Thursday, March 26, 2015

Get Twitter Talking


By: Kristen Paquet, Senior Account Executive, Leonard & Finco Public Relations


Yahoo! You just hit 1,000 followers on Twitter. BUT… no one is talking. If your followers aren’t engaging with you or each other, 1,000 followers is just about as useful as having 10. So how do you engage?

Don’t just tell, ask. So many businesses get caught up in sharing information about their brand that they forget to ask questions. Start by simply asking for an opinion: “Launching new product line. Here’s a sneak peek. What do you think?”

Talk about more than just you. Sure, it’s your Twitter feed, but don’t make it all about you. Your audience will quickly lose interest if all you do is post about yourself. Consider adding posts about community events, relevant industry news or just fun items you come across that might help spark a conversation. “Summerfest line-up just came out today. Who are you going to see?”

Be active and responsive. If someone asks you a question, be sure to respond in a timely manner. This is what you’ve been waiting for! In addition, be sure to check out any new followers and follow them back if the fit is right. And be sure to give credit where credit is due by mentioning people’s names when you make a comment or share something from their feed: “Great post about how B2Bs can best use social media from @ABCcompany.”

Hashtags. The poor hashtag has come under a lot of fire lately for overuse or misuse. Don’t blame the hashtag, blame the user! Hashtags were designed for a reason…to let you search for specific information and find new followers. That being said, use hashtags when it makes sense. No one wants to muddle through a post full of them. Keep it simple: “Can’t wait to see who the #Packers pick in the #NFLDraft.”

Taking just a few minutes each day to really engage with your Twitter followers can be fun and have big benefits in the end. Give it a try and see who you start a conversation with! Do you have other tips to offer? Feel free to share!

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