So you’re wondering how this Twitter thing can help improve your business. You can begin by looking just at the sheer numbers. Twitter claims that they now have over 100+ million active users who collectively generates over 250+ million tweets on a daily basis.
Granted that the majority of these tweets are nonsensical and thus completely insignificant or irrelevant to you, and doesn’t apply to you in any way possible, but there’s bound to be some type of opportunity that’s related to your industry in there somewhere. So this is in attempts to help you in understanding this massive volume produced by this social medium, while hopefully being able to assist you in some way to promote your product or your service.
Interacting Directly With Your Customers
New and free channels for direct interaction with potential new clients don’t come around often. Twitter offers the instant ability to be able to communicate with as well as hear immediate feedback from your most loyal customers and new potential prospects, all this in real time. This is one of Twitter’s most appealing and valuable features that it offers.
The most important thing however is you fostering these relationships by communicating back to them on a regular basis by giving your audience something that’s valuable enough for them to read.
You can do this by directing people to your website or blog, or by promoting any new upcoming exciting events, or by offering limited time sensitive deals which are exclusively reserved for your Twitter “followers.”
Twitter is also an extremely cost-effective method if you’re wanting to open up new channels of mobile or online interaction. You’re able to test new ideas by soliciting and then immediately receiving feedback instantly, this opening up new potential possibilities of providing support or service while showing the more personalized vulnerable human side of your business.
Building Community As Well As Industry Relations
In a lot of ways, the age old adage is once again true: And that is your reputation can be your most valuable ally. Twitter is able to help you burnish your credibility while establishing solid relationships with community or industry leaders.
The best method of extending your corporate presence is by following as well as being followed. Keep in mind that most people that you decide to follow will generally follow you back, which provides for valuable exposure to the experts or the prominent influences in your industry or market.
Compiling Twitter lists will allow you to combine groups where you can then either monitor or promote yourself and your business to them en masse. So this is less about directing more sales while using Twitter, but more about opening up new never approached avenues for building or further establishing your brand. Although the benefits may be less immediate, but they are no less valuable.
Gathering Vital Market Intelligence
Other than just being able to connect directly with customers as well as enhancing and reinforcing your reputation, Twitter can also provide you with invaluable insight into your industry, market sector or your community.
This can help you in staying ahead of the curve and the current trends, emerging opportunities or evolving priorities. You can just use the basic Twitter Search tool to help you find people, products or profiles which are relevant to your business.
The Advanced Search option allows you to be able to drill down to get a lot more granular as well as specific. This allows you to mine deeper into what may be tweeted about you or your company, complete with filter options for isolating the exact time of the tweet, the location, the tone, as well as other specific criteria.
Some Of The Twitter Do’s and Don’ts
Just like anything else in a social environment, Twitter has its own do or don’t etiquette which you should follow.
The “Do’s” Of Twitter
+ Make sure that you use a Twitter ID which can explicitly identify your business or you as a person. Try to keep your specific brand on the top of people’s minds as much as possible
+ Make sure that you participate. You’ll get a lot more value and feedback the more you contribute. Opportunities to be able to promote your business will emerge once you engage yourself more
+ Make sure that you listen. Make it a priority to follow anyone who happens to mention you or your product or service, or happens to tweet about topics which are directly relevant to your market or business.
The “Don’ts” Of Twitter
– Never be negative in any way whatsoever. Make sure that you treat others
with as much respect as possible, even if they happen to tweet something negative about you our your company. Take any of these disputes to a more private or personal forum
– Never be afraid to retweet. By sharing any relevant tweets from others will establish your leadership while providing a quick and easy way to stay visible and in touch
– Never get slack elsewhere online. Twitter is able to open new channels for you, providing immediate feedback, but never allow it to replace any of your other interactions, keep your options open and use them as much as possible