You did it - you created a Twitter account for your small business. Ok, now what? It looks so scary—there are all these hashtags being thrown around and @ signs. What does it all mean? Ugh, after 5 minutes and still not knowing what to do, you give up.
Sound familiar? You are not alone.
Many small business owners are hesitant to be on Twitter—for many different reasons. It’s either because they don’t know how, are intimidated or don’t think it will help their small business grow. Think again!
1. Optimize your profile
This is where many small businesses go wrong at the very first step. Sure, it sounds good having your cute little tagline or a catchy phrase in your bio but you are eliminating your ability to be found by others. Yes, people will still find you through your tweets if you are hastagging and using relevant keywording to your industry BUT if you also do so in your bio section, you will be even more likely to be found under such topics.
Here’s an example of my Twitter profile and how I have hashtagged and used relevant keywords that are used in my industry that I tweet about and what to be found for:
2. Create connections
Social media is all about creating connections. Think of it as a virtual cocktail party. Do you just stand there in the corner gnawing down on an appetizer the whole time by yourself? For the most part [if you are being social] no. Even if that is typically you at a party, social media is your time to shine and be the life of the party, behind the comfort of a computer screen!
How do you create connections?
- Follow people in your industry
- When someone follows you, follow them back [if applicable]
- After someone follows you thank them in a direct message
3. Engage
This is the most time-consuming part of Twitter—engaging. If you are constantly just posting tweets and not engaging with others, you may do just fine, but engaging will take you to the next level. Especially as a small business, you need to try even harder to shine above all of those bigger companies. Engaging on Twitter is going to be your ticket to success.
- Reach out to potential customers/fans
- Contribute to conversations
- Answer questions
4. Stay consistent
You need to be committed. If you plan on using Twitter for your business, stay consistent. Don’t post for a week straight and then skip a week. This looks BAD.
Now, we understand that you can’t be on Twitter every waking moment of the day. Which, doesn’t it seem like some businesses are? Think again! They are automating it—and you can too. You can buy software like HubSpot but you can also try out automation for your social media platforms for free with software like Buffer.
We realize that Twitter can be intimidating and scary but hopefully this has helped to calm your nerves just a bit. Twitter really is a powerful source for helping grow your small business and is a social media network that you should definitely take advantage of.
Here are some blogs that will help you more on the actual formulation of tweets and strategy process:
Social Media 101: Twitter for Business
5 Ways to Put Your Lead Generation Techniques To the Test on Twitter
