… It’s time to wake up, shake off any End-of-Holiday Denial, and plug your brain back into its USB port.
If you’re anything like me, you gave your social media accounts a break over the holidays. … no? Oh well. One day, I too will take my addiction devotion a step further. But I digress. 2009 was the year the world learned Twitter 101. We collectively passed that course – most people know what Twitter is and how it works. So, welcome to your new class: Twitter 202.
This year, twitter will only continue to grow as people become increasingly savvy about how to use it – for both socializing and business. As such, everyone could use a few tips to keep ahead of the curve. Here are some that I use myself:
Befriend Connectors. Connectors are Twitterers who spend a lot of time engaging in conversation. You can tell them by looking at their profile:
- Tweets a lot – both on and off their usual topics
- Sends Re-tweets that are worth your time
- Engages in legitimate conversations (as opposed to blasting out links)
- Takes the time to make small talk with these people
If they like you, they will make your words heard to their legions of followers.
Choose your links wisely. Link to stuff your audience will like – it’s that simple. Even if you use Twitter as a promotional tool, link to your own page judiciously. You’ll only get so many chances before you’re on everyone’s ‘lameperson/spammo’ lists. Conversely, how would you like to be on a list entitled ‘interestingpeepz’ or ‘coolcauses’? That’s much better for business.
Get the #wurd out. Hashtags and keywords can help you find people interested in what you have to say. Search for a keyword or hashtag, browse through the results, pick a user you like and strike up a conversation. Odds are, you’ll end up following each other.
Build a storyline. If you want to engage your followers a little more, tweet in order. This can be done in a couple of ways. You can pre-write something you want to share and post it in parts. You can also, in a less disruptive way, tweet about the same topic over a certain number of posts, in an order that makes sense. Try referencing previous posts if they’re interesting and worth your followers’ time.
As the new year unfolds, there will be some of us who continue to tweet at random, spew links, spam, and otherwise bore the rest of us to tears with their Tweets. However, as the world grows more aware of Twitter’s potential I predict that we will collectively tweet more coherently and intelligently. Agree? Maybe you’ve got some more tips and tricks to share. Post here, or join our conversation on twitter.
Happy [belated] new year!
Alex
Tags: Marketing Strategy, Social Media, Twitter
