If you’ve not joined the 75 million strong Twitterati yet Sandy Dempsey founder of The Dreaming Cafe gives us five great tips on how to get started, why you should use Twitter and other social networking tools, and how to make it work for you and your business.
Personal: Who do you want to connect with? Why? Looking to connect with your Tribe-people who share similar interests and values?
Business: How will you promote your business? Will you be sharing your expertise via blogs and articles? Will you be offering specials just for Followers?
Just remember, whether you are Tweeting for personal or business reasons always remember to give more than you get, to share generously and engage people.
Just as you need a business plan, or at least a guiding vision with goals for your business, you also should have a plan when joining Twitter. Too many people join and then end up giving up and abandoning their accounts.
Decide when and how long you will spend on Twitter. I started with 15-minutes, three times a day.
Decide on your approach. Spend time each day Following new people, saying hello, reading and Re-tweeting and/or sharing something of your own that might be of interest to your Followers – this could be a link to a blog post you found interesting or a link to your own blog posts.
Check your Mentions and Re-tweets to see who is talking to you, or about you. Engage them in return, participate in a conversation and/or just say thank you.
Commit to sticking with it.
Twitter can be confusing in the beginning, but I recommend giving yourself at least three to six months before giving up and walking away.
Re-tweet – If someone posts something you enjoyed and think your Followers will, too, then Re-tweet it.
Say hello – Reach out to someone new you are Following or someone Following you and say hello.
Share something of value – a link to an article or blog post, a link to a video, a picture, a quote.
Ask questions – Confused or curious about something? Post and ask a question – preferably one that can be answered in 140 characters or less.
Answer questions – If someone posts a question and you have a solution or know where to find it, reply and answer.
Whether you are a writer, an artist or an entrepreneur sharing what you know generously with others helps build relationships. This is especially important if you are on Twitter to build a following and establish your expertise. You don’t have to give away everything you know for free, but sharing and helping others goes a long way in becoming a mentor, leader and go-to person in your field of expertise, or desired expertise.
Twitter has been around for a few years now and there a many experts that you may be tempted to emulate. Don’t. Be yourself. Tweet and engage others from a place of honesty and authenticity. Be a real person. Just be who you are and you will find yourself meeting new people, building friendships, learning new things and building your business all at the same time.
