2600 people following me – that is 2600 people who get a message when somebody has recommended me……
– Customer Service. There is a good chance that people will be talking about your company whether you are on these social media sites or not. Hopefully they will be talking good things – but do you know if they say anything negative? Your clients are using these sites, you can respond to what they are saying, if you are using them to listen.
– Advertise your latest offers or services. People have chosen to listen to you on Twitter – tell them about your services. Don’t only talk to them about your services or they will soon stop following you, but drop them in every so often.
– Share articles that you have found interesting relevant to your industry – this shows that you are taking a professional approach and are in the right space. You will also get kudos from the people you share – don’t forget to acknowledge them.
– Talk to your customers, colleagues and networking friends. Keeping in touch through Twitter is a great way of finding out what is going on in the lives of the people you know. This allows you to build a better relationship – and as we know, business is all about relationships.
Twitter isn’t for everybody – but have a look before you dismiss it altogether. Make it easy for yourself – use tools (Tweetdeck or HootSuite) to help you manage the people you are listening to and use a combination of real time and scheduled messages.
How do you use Twitter for your business?