Twitter can be a labyrinth of global thoughts around the world – whether you are curious of what campaigns Barack Obama is supporting or Taylor Swift’s latest dispute – if you are a Twitter user, you know it’s all there. But why should businesses have a presence on Twitter? The answer is twofold – prospects and customers.
Twitter is the online neighbourhood of your future and existing customers. Did I mention there are 316 million monthly active users? The opportunity is huge, and as it grows in popularity more and more businesses are starting to recognise this.
The Social Media Examiner’s 2015 Industry Report disclosed that 66% of marketers will increase their Twitter activity in the coming year, more so than any of their other social media platforms. But the question is how?
You probably already know the key benefits of corporate utilisation of Twitter, but let’s translate a couple of those benefits into actionable activities.
1. Extending customer reach and building your following
The customers are there, hundred of millions of them, but they aren’t going to start following you automatically. A simple follow in hope for a follow back is a place to start, but this will not suffice. Using relevant hashtags when tweeting is a great way to get your company noticed. Relevant must be reiterated here – piggybacking on unrelated hashtags isn’t well received by the Twitter community. The following example caused global uproar that resulted in a public apology:

Images from Convince&Convert
The more you tweet, the more followers you will get, so tweeting a few times a day is the minimum. If the character restrictions are an issue, simply use a link shortener such as bit.ly. And don’t worry about having to do all the hard work! All content doesn’t have to be original – post tweets on relevant industry news and topical subjects. In fact retweeting content often results in more followers.
2. Increasing sales
Posting product and service promotions alone will not translate into sales. Generating sales through Twitter is a process. Let’s start with presales – Twitter is a great place to start gaining insights into a prospect’s interests, challenges and agenda. Do not stop at the official company Twitter page, see what their management team or even interns are saying about the company – insightful information can come from anyone.
Identify prospects by searching key words and hashtags your potential buyers may use. Again, don’t worry about doing all the hard work! Have a look at who your competitors are following. Another way of identifying prospects is looking for buying signals – this can range from searching terms like ‘recommend’ or ‘any advice’ to dissatisfaction of a competitor.
Now they are identified it’s time to nurture these leads and create sales-led conversations. Once you have found your leads spark up conversations offering your help, not a hard sell.
If you have a relationship with the customer direct messages rather than public tweets are more suitable. If it is a new relationship post content relevant to their problem, making use of the hashtags they are using to increase exposure. Moreover, ensure you provide a range of content relevant to the stages of awareness, consideration and buying.
Once a sale is closed it doesn’t stop there – even if a sale wasn’t created, if the customer has had a positive experience with you, your relationship has been strengthened.
Twitter is a great customer support tool and probably the world’s greatest feedback tool there has ever been. Twitter allows you to respond to queries in real-time. And quick customer support is always appreciated! Search for tweets you have been mentioned in and respond accordingly. Ask for feedback from your prospects – being mentioned in a (hopefully) positive tweet about your company can rapidly increase your following.
As Twitter put it, Twitter is “the fastest, simplest way to stay close to everything you care about” – you care about your (prospective) customers and they should care about you, it’s simple; be part of it and maximise it’s potential.
Here at Channel Tools we offer a broad range of services, from content creation to strategy to reporting, to ensure our clients are at the forefront of their social media activities.
We’d love to hear your thoughts! What are your top business tips when using Twitter? Tweet us using #ChannelSocial
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