Twitter? Tweets? What is this all about? Everyday more people are hearing these 2 words on the news, radio and in the break room. Let’s break this down into simple yet meaningful terms.
Twitter is a social media marketing site; however, unlike other social media networks such as Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn, it only asks one question for you to answer: What are you doing? And you, answer in 140 characters (not words) or less. Tweets are the answers you write, the more tweets the better. Think of Twitter social media marketing as a massive text message sent to everyone in your address book. Sound daunting? It’s not.
Why would you sign up for a social media marketing account with Twitter? Check out these advantages:
- Build brand recognition – choose a username that incorporates your business name & include in your bio.
- Build trust and expertise among your followers – you are your own business & industry expert, share it with others.
- Market your business & broadcast news, coupons, specials, etc – Free!
- Stay ahead of your competition – are your competitors on Twitter? No, then get a jump start. Yes, then follow them & stay abreast of their tactics.
- Use as a research & information social media marketing tool. Follow, read, learn, comment – easier than searching Google or Yahoo.
Ready to sign up for a Twitter account? Go to Twitter.com . Click the bright green button: Get Started – Join. Type in your real name (this is not your user name). Type in a user name; incorporate your business/brand so others will remember you (15 characters or less). For example, SearchCircus, CleveEvents, BaumFinAdvisor are all businesses who use Twitter as a social media marketing tool. Once you get the “ok,” create a password for your account. Then type in the security words, and click “Create my Account.” Voila! You are almost ready to tweet!
Every social media marketing network has a profile, Twitter included. Since this is a micro-blogging site, you are limited to how much you can put in your bio (Click on Settings in the top right hand corner). Twitter only gives you 160 characters or less to create your bio, so make it concise. Try a professional statement followed by a couple adjectives or descriptive nouns. Let people know who you are and what you do. For example,
“Marketing Web Business Coach, Author & Speaker” or “Financial Advisor, Securities Rep & Avid book collector” are just a couple ways to market your brand and yourself. Still others prefer to put in personal interests in their bio, which is fine too, just ensure you include your brand so you can capture the free social media marketing trends to build your reputation and gain a following.
Stay Tuned for Twitter: Using Social Media Marketing Part 2 and learn how to include a reputable picture, customize your Twitter background, using Twitter search, finding people to follow and what to tweet about.
