subject: How To Use Twitter For Marketing [print this page] Twitter has taken the Internet by storm and its growth rate has been has been amazing in only a few short months. Many companies are even featuring Twitter feeds on the bottom of their TV channels, and many people use Twitter to break news. Search engines also feature Tweets in their search results pages, and Twitter has proven itself to be a source of valued information, even with it's character limit. It's logical to use Twitter to market your product and/or to help build your brand!
The following steps outline a very simple and straightforward way to use Twitter to market your product or company.
1) Register your brand name on Twitter.com and start connecting with influential people, brands, or companies within your space by "following" them and @ (at) replying. In some cases, people will Re-Tweet your comment and you will be visible on other peoples' pages. A simple goal would be to @ (at) reply 1-2x per day and aim for 1 valued tweet per day, gradually ramping up as your sphere of influence grows.
2) Add a personal touch. I use a (professional) personal image or an appropriate logo for my Twitter accounts. Avoid using the default Twitter wallpapers because it will seem as if you really didn't put a whole lot of effort into customization. Many people also brand the wallpaper, leaving their contact information clearly visible in the background so that you can connect with them at a glance. I like to see whom I am talking to or dealing with, and so will your customers. Take advantage of the bio lines and add a brief description about your business and put a clean link in there. Think: simple and direct.
3) Leave good content within your "tweets" and occasionally, add a link back to your site or blog for continued/further reading on the topic. It's best to start small then to rush and put out a bunch of garbage links, spam or tweets just to get something "up there." The value comes in 1-2 gems per week found via credible news outlets or contacts within the industry.
4) Ask intriguing, open-ended questions and provide expertise responses by actively using the service. You can also perform searches on Twitter and monitor the trending topics to see what people are talking about. You can "@Reply" several people at once when replying or asking questions, as this is a fast time saver and an efficient way to communicate.
5) Be realistic about the outcome - Be patient and slowly let things take their course. You can't make 500 new people follow you in 1 day, but what you can do is add value to Twitter and ask good questions, and the followers will come. Put your Twitter account on your business cards, email signature, and appropriate forms of communication.
