Better Ways to Use Twitter for Small Business Marketing

As a small business marketer it's all too easy to dismiss Twitter within a few days of signing up. With around 500 million tweets sent every day but little interaction and few followers when you start out, the social network can feel like more of an echo chamber.

As the site grows, however, it's worth taking a second look. There's often much more for your company to get out of Twitter than you think -- and even more that you can put in to help and attract potential customers!

[caption id="attachment_2244" align="alignright" width="256"] Image Credit: igmedia[/caption] With an undeniably high early drop out factor, perseverance and a solid Twitter game plan will see you leap these early hurdles quickly and confidently.  

7 Ways to Reboot Twitter for Small Business Marketing

Here are seven ideas that should see your business get over those early Twitter trials and push on to new relationships that will build your brand awareness: 1. Use hashtags: Research relevant hashtags used by others and target your tweets to add to those conversations. Remember, people are searching these tags to find specific interests, so your tweets will reach more eyeballs... but make sure you keep it relevant! 2. Spread tweets & repeats: It’s fine to repost your most important tweets at various times though the day, because tweets are fleeting (500 million a day, remember?) and people will be online at different times. Vary your wording and delivery to keep things fresh, but ensure that your core message remains in tact. 3. Try to help: Search for questions in your business sector or other areas of expertise. Wherever possible, try to answer these questions, as this is not only an invitation to help, but to start a conversation with someone who might have an interest in what you do. Use hashtags and Twitter chats to find queries and build new relationships with potential customers or partners. 4. Retweet (and favorite) regularly: Share the work of others. This doesn't just add variety to your Twitter stream, but builds goodwill from other users who may do the same for you. In order to show appreciation without fully sharing a post, use the favorite function (the star icon on a tweet). 5. Watch your @s: The @ mention has a more ‘personal inbox’ feel to it for most of us, so it can be used to get the attention of someone you’d ideally like to read and share your tweet. Use it carefully, though, as it’s easy to cross the line into spam. As usual, it helps if you know the person you're tweeting or have interacted with them before. 6. Join communities: Find the areas where your potential customers gather (again, hashtags are helpful) and begin to participate. If the crowd gathered there is a good fit you can begin to recommend your content to these communities. You can also explore tools like Triberr to connect your profile to other like-minded content producers and their followers. 7. Interact and influence: The first and final rule of Twitter? The more quality you tweet in, the more quality connections you’ll get out. Take part in a wide range of subjects  to grow your Twitter followers and extend your the reach of your tweets. Connect with influential users and organizations in fields that interest you to push your tweets even further.   It can certainly require the slow and steady development of relationships to build a significant following and have others sharing your tweets. That said, your small business profile can also take off like a rocket with a well-placed tweet or addition to a chat where you provide useful insights from your industry. Will you give Twitter a second chance for your small business? Tweet us @Ring_Boost to tell us your story, if so!