Using Twitter for Business

I have to be honest… for all of my love for technology and all things “kinda geeky” when I first heard of Twitter, I just didn’t get it.  And, really, I’m still kinda doubtful, but recently I stumbled upon a blog entry by Richard Brooks, President of flyte new media, in which he gives details on how to use Twitter for business.

Twitter is the inevitable conclusion for a culture fascinated by fame and soundbites… the short attention spans due to an overwhelming amount of data we process on a daily basis.  But, at its heart, Twitter is just a communication tool.  Like the Web and the phone and the telegram before it, it’s just another connective device.

Within this participating audience are a growing number of people who use Twitter for business…. not just aggressive web marketers who “tweet” every blog post they make and create links to all their online activities.  Rather, there are professionals using Twitter in the following ways:

• Follow industry leaders who post links to important resources and influence conversations
• Post questions for quick answers and answer others’ questions to establish your credibility and expertise
• Create links to your Web site or blog (don’t over do it!)
• Keep up on the buzz in your industry
• Network with like-minded (cutting edge) people

The more people who follow you on Twitter, the more influence and networking opportunities you have.  Thus, it makes sense to try and build a following.  Try:

• Follow them:  but be discriminating.
• Post some good tweets right before following someone else:  If someone follows me and they only tweet about how hungry or tired they are, I don’t follow them back.  The same goes for people who haven’t tweeted in a while.
• Complete your bio:  People don’t follow strangers, so complete the one-line bio and include a URL in the More Info URL section of your profile. 
• Add your Twitter feed to your blog or to other social media profiles.
• Reply to people you are following, especially if they’re not yet following you:  That’s a great way to engage somone and get them to follow you, even if they didn’t follow you before.