Twitter can be great for finding new customers and building relationships. Spending just a few minutes a day can get results if you are doing the right things. Here are some tips to help.
- Twitter should be conversational and not a one way broadcast. Take the time to engage with your followers by liking, retweeting and replying to their tweets.
- Don’t overdo the self-promotion, this is boring for your followers. Try and tweet messages your followers will find interesting or useful.
- Check for mentions of your business (using Twitter’s search function) and respond appropriately. You can thank people who are saying nice things and address any complaints (I’m sure there won’t be any of those though).
- Set goals e.g. build a relevant following, build relationships with existing and potential customers.
- Create a twitter calendar. Include key dates in your industry, events you are attending etc.
- If you are following a lot of people it can be hard to keep up with the volume of tweets. You can use lists to separate the accounts you are following into groups.
- Follow your potential customers, this could be a great way of introducing yourself to new customers. Whenever someone follows me I usually have a quick look at their profile to see who they are and often follow them back.
- Use hashtags to reach a larger audience. Hashtags such as #UKBusinessHour (Thursday 8-9pm) allow you to promote your business to a wider audience. You could turn one or two words of a tweet into a hashtag e.g. the subject of your tweet or the place where you operate.
- Scheduling tweets can be useful for times when you are not around, but be prepared to cancel them if necessary. World events may make a harmless tweet that you wrote weeks ago seem insensitive.
- Try and inject some personality into your tweets. Make it obvious that it’s a person tweeting and not a robot.
References
9 Ways Small Businesses Can Use Twitter
https://www.theukdomain.uk/9-ways-small-businesses-can-use-twitter/
The Small Business Guide to Twitter
https://www.simplybusiness.co.uk/microsites/twitter-for-small-businesses/
What Should I Tweet? Tips for Corporate Twitter Accounts
https://www.stateofdigital.com/what-should-i-tweet-tips-for-planning-corporate-twitter-accounts/
Making the most of Twitter for small businesses
https://www.wordtracker.com/academy/social/twitter/small-business-guide-to-twitter