Twitter is an easy-to-use, social media platform, which anybody can learn how to use almost instantly. There are several quick and easy to use features that, no matter how basic your understanding of Twitter, you can master within minutes – and have you tweeting like a pro in no time.
If you want to take your Twitter experience to the next level, there are some key tips that can take you from a casual user to a full Twitter expert especially for entrepreneurs who want to get the most out of twitter for their businesses. Try the following tips:
Use a good profile picture and Twitter biography
Help your followers put a face to a name! Put up a profile picture that tells people something about you, your interests, and your passions.
The same can be said for your Twitter biography: users want to follow interesting people that discuss engaging topics or who have engaging discussions on Twitter. Let your biography tell your story to potential followers.
Popular Nigerian comedian Ali Baba (@alibabagcfr) is a great example of how you can use Twitter to tell your story for you: Ali Baba’s profile briefly highlights the things that matter most to him. With over 227,000 followers, there is no doubt that Ali Baba’s information and tweets have helped him gain dedicated following.
Use memorable hashtags
If you have something interesting to contribute on a subject, use the hashtag feature on Twitter to make this happen. The hashtagfeature allows any person interested in specific subjects to follow your thoughts and directly link your tweets to a specific subject feed. Simply put the hashtag symbol (#) in front of the words or subjects that you want to have searched, and Twitter will help you do the rest.
Use the email notification center
With the integrated apps, widgets, and desktop or online tools (such as TweetDeck) Twitter provides you with many ways to keep updated on what people are sharing on your timeline. If you don’t have access to these features all the time, however, you can always set up your Twitter account to send you email notifications. These alerts will let you know whenever somebody marks your tweet as a favourite, when your tweet has been retweeted, or even tell you when you have been mentioned on Twitter.
Keep photo size in mind.
When choosing images for your profile, be mindful of the type of image you’re selecting and the size it will appear. Profile pictures, for instance, are small: 81 x 81 pixels. Your header image should measure 520 x 260 pixels.
Ensure your Twitter account reflects your brand.
Believe it or not, some companies don’t take full advantage of Twitter for branding purposes. When setting up your account, create a handle that’s related to your brand name and use your company logo as your Twitter picture.
Go beyond general, impersonal marketing messages.
Of course you want to use Twitter to spread the word about your products and services. But if that’s all you share, and if you share them frequently, you can bore your customers and turn them away. In addition to your marketing, sprinkle in unique, personalized messages that engage consumers one-on-one, as well as links to interesting, useful articles online.
Don’t ignore customer service.
An increasing number of your customers are most likely taking to Twitter to voice their satisfaction — and potentially their problems — with your products and services. Don’t ignore these messages. Monitor Twitter for mentions of your brand and respond quickly to any questions or concerns. You might also consider creating a secondary account specifically for customer service.
Use hashtags wisely.
You can use hashtags — a word or series of characters preceded by the # symbol — to categorize messages and can make it easier for other Twitter users to search for tweets. But remember that you can’t control what your followers and others on Twitter will say using hashtags you’ve created. Some of those comments could be negative or otherwise used in ways you didn’t intend.
Play nice.
You might be tempted to talk politics on Twitter. Or bash your competition or voice personal opinions about sensitive topics. But if you wouldn’t say these things in front of clients, it’s probably best to keep them off your branded social media accounts. On Twitter, adopt a tone that reflects your company’s image and keep your personal opinions to yourself.
Try creating a Twitter contest.
Help spread the word about your products and services for free. When a third party spreads positive comments about your products or services, it gives your company credibility and helps sell your products.
Track analytics to develop more effective marketing campaigns.
Although Twitter doesn’t really offer an internal analytics program for standard users, tools such as Tweriod and Followerwonk can allow users to track things like the geographic distribution of followers and the hours your followers are most active. Understanding this type of information can help you plan more effective marketing campaign and schedules.
Clean up your account.
On Twitter, one of your primary goals should be to interact with followers. Consider unfollowing low-quality accounts including spammers and people who don’t follow you back. FriendorFollow is a popular service that makes it easy to see and disconnect from any non-followers.
Change your password regularly.
You don’t want your branded Twitter account falling into the hands of hackers. Change your passwords frequently, and consider using random numbers, letters and symbols that aren’t necessarily related to your brand.
By following these tips, you are on the fast track to becoming a Twitter expert.
Source# Vanguard# Entrepreneur#
