How to create a presence on Twitter

Creating a presence on Twitter is one of the best things you can do for your business. Not only is Twitter a wonderful way to contact your existing customers and to find new followers, but it’s also a top opportunity to enhance your online appearance and engage with the community. Here are the top five things you should do with your Twitter account.

1. Tweet regularly.

After you’ve joined Twitter, the most important thing for you to do is use it! Many businesses set up their accounts, only to let them sit around unused. Twitter is about getting in on the conversation. Get one started by proposing a question. Or respond to someone’s question. Use an application like Hootsuite or Tweetdeck to easily track your “@” replies and mentions. Try to be timely. If you see something you want to respond to, it’s best to do it then rather than waiting a week until you get a moment. Also, have personality! Don’t be boring! People want to know who you are.

2. Have a good following to follower ratio.

To look more credible, keep the number of people you’re following roughly the same to the number of people following you – a good ratio here lends you credibility and authority.  Avoid the “get followers fast” tricks. Don’t get greedy! As a general rule, it’s proper to follow back those who follow you. They have shown an interest in what you are up to and it’s only polite to return the gesture. You can always unfollow them later if they have questionable content or are offensive.  Think quality over quantity. If you are tweeting interesting and relevant content, people will find you. If you are just starting, go ahead and follow others first.

3. Use Twitter to provide discounts and offers.

Twitter is a great way to provide exclusive offers and incentives to those who follow you. Some businesses have had success offering additional discounts to those who retweet a link, or spread the word through a hashtag post. This gets users involved and they often retweet to their followers. Also, if you provide a unique code, you can track that code to see how successful the campaign was.

4. Create a professional-looking Twitter page.

It’s important that your online presence is professional-looking – create your own Twitter background, and make sure your photo is on the page so people know who they’re talking to. People relate to people, so when they see your face instead of your cat, they relate to you more which helps build trust.

5. Allow people to contact you, and respond to their needs.

Provide contact information, and be available for those who have questions, concerns, or suggestions! An open door will always invite more customers. Respond to tweets in which you are mentioned. Acknowledge tweets even if they are negative, it may be the perfect opportunity to turn a negative experience into a positive.

Need help managing your Twitter account for your business? Call (or tweet) us! We’ll help you get up and running in no time.