Using Twitter
as a Marketing Tool

If you have been active online in recent months, you will find that one of the crazes that has been taken up in almost every corner of the internet is Twitter.

At the most basic level, Twitter is a networking tool that essentially operates at as a microblog. People who post Twitters will make posts that are only 140 characters (or less) in length. These posts will then be posted to whatever resource another user who was interested in the poster's work would choose to receive them.

The original concept behind Twitter was to create a forum for people to submit short posts in reponse to the question, "What are you doing right now?" It has evolved far beyond that, but it can also still be used in that way as a communication tool between family and friends.

You can make Twitter posts from your computer or on the phone, and you will find that people can choose to receive them through media as diverse as instant messaging, RSS feed, email, the Twitter website or through applications that can be found on Facebook and Twitterific.

One of the most charming things about Twitter is that it is short, simple and immediate. People don't have to wade through a long blog post to get all of the details that they need and they don't have open up their email if they don't want to. It is a surprisingly personal method of communication and many people in the marketing field are coming to realize how powerful it can be.

If you are interested in marketing through the Twitter medium, you'll find that there are many advantages in doing so. For instance, if you are in retail, you can let people know about new sales or new products, and if you are in the news or entertainment industry, you can use Twitter to drop all sorts of behind the scenes or supplementary information. You can upload URL links to your website, articles you have published online, or other online resources you want to share.

When you are looking to adopt Twitter to your own purposes, you will find that there are many things that you can communicate to your waiting client base. You will be posting short bursts of information that will let them know what is going on with you. This will remind them of your existence, and you will find that this can be invaluable when you are looking to move ahead and to get the word out fast.

Getting started with Twitter is extremely simple. All you need to do to get started is to go to Twitter and you simply click a button to get started. You will enter a username, a password, your email, and proof that you are not bot, and you will be good to go. You can get started right away; just remember to get on your other networking media and to let them know that they can make contact with you in this fashion. You can add "Follow Me on Twitter" links to your website or other social media sites.

Follow Veronica Robbins, Your Small Business Guide, on Twitter!

When using your Twitter, remember that you should not overuse or abuse it. Here are a few rules to follow:

• Don't pollute the "twittersphere" with noise just saying, "hi" and "bye" to the world at large. It's annoying.

• While it is fine to promote your own website and articles, don't only promote your own stuff. If you find other good resources, promote those, too. As with any online community, if you are a good neighbor, you will be well-received. It is obvious who is there only to take, take, take. If you are one of those people, you'll have few followers.

• Don't neglect twitter. You will only maintain a following there if you post regularly. I try to do some twitter posting every day. Sometimes, I spend a lot of time posting to twitter; others days I just do a quick update, but I do something.

• Take advantage of the ability to post from your mobile device (i.e., cell phone). It makes posting updates much easier. You don't have to be tied to your computer anymore!

• Don't spam. If you end up spamming the people who have signed up to receive updates about your work, you will find that they will remove you from their media (i.e., quit "following" you) quite quickly. Remember, if you have no followers, twitter is useless to you as a marketing tool.

• An easy way to get started with some followers is to start following other people. Many people will follow you at least for a little while if you start following them.

• Search Twitter for people in your field, follow them, and then check out their their lists of followers. Add "Follow Me on twitter" links to your website and blog. You'll be amazed at how fast your network grows.

  Use twitter to talk to your clients and to really start a conversation with them; this can go a long way towards giving you the results that you need!
  
  
  
  

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