You know you need a business presence on social media. It’s not just for the relationship-building–which is HUGE–but also for the online visibility that you need to create and maintain so your business can be found in search. Staying relevant to search engines like Google requires a solid (consistent) content strategy–and that involves social media, like Twitter.
Got it. Great. But knowing what to tweet about is another thing, and sometimes it’s easier to just hand it off to someone else to “take care of” which I would argue is better than nothing–but not much.
I get it. You’re busy and social media can be overwhelming and time consuming, not to mention always changing. It’s hard to keep up. Here’s a simple strategy to help you with your Twitter presence. Start here and build. With a good plan in place, you can manage this. It’s not as hard as you think.
Get Personal
Twitter is different from other social media platforms because it isn’t just your business presence. Twitter gives you an opportunity to let people get to know the person behind the business. People do business with those they like and trust. Mix business and personal on Twitter and give people a chance to get to know, like, and trust you.
Use a photo of yourself for Twitter – not your business logo. People want to see your face and know there’s a real person behind your brand. People who personally stand behind their business, build trust. Include personal tweets in your posting strategy–not just business-related tweets. Use your good judgement, because people are not likely to care that much about what you ate for breakfast (unless you’re a food blogger–then it make sense to share what you’re eating!). Mix in about 25% personal tweets to 75% business/industry related. A few ideas for personal tweets include:
- favorite books
- favorite people
- favorite sports team
- weather phenomenon in your area
- photos of your pets
- something funny your child said
- social issues or non-profits that matter to you
- inspirational quotes
Be Generous
Keep Twitter lists. If you’re not familiar with Twitter lists, read this helpful Twitter List post by Sarah Von Bargen. Once you have your lists, you can quickly check what people who interest you have tweeted and re-tweet them when it makes sense for your followers. I have lists of people who tweet about topics that matter to my followers, and re-tweet them regularly. I also re-tweet clients and friends whenever it makes sense. It builds relationships, benefits my followers, and helps those on my list–win, win, win!
Show Gratitude
When others are generous by sharing your content or re-tweeting your tweets, thank them. Favorite their tweet and re-tweet when it makes sense. Reply with a thank you and let them know how much you appreciate them sharing your content. Follow them if it makes sense. Add them to a list of generous people so you can be sure to reciprocate by sharing their content if it makes sense for your followers. Thank people who follow you, and follow them back if their content is interesting to you (I don’t follow everyone who follows me, but I definitely follow back most people who are generous enough to follow me if what they are doing is interesting (and ethical)–but I almost never follow anyone who doesn’t have a personal profile picture on Twitter (see Get Personal above). At the end of each day, I check in to be sure to reply and thank anyone who has engaged with my tweets.
Get Down to Business
You still have 75% of your tweets to devote to business–that’s a lot, so use it wisely. Business tweets should be about providing value–not asking people to buy your products or services all of the time. There’s a balance here. Run a special once in a while encouraging others to buy–sure, but for the most part, let your tweets be a reflection of the value you bring–the solutions you provide. This will naturally lead to an increase in business. Business tweets should be a mixture of:
- your most recent blog post
- answers to commonly asked questions
- product/service special promotions
- links to articles and resources that help/interest your followers
- testimonials to show how happy your customers are with your product/service
- upcoming events, classes, workshops
- industry related news + events
- news + events related to your business (a new product launch, office move etc.)
Be Timely
Do a Google search for the best time to tweet, and you’ll be inundated with the latest research (hint: it doesn’t all agree). I’ve found the best time to tweet is in the afternoon and evening–from an engagement perspective. That said, I Tweet more than just those times–and I schedule it in advance so I don’t have to worry about it throughout the week. Also Sarah Von Bargen (mentioned above) shared with me the busiest Twitter times are 8-9AM, 1PM, and 7-9PM – so I always schedule during those times because she has never steered me wrong (check out her content strategy services if you need a creative and powerful insight when it comes to creating and sharing content for your business). Weekends are also busy on Twitter, but I personally tend not to tweet on Sunday. I typically tweet at/around 8AM, 10AM, 1PM, 3PM, and 7PM, Monday – Friday. On Saturdays I tweet 1-3 times usually 10AM, 1PM, and 7PM. Find the times that work best for you, in which you receive the most engagement–but consistency is the key to getting momentum going, so in the beginning, just set up your schedule and stick with it.
What do you have to add to this cheat sheet? What works for you on Twitter? Please share your thoughts below in the comments–I would love to know!
Hey there! Thanks for stopping by! I’d love to connect, so drop me a line here or shoot me an email at norma [at] connectinteractivellc [dot] com. If you like what you’re reading, be sure and subscribe or sign-up just below for email updates so you don’t miss a thing!
By the Way… If you like what you read today, you’ll love this post: 5 Reasons Twitter Wins Best Social Media Platform for Busy Entrepreneurs.
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