Is Twitter for the Birds?
By Jess Joss
Isn’t tweeting what birds do to chat with their friends? How is that going to help grow my business?
Wikipedia defines Twitter as a free social networking and micro-blogging service that enables its users to send and read other users’ updates known as tweets. Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length, which are displayed on the user’s profile page and delivered to other users who have subscribed to them (known as followers). Senders can restrict delivery to those in their circle of friends or, by default, allow anybody to access them. You can also include links to articles or websites that you recommend. If you are familiar with Facebook status updates, then Twitter updates, other than the more limited length, will seem commonplace to you. You can Tweet on the go- the service is free to use over the Internet, but using SMS (text) may incur phone service provider fees.
But does anyone really use Twitter?
Estimates of the number of daily users are truly estimates, as the company does not release the number of active accounts. In November 2008, Forrester Research estimated that Twitter had 4-5 million users. According to Compete.com , in the winter of 2009, it ranked Twitter as the third most used social network (Facebook being the largest, followed by MySpace), which puts the number of unique monthly visitors at approximately 6 million and the number of monthly visits at 55 million, however just under half of users are lost to attrition. In March 2009, Nielsen.com rated Twitter as the fastest-growing site in the category of Member Communities for February 2009. Twitter had a growth of 1382%, Facebook with a growth of 228%.
Ready. Set. Tweet!
To get started on Twitter, you simply sign up online at www.twitter.com and then customize your profile’s look and feel. Next, begin following a few people-leaders in your industry and a few news sources make for a good list, while you are getting your feet wet. When creating a social media profile, try to have one profile photo, and standard contact information, for consistent branding; either personal branding or for the company brand.
Even if you aren’t ready to start tweeting non-stop, or don’t have someone within your organization that you can appoint to be the Twitter champion, it is still useful to register your user name. Like with domain names, we all know a well-established, strong business that failed to protect their brand registering several domain names early enough, and then had to scramble to find alternate domain names. Don’t let this happen to your company, in the Tweeter-sphere.
Next, tweet! Share links to articles that you found useful. If the link is very long, you can shrink it using a service like, www.tinyurl.com or many others. Tweet some thoughts on innovations in your industry, or opinions on articles related to your area of expertise. Respond to other people’s comments. Re-tweet (forward and share) tweets that you found valuable, humorous, or interesting. Set your mobile phone up to post updates on the go, when you text to a specific number. If the audience for your Facebook status updates and your tweets are similar, you can link your Facebook updates to automatically post to Twitter, saving one step in your day. (However, if one is for friends and family and the other for business associates, and clients, it is best not to link the two accounts.) Happy tweeting.
To manage the people you follow on Twitter, you can create lists, which are like categories. If there are a number of topics, competitors and sources that you would like to follow, you can use www.Tweetdeck.com (or similar services) to organize all of the information into a synthesized dashboard, to view at a glance.
But really, why do you as a business owner or marketing manager care?
There are many reasons, but here are five salient ones for a dynamic business:
First, some of your target market or their buying influencers are using Twitter. It is always helpful to be sharing information in a space where your clients researching and conversing. Speaking to your potential client in the manner they wish, makes your accessible and approachable. Converse with your audience.
Second, search engines, such as Google, are now indexing Twitter updates, so carefully worded tweets can support your website’s existing search engine optimization campaign. As well, they can also be used to announce new blog posts, which are also used to augment your search engine marketing. All online activities are interrelated and this magnifies their power.
Thirdly, information is a very useful business tool. Using Twitter you glean competitive awareness by seeing what your competitors, suppliers and partners are sharing online. It can also be interesting to access the scope of their reach through www.twittercounter.com. When you are informed, you can make stronger strategic decisions.
Fourthly, consumers say that they are 73% more likely to feel endorsements from their social network are more valid than those from a corporate website. Developing online community, helps creates buzz. As well, providing great products and services allow happy customers to become brand advocates, and social media is an easy way for them to share their compliments and experiences.
Finally, between February 2008 and February 2009 almost 1.5 million unique searches were done on Twitter. That number will have increased as the number of followers and the activity have continued to rise. Where people are searching for information, potentially related to your vertical, don’t you want to be found? If so, you have to be in the game!
Twitter is a useful and growing business communication tool that companies can’t afford to ignore. It can help your business’ influence grow.
And tweeting is not just for the birds!
Jess is a partner at Insiteful Solutions, www.insitefulweb.com. At Insiteful Solutions, they are online results specialists. Using a proprietary and unique system for entrepreneurial business owners and their marketing decision makers, they provide the insite you need to attract and continuously engage your target audience. For further information, please contact Jess at 905-947-8235 or jess@insitefulweb.com
2600 John Street, Unit 207, Markham, ON L3R 3W3 T: 905.475.5222 F: 905.475.6369
