[It seems everyone is Tweeting these days. Although Twitter, as a social media tool, is well entrenched in the market, many business professionals with whom we speak are still trying to grasp the value of regular sharing of information and how to use Twitter effectively.
The following are five suggestions that should help you use Twitter to effectively position yourself as a true thought leader.
- Have an objective. Before you embark on a Twitter campaign, ask yourself “why am I doing this?”. Are you trying to generate leads, build a brand, make new industry contacts? Whatever your goal, always stay focused on that niche.
- Make Your Tweets Worth Reading. It’s all about the quality of your content. You always need to be relevant to your followers and your brand. Creating good content is not difficult. You do it in your everyday professional life. On those days that you find yourself stuck for content, try giving your opinion on a relevant industry or news topic, or give your prediction of what you believe will happen.
- Collect Quality Followers. Contrary to popular belief, Twitter is not a numbers game. The quality of your followers, not their total mass, is what matters. Tweet to those followers that matter – they’re the valuable influencers, potential leads and contacts you want to cultivate most.
- Don’t Over-Tweet. A few valuable posts a day is more than sufficient. Too much Tweeting just becomes more “noise” in the blogoshere, not to mention just annoying. Remember, it’s the quality, not quantity, of your Tweets that will gain followers and position you as a thought-leader.
- Identify Relevant Twitter Feeds. Search Twitter to find others that you might want to follow or authors that you would like to eventually follow you. Listen, learn, engage with them and build your network from these people. Then analyze and adjust your Twitter efforts regularly to stay on track.
Used correctly, Twitter can be a powerful marketing tool. But always keep in mind the delicate balance of providing content that is relevant and is delivered at the right volume.
