Courtesy of twitter.com

What is Twitter For Business?

Twitter is a very large, very prominent social site, but they are also acutely aware that many of the business people on their platform, have no idea how to use it properly. As a result of this inability to adequately market on Twitter – bounce rates are higher, and owners are choosing to market more on the ‘easier’ platforms like Facebook and Pinterest.

Twitter for business is their solution to this concern. It will function like the Facebook blog, and Allfacebook.com, which is the total resource site for all things to do with the social network. Business owners will be pleased to find simple-to-use tutorials that provide powerful tips and advice, which will help them gain followings and sell on Twitter.

The Homepage Structure

Twitter’s slogan ‘grow your business, 140 characters at a time’ is splashed across their homepage, with a button that invites you to begin advertising right away. This is clearly part of Twitters strategy to increase the reach of their advertising networks. Twitter for business is therefore a learning resource and a promotional step up for Twitter.

• The site will improve Twitter’s ad revenue, as it teaches people how to effectively use their advertising options.

On the homepage, Twitter promises that they’ll help you master the basics, build your community and market on Twitter. They don’t
disappoint.

Courtesy of Twitter.com

The Basics Area on Twitter For Business

The basics area on the site introduces you to Twitter and why you should be using it. Twitter cites the main reasons as, growth, learning, listening and connection. There are several other Twitter for business areas in this basics section that teach you:

• Twitter glossary of terms and functions (tweet, mention, hashtag etc)
• It tells you who is on Twitter and what they talk about
• According to Twitter, 94% of Twitter users want to hear about your discounts
• This section discusses Twitter mobile, and how 60% of fans use it
• You’ll learn how to establish your brand personality
• How to tweet daily in an organized fashion
• How to write star-quality tweets that work
• How to use photos, videos and other content on Twitter for business
• The best practices to use, how to measure them and how to secure your account
• Click on what kind of business you are for more in-depth tutorials

The Build Your Community Area on Twitter For Business

This section shows you, the business owners, how to make the right impression with your profile, and how to engage your initial audience. From creating a stunning profile, to building your fan base, attracting followers and integrating your efforts – there’s a practical section for you to read on this powerful new learning resource.

Twitter also recommends that you work with others, and educate your employees to work with Twitter to increase your reach. On nearly every page, there is a small section pushing the Twitter for business advertising options.

Courtesy of Twitter.com

The Marketing With Twitter Section

On Twitter for business, you’ll find the ‘marketing with Twitter’ section that takes a closer look at more advanced Twitter strategies and practices. From targeting, to working with analytics, running promotions and executing marketing techniques – you can figure out how to do it all here on the platform.

The most interesting section here was about scaling. I find that in business, companies always find it difficult to grow after they have reached a certain number on their social networks. This section introduces some fresh ideas about TV and Twitter, and how 95% of conversations about TV happen on the platform. It’s well worth reading.

You can also move onto the promotional section, where Twitter will teach you how to engage your audience with events, launch products on Twitter, how to use incentives, and finally – how to create exclusive deals that will drive your overall results. It’s all very clever, and very nicely done. I would recommend sifting through this resource, even if you’re a pro.

The Ad Products Section

There is a section that explains their advertising products in more detail, though the entire site really pushes businesses to use this service that they offer. I find myself feeling like Twitter for business is half about learning and half about selling.
This section will take you through each form of advertising (promoted accounts, promoted tweets etc) along with the analytics potential and pricing for each service.

Courtesy of Twitter.com

The Success Tab and Blog

Twitter for business has also included a success section, as social proof that their ads and platform can really help business owners earn more money and gain more social reach. They haven’t really touched on using Twitter Vine yet, as it’s still so new – so watch out for an addition on this at a later point.

If Twitter can figure out how to integrate advertising and Twitter Vine on their platform, they just might be able to break through the glass ceiling and really skyrocket their ad revenue. Search the Twitter for business success section to hear all about brands making Twitter work for them. Otherwise check in at the blog for the latest news and updates.

The Final Say on Twitter For Business

All in all, the videos are great, the content good and the experience is worth a go. Advanced users will find these resources interesting but shallow, as they are geared towards a novice market. However, I would suggest checking it out anyway. Don’t let the pitch fool you though, this is Twitter trying to push advertising on their users. It’s not a bad thing, but be prepared to see it for what it is.

What did you think of the new Twitter for business page? Is it useful?

Courtesy of virtualsocialmedia.com

Twitter is For The Birds

What makes a Twitter marketing campaign successful? I would say the combination of Twitter users, a highly interactive account and real life returns, leads or business from your page. All three of these elements need to be what drives your strategy.

Step 1: Research The Many Bird Types

The first step in your ultimate Twitter marketing strategy is to do your research. For some reason, many businesses forget to perform this vital function on an ongoing basis. Be like the bird watcher that is preparing for a trip. Research the accounts that you want to be like or outdo – and don’t be afraid to take note of specific strategies you’d like to try.

Tip! To find Twitter followers be like a bird watcher that preps for a big trip. The more you know about your competitors, the easier creating an engaging account will be.

