Most people have heard of Twitter but are unclear how it can help them
grow their business or raise their professional profile. To many, Twitter
represents an uncontrolled stream of consciousness where people spend an
inordinate amount of time sharing the most banal or trivial information
about their lives in the hope that someone will take an interest. As a
result, Twitter can be hard to imagine as a business tool.Nonetheless,
used strategically to further business objectives, Twitter can play an
effective role in marketing your business, your products and services,
and your personal brand. Knowing how to use it and having a clear purpose
makes all the difference. This two-part article looks at setting up a
Twitter account and creating a profile which attracts the right kind of
followers.If you haven't got a Twitter account, you need to go the
Twitter main website (just Google Twitter). On the main page, you'll see
a sign up box which is headed "New to Twitter?" Provide your full name,
your email address and choose a password. These details can be changed
when you start to customise your settings but for now, choose a password
that you can remember. Then click on the signup button.Twitter will then
go lead you through an easy process of verifying whether your user name
has been taken and offering alternatives where appropriate. Again, you
can change details later when you amend your account however do think
about the user name you want to choose for your business.Twitter is a
micro-blogging site - you're allowed no more than 140 characters
(including spaces) with each posting. Within that post your name will
appear as @yourusername so choose a short name which won't use up too
much of your allocation.If your tweet (post) is retweeted (RT) it means
your post has been passed on by someone else to their own network. Your
name then appears as part of the retweeted message as well as the person
who's retweeting so a long name would soon use up the 140
characters.Select a username which is easy for your customers to identify
you with and (if possible or appropriate), reflects what you do. If
you're offering specific goods or services which people use as search
term e.g. "cupcakes", or "tennis rackets" then a username like
(@)"fancycupcake", (@) "eatcupcake", (@) "tennisracket", (@)
"greattennis" could be good options. If you're selling professional
services, then using your own name would reinforce your brand recognition
and integrity.Once you've passed the necessary verifications, an email
will be sent to your given email address to confirm your account opening.
In the meantime, you'll move through to the next stage of the process
which is to start selecting people to follow on Twitter. Be strategic in
your choice of followers - your business-related Twitter account carries
different expectations and standards to that of a personal account.When
you chose a follower, it means that their tweets will appear in what is
called your "feed". It's a constantly updating flow of tweets which
appear as soon as one of your followers posts it. You can follow anyone
you wish without an invitation. Unless they decide to block you, you'll
have access to all their tweets in your feed.As your choice of followers
appears on your profile and is available to other people to see, your
selection plays a part in the "know, like, and trust" factor which is
core to social media marketing. In the absence of physical contact, your
potential follower has to form an impression of your interests,
abilities, experience, and outlook from the way you build your profile,
with whom you connect, who follows you in turn, and of course, what you
have to say in your tweets.If you choose your followers wisely, you'll
find that your feed can provide you with very useful information about
what's happening in your niche community and industry. You can use this
for your own development, as market research, and as sources of
inspiration for new products & services.If you're an accountant, follow
key leaders and influencers in your field such as HM Treasury, HM Revenue
& Customs (or the US Treasury and the IRS if you're US-based),
accountancy and tax-related industry publications and journals. You can
pick up important information and commentary on your subject area which
you can use within your own business or pass on to your community and
clients.Retweeting relevant posts of interest and value to your own
followers is an excellent way of demonstrating that you're someone who's
up-to-date and current in their knowledge and thinking, as well as
mindful of the needs of your network and clients. It's an easy way to
show your clients that you're someone who's in the know.Don't clutter up
your own feed with witticisms and observations from celebrities if they
don't add value to your business brand. If you like these personalities
on a personal level just follow them from your private account. If you're
an actor, artist, musician, or writer, then it makes sense to follow
fellow creative people and learn how they use Twitter to reinforce their
brand. However, your business strategy should guide you to follow agents,
scriptwriters, composers, producers, business investors and other useful
people who have influence in your chosen field.Bear in mind that these
individuals or organisations are unlikely to follow you back
automatically. However if you regularly re-tweet (relevant) posts to your
own community, you'll be noticed by the person who's managing the Twitter
account who will be inclined to respond with a "thanks for the RT"
message which will include your username and be read by the many people
who follow that account.If you follow an account and regularly RT their
content to your own followers, it's likely that they will look up your
Twitter profile and find out more about you. They'll look at your profile
details and the calibre of your tweets. Based on your profile details
they'll decide whether or not to follow you back.In part two of this two
part series, you'll see how a compelling profile can persuade more of the
right people to follow you and join your online community.