By Amy Olivieri, Constant Contact Regional Development Director, Houston Metro
Twitter is like the Swiss Army Knife of social media networks.
At first glance, it seems simple – a network where people share news stories, blog posts, and other content and engage with colleagues and businesses using 140 characters or less. But take a deeper look into how it can actually be used, and you find that the value it brings to small businesses is anything but simple. In fact, it’s one of the most powerful networks available to business owners today.
Using Twitter for your small business really starts with understanding what you’re trying to achieve. Are you looking to promote your organization or drive activity to your website? Do you want to provide your customers with an easier way to connect with you online? Or are you just trying to add a new element to your next event?
Understanding what you hope to gain from using Twitter will help you make better decisions about the content you create and improve the likelihood of getting noticed by your target audience. It will also help you make decisions about how you want to promote your Twitter handle and give your content more visibility.
Here are eight tips to help give your content the exposure it deserves:
- Make it easy to digest (Example: 10 Tips to Help You Do [Blank])
- Use words that catch your readers’ attention (best, worst, most, least…)
- Think of Tweets like email subject lines
- Remember Twitter’s most important question: Why should I care?
- Use a personal comment instead of just auto-sharing links
- Take advantage of Twitter’s “Search” tool
- Make it visual: use photos, videos, infographics, etc.
- Join a Tweet Chat
Remember – just being on Twitter won’t be enough to accomplish your business goals. What will allow you to achieve those goals is having a social strategy about the way you plan to engage on Twitter, the type of content you want to share, and the milestones you hope to achieve.
