Twitter: How NOT To Use It

April 3, 2015

Okay. I’m a social media expert with a Master in Communications Management and I’m Italian. Combine the three and you will get an idea of the sort of reaction I have when I see some Twitter feeds that are not quite right.


It seems to me there are lots of people who claim to be an expert on social media these days. But let me tell you one thing: just because you are able update your personal Facebook profile or Twitter feed every day doesn’t mean you are qualified to post on behalf of your business. You may well do more harm than good. Why? Because social media for business is not something you can improvise. As well as the necessary skills and expertise, you need to have a strategy in order to accomplish your goal and generate new business opportunities.


However, you can start improving your social media presence by following these tips. As you can probably tell, I am a huge Twitter fan so let me tell you how you shouldn’t be using it:


– No automated messages


Some Twitter software allows you to set up automated welcome messages that are immediately sent to a new follower and everyone on Twitter knows that they are not personally generated. I would unfollow you in a second if you auto messaged me. Instead, focus on creating genuine connections with people. Social media is all about conversations, connections and engagement. So, if you haven’t already, turn off the auto-messaging on your Twitter.


– Hashtag diet


If you haven’t started yours yet I suggest you do so as soon as possible. Hashtags can be extremely effective in your online marketing campaign, but can also quickly become annoying. My advice: stop abusing hashtags and start using them wisely. This means no more than three hashtags per tweet. No excessive, random and improvised use of hashtags please.


– Learn how to write


Yes, there is a difference between writing and writing for social media. You can’t just post the link to your content and wait for thousands of likes and shares. It doesn’t work like that. Always ask yourself “Would I click on this?”Using Twitter to promote your business is an art and for this reason you will have to sell at the right time with the right words.


– Don’t spam


One last rule: be genuine. If you want to be credible and succeed on Twitter, be honest and don’t annoy people. Always engage with people who are transparent about their identity as well because remember that a quality audience will always trump quantity.


What’s your experience on Twitter?


I would love to hear from you. And hope you will come back to read my next blog post on top tips to create engaging content on Twitter.

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