Using Twitter for Your Home Business

Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:04 PM PDT

Every social media site has its place as a business tool. They tackle the socialization of ecommerce from a different angle, with their own unique advantages. Which is why a successful social media campaign will establish itself first on one site, then another, then another until they have created an entire multi-platform network of fans engaging in whatever way they feel most attached to.

Social Media Sites and Ecommerce

When you are talking about the initial steps to this process, you tend to think of two sites as starting points. The first is Facebook, which has always been focused on ecommerce in a big way. The second is Twitter, which has slowly been adapted for professional use over time. Mainly through outside tools that allow you to better target your chosen audience.

Because it is a microblogging site, you might be at a loss as to how to use it for your home business. You want to find a balance between the different capabilities of the site, and many entrepreneurs make the mistake of relying too heavily on a single form of content or engagement.

These tips will help you to effectively use Twitter for your home business.

Don’t be afraid to get creative. Remember that innovation is an important part of any form of engagement. You have to be creative in both the way you organize your social media activity, and how you connect with your target audience. Lately, I have seen more people using things like lists to make personalized groups of people and keep track of their followers, who they are following, who inspires them, affiliates, customers and even people they would just like to get to know or work with.

Pay attention to your presentation. Twitter is not the prettiest of social networking sites. Because of that – and the general lack of effort from most users – people think that you can’t really customize the way your profile looks. But appearing just like every other lackluster account out there can really hurt your business, so don’t make that same mistake. You can create a Twitter landing page, change background images, play with colors, make custom buttons and more. Plus, a little effort put into your profile image can make a huge difference. You want your account to be both memorable and immediately recognizable.

Get in some chat time. You have probably heard of tweetchats by now. These are active, live conversations held at specific times, groups by hashtags. People will use a tweetchat program to follow the chosen hashtag and get live updates, while responding themselves. Any number of people can participate, and it both allows for one on one engagement, and remains within the users Twitter feed. Which means they are more likely to draw the attention of their followers both during and after the tweetchat. This is a great way to speak to customers, find out what they want and build brand loyalty.

Don’t forget face to face meetings. Ecommerce businesses have a downside when it comes to direct interaction. Because it is online, they miss out on the chance to speak to both business contacts and customers face to face. It can mean a more impersonal experience, and that isn’t good for a growing company. Which is why more businesses are organizing tweetups. These are local meetings with people you have connected with in your area. You can organize your own tweetup with customers or business affiliates (or potential partners) easily using this method.

Provide good descriptions. You will be linking through your Twitter. But just dumping a link and leaving it is never a good way to go. Twitter will immediately shorten the URL as much as is needed. So don’t worry about character space, and write a small description to get their attention. This should be done for anything from announcements, press releases, blog posts and product launches/sales.

Twitter is the perfect social ecommerce tool. But you have to use it the right way. Use the tips above, and you will be in good shape.