Ten years ago, it wasn’t uncommon for a company to circulate a newsletter or mailer highlighting the top news in its field of expertise. This was a powerful marketing tool to attract new business and offer value to existing customers. Today’s methods of attracting business and maintaining interest are quite different, and in some ways, a lot easier to create.
Today, social media and the internet connect millions of users with the click of a button. Twitter is one social media tools that has really created increased business opportunities for some companies. Twitter is a website that allows people to write short tidbits of information and post links that may interest others that are “following” them online. Companies can create accounts to share interesting news and articles that would appeal to their followers, thus indirectly drawing attention to themselves and growing their customer base. Ariba, a commerce company, shared the following bits of vital information that can help any company develop a successful social marketing strategy using twitter:
Tip 1: Identify your objectives early on. Defining your goals for Twitter is a crucial first step in determining the most effective approach. Do you want to monitor industry news? Hear what customers are saying about your brand? Build relationships with industry influencers? Focusing on one or two key areas will help you garner the right resources to meet your goals.
Tip 2: Get acquainted with Twitter by creating a personal account first. Before jumping in with a business account, get your feet wet by creating a personal one.
Tip 3: Listen before you speak. Prior to posting tweets about your business, find out what your customers and prospects are saying and whom they listen to. That way you’ll gain a clear sense of what’s relevant and useful to your target audience and can tailor your tweets accordingly.
Tip 4 (and I might add, the most important tip of all): Don’t overpromote. As with any social media resource, it’s important not to oversell yourself in your tweets. Doing so is a surefire way to turn off (and drive away) your followers. Aim for a one-to-four ratio of self-promotion vs. value-adding tweets or queries—i.e., for every tweet that describes what your business has to offer, send four that contain useful and interesting insights or perspectives, ask questions, or request opinions.
These are just of few of the insights from Ariba. To view the full article, click here. Please refer to a previous Millenium post for more ideas on how to make social media work for your business.
