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Five Steps to Building a Loyal Following on Twitter

by | Jul 17, 2013 | Blog

We’re all guilty of watching anxiously as our Twitter followers grow, sometimes slowly and if you’re lucky (or strategic about it) it can grow at a much faster rate. But that number doesn’t necessarily translate into success. The key to being successful on Twitter is maintaining and growing a loyal following . This means having people follow you who understand who you are and find value in what you offer.

A loyal following is engaged with you and finds the content you share useful and/or interesting. If you’re looking to build a loyal following on Twitter, here are five steps to get you started.

Have an complete profile
A current and relevant profile bio is a great place to start. A good first impression on Twitter is key to attracting new followers. Use your Twitter bio to indicate the type of content you’ll be sharing, your interests and what your purpose is. This will attract followers that share the same interests and find value in your activity. These users are more likely to retweet and share your content and engage in conversations with you.

People are more likely to connect with, and trust, a Twitter user that posts a photograph in their profile, rather than a company logo or an avatar. Although, company logos can work, it takes a lot more work to be seen as human, when your face is hidden behind a graphic.

Share intentional content
Whether it’s informative, creative, supportive, or entertaining, be intentional with each tweet. Ensure that the content you share on twitter has a purpose; it meets the needs of your followers, offers new information or is supportive of other users.

Be engaging
Being active and engaged on Twitter is arguably the most important step in developing a loyal following. Twitter is about more than just “creeping” and reaping the benefits of others’ tweets, it’s about participating in conversations and offering value. Being engaged with your network means actively replying, retweeting and sending out links that direct your followers to quality content.

Use Twitter directories
Twitter directories categorize Twitter users into areas of interest and expertise. Here you can find influencers that share your interests. Following people of high quality will enhance your credibility and give you access to quality content to share.
Schedule your tweets
Scheduling your tweets allows you to remain active even when you’re not sitting at the computer. Tools like TweetDeck or HootSuite allow you to prepare, schedule and send tweets at a later time or date. Managing your tweets through an organized schedule ensures that you are tweeting regularly without having to return to your Twitter feed to issue the release. The benefit? It gives the impression to your followers that you’re an active participant on Twitter. However, you’re not completely off the hook. You should still make time to retweet and have conversations.

The formula for building a loyal following on Twitter is simple. Spend some time focusing your identity and developing your Twitter profile and bio, engage in meaningful ways with your followers, follow people who are like-minded and share your niche, offer your followers relevant and interesting content regularly and manage your tweets using a scheduling tool. These steps will not only help you be an efficient tweeter, but will increase your follower count in no time.

Five Ways to Establish a Trust-worthy Presence on Twitter

by | Jul 5, 2013 | Blog, Community Management, Customer Service, Social Media, Social Selling

Twitter is an effective place to find sales leads, build relationships with prospective customers and close deals. So effective that we wrote an ebook about how you can close deals using Twitter (shameless plug). We believe that Twitter is not only an effective tool to leverage brand awareness but also build meaningful relationships with potential leads and customers.

Companies typically start by developing a plan, choosing the right social platform, creating and launching a brand presence, integrating social media tools with business goals and then pushing out their content. However, with only 140 characters to share and a feed that updates in minutes, it can be challenging to find your voice and establish credibility on Twitter.

The trust factor is the most important piece to the Twitter puzzle. Your followers will be more likely to engage with your content and respond to your calls to action if they believe you and if they trust you.

Here’s five ways to establish trust on Twitter:

1. Be personal
Twitter users want to follow brands that they identify with. Use a profile picture that represents your company accurately but at the same time isn’t too formal. Don’t hide behind the egg and consider putting an actual face to the brand. Don’t be afraid to disclose the person behind the tweets or identify the employees that are tweeting on behalf of the company.  Also make sure to update your profile with relevant information about your brand and the content you will be tweeting about. Keep your tweets conversational and insert some personality.

2. Tweet what you know
Tweet your company’s expertise. Your followers will appreciate the exclusive content you can offer on Twitter and it will make you stand out as a reliable expert and source of information.

3. Tweet regularly
Keep your followers engaged and aware of your company’s activities. Remain consistent and tweet regularly. Don’t forget about current affairs and news items. This can be easy content and will show your followers that you are engaged and interested in subjects that are of interest to them.

4. Show your support
People tend to trust and engage more with tweets that have been retweeted or mentioned by their friends, brands, organizations, and other accounts they follow. The more engagement your brand generates the more recognition and trust you’ll derive from others.

5. Content counts
Share interesting content about your company as well as content that isn’t directly related to your product or service. In order to build a trustworthy relationship with your followers you should offer content that adds value to them and aligns with their interests, even if it’s not about you. This will help demonstrate that you care about the relationship you’re building and you have valuable content that doesn’t directly impact your bottom line.