Mandy EdwardsYou may think Twitter is this big, confusing, scary platform, but it’s not.
Yes, Twitter is fast-paced. Yes, you need to be really active to get the most out of it. And yes, it can really benefit you as a business owner even if your target audience isn’t active there.
See, Twitter is my baby. It’s the platform that has brought me the most clients and it’s through there I’ve been able to make some really awesome connections and friendships – both personally and professionally.
I firmly believe it’s the one platform every business owner needs to be active on. Okay, I know all about LinkedIn, but seriously – when was the last time you spent and real time working on relationships or having conversations there? Facebook may be the granddaddy of them all, but Twitter is where the real relationships happen (in my opinion).
Even if you are part of the 44 percent who have never tweeted before or you just don’t really ‘get’ it, you can always jump in. Of course, you need a reason (or two or three…) first.
Reason 1: It’s a great source of news and industry-related content.
If you can’t find something on Google, I guarantee you can find it on Twitter. Search keywords and hashtags. Save your favorite accounts to a Twitter list. No matter how you work it, you can tailor your feed or account to keep you up to date on what’s going on.
Lately a lot of politicians and celebrities have been using Twitter as their main medium for announcements. Two examples…
- The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge used it to announce the birth of Prince George and plan on using it again when their second child is born.
- Recently Hillary Clinton made her US presidential campaign announcement via social media before sending it to the mainstream press.
The best way to organize it all – Twitter lists. You don’t have to follow someone to put them on a list. This is a great way to keep up with everyone. You can see my lists here.
Reason 2: You have to be short, sweet and to the point.
Brevity is the best recommendation of speech, whether in a senator or an orator.
Marcus Tullius Cicero
On Twitter you don’t have to worry about long, drawn out 5000 character posts or rants like you see all the time on Facebook. Here you have only 140 characters to get your point across. This makes you really think about what you want to say (unless you’re Katy Perry and are in a Twitterfeud).
Reason 3: You can reach influencers and key decision makers more easily.
This is something I have found from personal experience. Tweeting to and starting a conversation with people who influence you or you are wanting to get to know have a higher response rate than on Facebook or LinkedIn. I’ll be honest – I don’t have a stat to back that up other than personal experience. Yes, some will choose not to respond (shame on them), but if you ask them a question you’ll more times than not get an response. However, don’t expect that from most celebrities – they are a different breed of Twitter users.
As a business owner, you can form meaningful relationships through Twitter by the mere act of just starting the conversation.
Reason 4: Find the trends.
I remember when “#” was simply the pound key on a telephone or the abbreviation for number. Of course now it has a whole new meaning – hashtag. Hashtags originally started in Twitter and this is how you can find what’s trending locally or globally within your industry or in society.
Facebook and Google Plus have tried to implement hashtags and hashtag searches but it’s not worked out as well as it has on Twitter. Tagging your tweet with a trending hashtag will open you up to more people and get you involved in the conversation. Knowing how to find the trends will help you get an edge, personally and professionally.
These four reasons are just a few to get you on the path to Twitternerddom (if that’s a word?). You can take it slow at first – I did. I start slow and gradual, building my presence to what it is now and I still continue to work on it everyday.
In all seriousness, if you are a business owner, you need to be using this platform if not for your business, but for yourself.
Who’s with me?
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