Written by: Susan Solomon www.skscreative.com
Research by: Carl Marxer and Susan Solomon
With so many social marketing options, how do you know if it’s time to tweet? Let’s start by defining Twitter. Simply stated, it is a micro-blogging platform which allows you to publish short messages of less than 140 characters through different mediums like IM, cell phones. Anyone can sign up by going to Twitter.com. It’s simple, easy, free and takes about 5 minutes. By sending out short “tweets” or messages you create a “following”. That means others can check in and see what you are communicating. Think of it as brief e-mail messages on the world-wide web, to generate excitement about something you are doing, selling or thinking. You can also easily follow thousands of users and enter into conversations conducted among multiple users at any point, according to Lisa Reinhart on February 2006 DoshDosh blog.
So, what’s the benefit of creating an exceptional Twitter “conversation”? A large influx of traffic that will flow to your webpage, store, event etc.. According to Erik Sass of Online Media Daily, February 26, 2009, a Korean taco truck in Los Angeles, who tweets 20 min prior to his arrival at various junctions, is met by hundreds of people anticipating his tacos.
If your offering appeals to a broad enough market, it will develop a user base. A well thoughout communications strategy should eventually “grow itself”. That means people will recommend it to friends, new users and the general public without direct incentives from you. Why? Because it is genuinely helpful, interesting or relevant.
But here’s the rub. You need to commit. According to Vangie Beal in her blog “How to Use Twitter as an Online Marketing Tool “ March 17, 2009 one of the most damaging things a business can do is embrace their consumers in social media -- then leave them hanging. When you decide to use Twitter for business, be sure you are ready to make a long-term commitment. Here are some new user tweet-tips:
- Start by telling your customers and brand followers that you are on Twitter.
- Be transparent & friendly when you address concerns about public tweets made to you.
- Tweet messages that will encourage direct responses and comments from those following you.
- Update your Twitter status daily and make sure you communicate special links and deals to your Twitter following.
- Give your followers a reason to stay connected to you.
Rodney Rumford, a social media guru and one of the keynote speakers at the inaugural 2009 Gravity Summit on Social Media in Los Angeles echoes the sentiment regarding the power of Twitter.
"Twitter is a goldmine," Rumford said. A number of big consumer brands are already on the site--including Starbucks, which currently boasts about 6 million followers.
If you are new to Twitter, consider these 6 winning ways to leverage it:
1. Branding. It has the primary benefit of developing a casual persona and establishes you or your company/product as a social “personality” that is connected and approachable. As Twitter adoption increases, new users will be drawn towards well established Twitter personas.
2. Feedback. Need an alternative perspective on how a website looks or the right course of action to take or a new product? Blast out a message asking for advice and you’ll receive replies from other users. This collective intelligence can be used as fodder for articles or projects.
3. Sourcing. Need a good logo designer, marketer or programmer? Send out a message asking for recommendations. This is a very quick and easy way to hire freelancers or even companies based on familiar recommendations.
4. Direct traffic. Twitter can be used to stimulate traffic to yours or partner websites. If you ask your clients or friends to tweet about it, the message will spread faster and further as other active users pick it up. There is a viral nature to all types of news.
5. Megaphone: Do you have an upcoming contest or special event? Let your followers know. Give them enough detail to generate excitement and tell them how to participate.
6. Echo Chamber- Release a prototype into they cyber wild west and see what comes back. In minutes you can get a huge sampling of responses from a potentially varied demographic.
Marketers can use Twitter actively or passively, Rumford says--in the first case by reaching out with promotional messages, and in the second by setting up a "listening engine" that allows them to track consumer sentiment in public postings on the site. Most specialist send the same work of caution to new users --any active marketing must be handled carefully to avoid alienating consumers with the appearance of dishonesty or inauthentic, impersonal messages, say Rumford "Remember It's not a campaign, it's a conversation."
