Use Twitter for Marketing That You Might Not Know About

I like to think of Twitter as a live networking event where you can jump into a conversation at any time. It's a great tool for communicating information to followers but also for engaging with them. social media marketing university However, I've learned that many people, even those who are on Twitter frequently, use it only for sharing information -- not for starting a two-way dialogue. That's a lot like walking into an event and shouting at people but not listening to their responses. It just doesn't work.Over the last few years using Twitter, I've uncovered a few features that help businesses make better connections and build brand exposure. Here are five things I've learned about Twitter that could help improve your marketing strategy.Because of situations such as this, savvy consumers are turning to Twitter to get in touch with a business when they have a problem or a question about a product or service -- especially if it elicits a quick response from the company. A survey called "Twitter Q&A Census," conducted recently by InboxQ, suggests that socially adept businesses are beginning to use Twitter as a tool to directly respond to consumers and pay attention to issues that impact their brand, and that ‘social care’ is making a measurable difference. Set up Google Alerts to search on not just your company and product name, but also to pinpoint ways people might identify a problem that your product or service can solve.Use Twitter Search to do the same using Twitter. what is social media marketing Talk with others about their interests long before you talk about your company.When you take on new customers, ask if you can follow them on Twitter and suggest they "like" your Facebook page. Invite them to communicate with you through these outposts.Spend 30 minutes a day for two weeks working on these spaces. Eventually, 30 minutes won't be enough time, but for now it's a good way to start.

Use advanced search options to locate opportunities

The advanced search opportunities at search.twitter.com allow you to insert keywords that people would use in conversations to find you or your product or service. social media marketing jobs For example, I search for people who are tweeting the phrase "looking for speaker." It turns up a ton of tweets related to event or meeting planners. Once I find these keywords in posts, I reach out to the person who tweeted them to say hello, ask to connect and start building a relationship.Additionally, the search function allows you to target tweets from a certain area so that you can stay within a community. This helps allow local businesses to reach out to tweeters in their area.If Verizon happened to be "listening" -- which it should be -- it'd be made aware of a service-related issue and help me with my problem. Sure enough, Verizon’s Twitter account responded by sharing there was no outage in my area and suggested I reset my iPhone, which fixed the issue in a matter of seconds. Had I remained on the telephone, I’d probably still be listening to Barry Manilow.Primary among the Twitter Q&A Census survey findings is that 58 percent of Twitter users said they’re likely to follow businesses that answer their questions on Twitter, and 64 percent said they’d be more likely to make a purchase from a company from which they’ve received an answer to a tweeted query. InboxQ suggests that a business that proactively searches for and then answers questions posed to that brand on Twitter presents an opportunity "to surprise and delight potential customers that would likely not otherwise receive answers.In last month's column, I talked about bridging your company's on- and offline presence. social media and marketing These talking signs are my way of helping you bridge social networks to your main website of preference. With all this connectivity, your efforts to communicate and build relationships will translate to business faster. It's how I do what I do, and it can work for you.

Tweet often to boost search-engine optimization

Tweeting often not only helps you to stay active on newsfeeds but improves your ranking in online searches. Be sure to use keyword-rich phrases in your tweets as often as possible. social media marketing agency If you can't get your company name or personal name as your Twitter handle then make sure to include it in your bio. Because your bio on Twitter is public and open to search, using keywords in it such as your company name can help Google index content that's relevant to your business.Then you can use Google Alerts to monitor your name and company. Check these alerts to stay informed about what people are saying about your company, as well as what your competition is up to.Listening and responding to issues and inquiries from consumers -- whether from high or low follower accounts -- has become a reasonable expectation and something all businesses should do. Especially when just-collected survey data released by Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project reveal 13 percent of adult Internet users now use Twitter. That’s up 8 percent from last November. And among Twitter users who own a cell phone, just over half (54 percent) now use their phone to access their Twitter account.If you use shopkick or Foursquare, you already know: Online and offline worlds are colliding as consumers become more comfortable with networks, apps and mobile devices. And as for the companies making it their business to link up the two worlds, they're reaping some serious benefits.Take, for instance, Los Angeles-based ShareSquare, which uses quick response, or QR, codes (those small black-and-white dotted squares showing up on more and more product packaging and ads) social media marketing company to help convert a moment of consumer discovery into one of action.QR codes have been around for years, admits founder and CEO Matthias Galica, a graduate of the 2010 Founder Institute startup mentorship program in Silicon Valley. But ShareSquare is making headway where others have failed because musicians--the company's target vertical--are scrappy early adopters.