Twitter is an exciting tool because it is free, and is populated with celebrities like Ashton Kutcher and Sarah Palin, as well as “every day people” who are potential clients for many businesses. It can also be intimidating, though, because with so many tweets and Twitter users, if you are not using Twitter effectively, you will not be heard. Here are some tactics to help you to get the most out of Twitter:
1. Follow Your Followers: Want to get lots of followers as fast as possible? Then start to follow everyone. This is the tactic used by most users when they are new to Twitter because it seems polite to follow those who are following you. A diet version of this tactic is to only follow those individuals who retweet your tweets, as a reward for their continued interest in you.
2. Be A Twitter Follow Snob: Instead of following every Twitter user who follows you, no matter how useless their tweets may be to you, pick and choose who you are willing to grace with your following. This means that instead of seeing a stream of random information and announcements, you will be able to see a preselected filter of news that is interesting to you.
3. Follow News On Twitter: Instead of just following individuals on Twitter, use the micro blogging site as a way to follow news from major newspapers like the New York Times and niche blogs that are focused on your industry.
4. Just Because It Is Virtual Does Not Mean You Should Not Be Real: Use Twitter as a way to engage with others first, and a means of gaining new sales leads second. With that in mind, refer back to tactic number 2, and only follow those Twitter users who are generating content that actually interests you.
5. Do No Harm: Harm on Twitter means spam. Send out links to your own web site or blog sparingly, and be sure to spread the love by sharing other interesting web sites and news stories with your followers.
6. Talk To Others: Twitter is not about lecturing and wondering whether anyone is listening. That is what your blog is for. So respond to others’ tweets, whether you know them in real life or not, and begin a conversation.
7. Be Reliable: The most popular Twitter users outside of major celebrities are those who consistently share information related to a single topic. Whether your niche is tax information or favorite puns, if you are consistent then you will gain followers who are interested in that topic.
8. Make Your Tweets Easy To Read: 140 characters may feel stifling at first. Do not begin to use excessive abbreviations or capital letters that make your messages so convoluted that it is impossible for your Twitter followers to quickly read them.
9. Keep Trying: When you realize that your number of followers has decreased it can feel as devastating as getting left out of a childhood play date. Do not take it personally. Just keep working to use Twitter better, engage more, and watch your follower number go up.
Continue to use Twitter every day to engage with others and enjoy getting the latest news first as well as valuable information that other Twitter users can provide you with.
Image by Bunker’s iphone via Flickr
