Twitter is one of the best places to put your lead generation techniques to the test. You have a large audience, it’s a social atmosphere and there are people just waiting to find and learn about new companies and services. If you aren’t already doing this, what are you waiting for? You’re missing out!
1. When someone follows you, thank them
Kindness really does get you far. Be nice on Twitter! What a concept, right? So, if you’re on Twitter already you are most likely familiar with those spammy or salesy direct messages you receive. Most of them are asking you to check out their service or that they can help you gain 1,000 followers or they are giving you a special offer, and so on. I’ve seen them all. But the ones that stick out to me are the ones where someone actually says hello first and thanks you for the follow.
I understand the sales process but at least say hi first to establish some sort of relationship. Isn’t that what lead generation and the inbound mentality is all about? Yes, well not everyone knows this. That’s why I’m telling you so you don’t make the mistake of doing just that.
Want to hear the cool part? When you send a direct message to someone who has just started following you and you start out first by saying hi and thanking them for the follow and even maybe adding in more context about what tweets you look forward to seeing from them, 75% of the time they will write back. Send them a sales pitch right off the bat and you’ll see the replying percentage drop dramatically. Lead generation techniques, people. Use them!
2. Don’t only talk about yourself
Now, this is something most people know and follow in their day-to-day lives but for some reason the concept is lost in business. For example, when you go to a party do you only talk about yourself the entire time? For most people the answer is no. You ask other people questions and engage in a conversation. This is how it should be for business pages on Twitter as well. The best lead generation technique in this aspect is to refrain from talking about yourself 24/7.
Make sure you have a tweeting to retweeting ratio in place in your strategy. Also, don’t forget about that favorite button!
3. Connect with others
How chatty you are on Twitter all depends on your business and the social media strategy you have in place. However, it’s always a great idea to comment on others tweets if you have valuable information to add or want to create some dialogue that is relevant to your industry. This will not only help create relationships but also help you build credibility as a business or a professional.
Did you know Twitter has over 200 million active users? Wow! Lot's of connections to be made!
4. Be helpful
Always be on the look out for those who are asking questions on Twitter, particularly in your area of expertise. This is a prime opportunity to make a new connection and begin nurturing a new relationship—one that possibly could turn into a lead or better yet a customer.
5. Follow back
Now, this is kind of a courtesy thing on Twitter. If someone follows you, you should follow them back. HOWEVER, this should not always be the case in my opinion. You need to use your judgment here. Yes, it’s great to follow someone back once they have followed you so that you can build that connection. Just like a party, someone comes up and extends their hand for a shake and you do the same.
My advice is to check out their profile a bit before you hit that follow button. Get to know them. Are they a spam account? Obviously, do not follow them. Are they selling likes or followers? Don’t follow them. Do you not even have anything in common and will pretty much ignore their tweets and never interact with them? Don’t follow them.
Now that you’re equipped with some lead generation techniques to use on Twitter, have at it! Tweet on!
Related Posts:
Why Is Twitter Important in Your Social Media Marketing Strategy?
4 Ways to Get Leads Using Lead Generation Techniques on Facebook
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