Twitter can be a great asset for businesses. If used properly, it can be a very beneficial tool for marketing, customer service, communication and sales. Whether your twitter is for personal or business use, this ultimate guide to best Twitter practices will give you the information you need to get the most out of Twitter.
#1 Be Authentic & Believable
Avoid sending Auto Direct Messages. This advice is especially true for businesses trying to gain attention. Auto Direct Messages are those annoying DMs you get that say something along the lines of, “Hi! Thanks for following, please like me on Facebook”.
There is nothing less human than an ADM, and nobody wants to be bothered with them. Instead, send personalized messages to followers; they will appreciate them a lot more.
#2 Learn Twitter Lingo
There’s a lot to learn and a lot to be said about Twitter language. Knowing the proper lingo is beneficial for anyone using Twitter. Familiarizing yourself with Twitter lingo will allow you to use Twitter to its fullest potential.
For instance, #FF stands for Follow Friday. This is a great way to show appreciation to your followers and gain attention as well. Each Friday, pick a few of your followers and send out a tweet acknowledging them. Click here for a more complete Twitter Glossary.
Understanding hashtags and trends is also beneficial. Hashtag topics of your tweets so that people searching those topics will see your tweet. If your tweet refers to a certain city, place a hashtag before the name of the city (#SanDiego for example).
Trends are essentially popular hashtags. On the left hand side of your Twitter homepage is a box labeled “Trends”, which shows you what’s trending on any given day. Tweeting about these trends is a quick and easy way to gain attention
#3 Tweet Meaningfully
Followers will lose interest and unfollow your twitter account if you fail to engage with them. After all, Twitter is a social network. Have conversations with your followers – comment on pictures they post, reply to their tweets, or include their @name in your tweets to show them you’re actively engaging.
Start conversations with people who you want following you, and retweet their tweets as well. This way you’ll show up on their radar and they will likely start following you back.
Keep tweets short and to the point. When tweeting for a business, don’t tweet irrelevant material. Sharing newsworthy links, images and videos on Twitter is another great way to gain attention and followers.
And, never wait until later to tweet something. If it’s happening right now, you should be tweeting about it at that very moment.
#4 Tweet Often
The best way to maintain and increase your visibility on Twitter is by tweeting frequently. That being said, over tweeting and automated tweets can be more harmful than helpful. As suggested, make your tweets relevant and interesting. Set aside time in the morning, afternoon, and evening for your tweeting; spreading them out throughout the day will give you more exposure and allow you to reply to a wider selection of tweets.
#5 Follow People
Follow Twitter accounts whose interests and beliefs align with yours. You’ll want to follow many accounts, just make sure their material is credible and interesting to you.
Also follow people who follow you, as long as their accounts are credible and relevant to your interests. It’s always courteous to follow people who retweet you and favor your tweets.
#6 Track your Metrics and Conversation Trends
For a business using Twitter to grow and increase their clientele, it’s well worth it to invest in tracking services. Radian6 and Nielsen are two excellent services to consider using for this purpose.
One metric in particular that businesses should monitor is how much money Twitter is saving your company. Compare your sales and brand awareness from now to those from before you began using Twitter to see the benefits Twitter is providing your company.
With this ultimate guide to Twitter best practices, your Twitter account will soon become one of your greatest allies. Use it for your own personal gain, or for your businesses. By following our advice, your Twitter recognition will grow in no time.