There’s a popular blue bird that’s taking over how interactions with clientele are handled. Twitter is a big social media network of 140-character-filled statements that can bring your business visibility and generate online buzz. These online tweets are critical for sharing information and connecting you with your audience.
The network averages an astonishing 320 million monthly active users. As a business owner, it’s extremely crucial to learn how tweets can affect your audience, how it will reflect your business and how to go about saying a lot with only 140 characters.
Engagement
With Twitter as a platform for your business, it means a wide-open range of possibilities to flex those creative muscles by allowing for your business to gain a personality. Social media isn’t just for celebrities; it’s also the perfect stage for businesses to shine. Check out how Oreo’s tweet went viral after the 2013 Super Bowl when the brand poked fun at the now infamous power outage, gaining over 15,000 retweets and generating a huge online buzz that was seen everywhere. From that point on, Oreo was propelled to stardom in the Twitter world.
In order for your business to propel to Twitter stardom, you need to engage. Twitter engagement is huge. Not only must you be current on trends, but you must also keep up with relevant hashtags and current events. Take a look at Whataburger and its hilarious intrusion into celebrity feuds. The most talked about tweet came when rappers Drake and Meek Mill were involved in a Twitter feud.
In the midst of the heated back-and-forth throwdown, the Texas fast food favorite tweeted, ”Meek Mill take it from us- if you gonna serve beef serve it high quality.” With over 104,000 retweets and 78,000 likes, Drake performed in front of a large image of the tweet, making everyone on the Internet completely lose their minds. Find the whole feud and hilarious tweet here.
With a great Twitter following, though, comes great responsibilities. This includes interactions with daily users that can greatly impact your brand’s reputation, credibility and customer service level.
Respond and Handle
Thanks to technology, all reviews and rants now have a new platform to be showcased to over millions of online users. The biggest blunder is having a negative tweet about your business and having it snowball into a massive viral blunder.
Take an example from Urban Outfitters who lost 17,000 followers in three hours! It all stemmed from a single tweet from a user who accused them of stealing designs and not crediting the artists. The brand responded with what many felt was a poor effort to address the issue, leaving Urban Outfitters with a negative outlook and loss of many followers. Take a look at the entire situation here.
When handling customer service or any negative claim, it’s important to address your client’s concerns. We’ve all had some negative consumer experience at some point at a restaurant, clothing retailer or service provider. Consumers, like us, want instant gratification and recognition of our predicament. It’s exactly the same process, but on Twitter.
30% of top brands now have “dedicated Twitter customer service handles.” Nike and XBox are prime examples of this. They are consistently engaging and responding to any consumer reaction to their products and services. By tackling problems quickly and effectively, your brand status will create and help maintain a positive customer experience and brand reputation.
“Businesses most successful in their Twitter efforts are constantly listening to what their audience is saying. Handling customer service inquiries on social media is not a new concept and should be a given, but taking the time and extra effort to engage those that are not expecting a response or any contact from you makes such a positive impact. How great does it feel when you get a shout out from a restaurant you were just eating at just because you tweeted about your lunch? Those actions are a big part of what will make you great on Twitter.” – Carmen Morales, Imagine It Studios’ Social Media Director
It’s simple to remember; respond to and engage with your audience with likes, retweets and constant interaction. It can be time-consuming and tedious, but the effort will pay off with more brand recognition, online buzz and followers.
Mastering 140 Characters
The number one rule when it comes to creating your own tweet is triple and quadruple checking it. You don’t want your company or business losing credibility all because you didn’t want to spellcheck. Don’t let your tweet go viral just because you misspelled a small word. Big blunders like that can bring you unwanted negative attention.
Twitter etiquette is much different, especially with 140 characters. Abbreviations are your best friends when tweeting. It’s simple and will save you much-needed characters for hashtags and emojis. Be warned, though, things that are acceptable on Twitter can seem rude on Facebook. These are two completely different social mediums and each has its own personality.
The biggest flaw with most Twitter postings is that businesses don’t post pictures! People are very visual! Pictures help illustrate and capture stories. It will engage much more than 140 characters of description.
Building Your Presence
There is a big difference in tweeting out something that’s sassy and integrating a product or service. It’s a quick-witted and fast-paced world on Twitter. That’s why having a social team to help your business grow and manage your media presence can help.
At Imagine It Studios, we have experience in taming the online world with social media. We will focus on your image and ideals and apply that to your online presence. By building a foundation and gaining a following, you can see your business flourish and take shape online.
If it’s social media, building websites or getting your business off the ground, we can help. To learn more about what we can do for you, contact us here or give us a call at 956.687.1521.