Internet Marketing Blog

Social Media Tips: Why should I Twitter when my clients don't?

Share

 

A question I'm often asked by businesses checking out what social media has to offer them: Why should I Twitter when [I think] my clients don't?

If you have not Tweeted yet and you are unsure what Twitter has to offer there are some very good reason to Tweet - even if you think your clients don't.

Listen
Twitter is a perfect tool for listening to what your clients are saying about you. If you are new to Twitter, I recommend you start by just listening - at some point you will want to join the conversation yourself, but before that you can find a lot of valuable information.

A tool I really like for this is Twitterfall.com. Simply put in a search term you would like to listen in on, and all the tweets cascade down your screen in real time. 

To get you started on your Twitter-surveillance think of these topic areas:

• Your Name
• Your Brand
  
• Industry terms
• Your competitors

Search Engine Optimisation
Twitter is very good at getting ranked in Google. For example, Laura Fritton who registered the Twitter profile name 'Pistachio' in the early days now ranks number three in Google for that keyword. It's a very high competition keyword, but she has done it purely by Tweeting. Take some time to think about what Twitter profile name you can register - try to include a good keyword.

One of the criteria Google use to decide on where to rank a particular website is the freshness of the content. Why not include a Twitter widget on your website showing your latest tweets. Its an easy way to keep a page fresh.

Public Relations
In the old days of PR, a business would write a press release and send it to an agency who would distribute it to journalists. Since then, lots of companies have realised they can get some SEO credit simply by publishing a press release - they are not bothered about it being picked up by a journalist. But what should you do if you genuinely have a news-worthy story?

Twitter is a great way to reach out to journalists who are interested in your industry. Find out who they are, and follow them on Twitter; the chances are they will follow you back. You can then communicate your press releases to them directly by Tweeting them.

If you are considering a social media campaign for your business, remember it's not a silver bullet - it works most effectively as part of an Inbound Marketing campaign.