A 3-Step Guide on Using Twitter for Marketing
I like to think of social networks like Twitter as actual, live networking events. And while mingling and jumping into conversations with fellow guests is expected, you don’t want to be known as that person who just cuts in and immediately hands everyone their business card.
While your goal is to eventually introduce your product and brand, you have to work your way towards it. And you start by getting to know and engaging them.
Here’s how you can do it—
Step 1: Start by building a following
There’s no instant formula to this. You do this gradually—by posting good content and doing so consistently.
- Start by going on Twitter and signing up (if you don’t already have an account.)
- Once you have an account, consider what your business is all about and start following people who share the same interests. Hashtags are a great way to find them. So for instance, if you want to launch a kitchen site, you should research Twitter followers and posts related to this—i.e. #kitchentips #kitchengadgets #cookinghacks etc.
- Your Twitter feed should now have a good stream of conversations and content. Choose several that you think are most relevant to your brand and start engaging them.Set aside half an hour of your day read through your Twitter stream and pull up conversations. So let’s say someone on your stream just asked–”What are great time-saving tips for cooking?” Use that as an opportunity to create conversation. Reply by making a suggestion–maybe with an article that you’ve read, or an infograph that you’ve seen.
Do this often enough and your followers will start to recognize the value of having you in their network. The more value you provide, the more your audience will grow.
Resist the urge to begin peddling your product this early into the Twitter game. There will be time for that. Focus first on providing value for your followers.
Step 2: Maintain consistency online
I’ve seen this happen way too often. People get all excited at the start of their marketing efforts and a couple of weeks into it, realize just how much work goes into talking and reach out to their followers, seeking out and sharing good content. At this point, they’re all too willing to just forget about the whole altogether.
Don’t.
Stick it out. Twitter is a great complementary marketing tool that can drive potential customers to your selling site or blog.
Statistically, 50% of users say that they are more likely to make a purchase after they follow that brand on Twitter; and studies also show that it can improve sales simply by driving more people to your site.
All things considered, that’s just too much sales potential to simply let your Twitter go to waste.
Check out the entire infograph here.
Besides, there are sites that are meant to help you manage it. I particularly like Buffer or Hootsuite.
How often to Tweet?
Another thing to remember about Twitter is that you need to be very active on it. And a good number for daily tweets should be around 3 to 5 times a day. The sites like Buffer or Hootsuite are designed to let you schedule your posts so that you don’t have to be on Twitter 24/7.
Step 3: Start putting your agenda in
With a steady number of followers who are actually listening to what you have to say, you can now start mixing in your call to action among your posts.
If you’re tweeting an average of 3-5 tweets a day, make a pitch at least 1x every other day or so. This could be anything from info about a specific product that you’re selling, drive your followers to your opt-in page, or post a link to your blog.
- If you already a Twitter account, skip to Step 2 of his hack. But if not, go to www.twitter.com, sign up for an account, and start from Step 1 of this blog.
- Once you have your account ready, sign up on https://bufferapp.com/ and log in with your Twitter account.
- Choose five topics related to your business or brand that you find value in. So for example, if you want to promote your cooking blog on Twitter, you can try looking for the following:
- A video of a simple recipe
- An article on the latest cooking trends for the season
- An infograph on the latest cooking hacks
- A picture of your final product
- A tweet inviting your followers to go on your blog.
Schedule all these tweets to go out using Buffer.
If you need more ideas for tweets, check out this infograph.
One last thing…. Marketing on social networks is about sticking with what works. Some business have products or services that would be better served on Facebook, others on Vine, Youtube, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out what your brand really needs and use it to your advantage.
Realistically, to build an effective Twitter following takes at least 13 weeks—and it will require a steady level of commitment and engagement. This is a marathon, not a sprint. But considering how much you gain by establishing your presence on Twitter, it’s definitely a small price to pay.
– Mercer
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