Step 2: Twitting Marketing Diversity Tools

In the realm of bird watching – without binoculars, a camera and map systems – you’ll never find certain bird species. It’s the same on your Twitter account. If you don’t have the right tools, you’ll never attract any followers or engagement. Make sure that you find and use the most appropriate Twitter marketing tools for your niche.

Tip! Use the new Twitter app ‘Vine’ to capture 6 second looping videos that you can then use to market products, services or extend your brand reach.

Courtesy of inblurbs.com

Step 3: Use Third Party Sites

How do you find the birds you want to photograph? Easy! With maps. On Twitter, you can choose to use the basic search function, but honestly –third party apps and sites make it easier for you. Use sites like TwitterCounter Search, Listorious and Twellow to become part of the right Twitter communities.

Tip! Half the struggle is following the right people, or reaching out to the right networks. Do this daily by finding a few new birds in the Twitter forest, and your account will thrive.

Step 4: Automation and Personal Contact

When you have your page ready, you’ll need to decide how to run that Twitter business page. No effective Twitter accounts can run manually all the time. You must create set content that you can schedule in a management tool like Tweetdeck. This set content will become the core of your Twitter marketing strategy. You should still post 70% fresh content each day.

Tip! Split the content into 70/30 – 30% scheduled content, and 70% new, fresh and responsive content. Much of this should be talking TO people, not at them.

Courtesy of virtualsocialmedia.com

Twitter marketing is about patience, long term results and consistency. Even if your messages aren’t that strong, what matters most is how you approach and connect with people. Bird watchers know everything they can about each type of bird – you should know as much about your followers, to deliver a better profile experience!

Check out our Twitter page here!

Can you name one Twitter marketing practice that you use all the time?

Courtesy of buzzfeed.com

Twitter Redesign on The Cards

Twitter has been chirping about a redesign for some time now, and it seems to be close to completion – or at least close enough to release some previews to the net. The rumor mill has been working overtime, and people have been comparing the Twitter redesign updates to Facebook, and even Pinterest.

Has Twitter sacrificed its uniqueness and decided to become a ‘same old’ social networking site? Let’s take a look at the proposed look and feel of the new design.

The Twitter redesign includes a bunch of stuff for its mobile apps:

• New photo interface that lets you see very large photo images
• In the ‘Discover’ area, you’ll be able to see headlines and photo previews
• Popular Tweets from your connections will be shown in ‘view all tweets’
• Twitter redesign includes new search features, with photos

These changes may not seem like much at first but it tells us a few things about the direction that Twitter is heading.

1. They are focusing on a photo-centric version of Twitter
2. They want features like retweets to have more context for the reader
3. They want Twitter to be used universally on mobile phones

Courtesy of Mashable.com

The Original 140 Character Microblog

The Twitter redesign has a lot of people excited, and a few worried as well. For me, it’s a dangerous thing to break your ‘success’ formula and branch out into other social media forms. What if Twitter becomes too much like Pinterest or Facebook? What if the images that are supposed to enhance the experience, don’t do that at all?

At this point Twitter is reaching for a richer user experience, which means images and video – sure. But they need to stick really close to their microblogging roots if the Twitter redesign is going to work. Go a little too far, and disaster could strike.

Why use Twitter for images when Pinterest exists? Why use Twitter for long discussions, when Facebook does that? It’s a balancing game.

The Twitter Redesign in Perspective

So far, based on the proposed Twitter redesign features, everything is looking good. Even Twitter has admitted that they’ve always been defined by text. But they plan to add loads of images and articles to the neat, fun to use Twitter stream that the world loves.

Courtesy of buzzfeed.com

Once this has been fully integrated, will it still be the Twitter we know and love? No, it won’t. It will be a new Twitter, one that is trying to stay relevant in an increasingly progressive social landscape.

The Twitter redesign will ensure that the site stays fresh, but whether this ‘freshness’ is what people want, is another matter. One thing I know for sure – Twitter can’t compete with Facebook based on images. I only hope that for Twitter, this redesign breathes new life into their service. I don’t want to see Twitter go the same way as the old Myspace.

Did you enjoy this post on the Twitter redesign? Please share it with your friends!

Also – do you like the direction that Twitter is going in? Is it a good or bad thing?

Courtesy of therealtimereport.com

Brand Pages are Spreading

Just a few days ago, Twitter brand pages hit the UK, and they’re making headlines. After a December introduction in the US, marketers are sitting up and taking notice of this development, with interesting results. Experts have compared it with both Facebook and Youtube – but it has something these two sites don’t have.

Once again the simplicity of the idea has astounded the world. Considering the fact that internet users are consuming thousands of pieces of text everyday, and they’re doing it at lightning speed, this is a good move on Twitters part. Now, your brand has a simple yet powerful brand page on the world’s fastest news site.

Fans love to read snippets of information, to keep updated on your business. Twitter is the perfect location for this. Your brand page will become one of your most influential social pages – it may even rival Facebook. With simplicity, speed and easy consumption on their side, Twitter has made great strides in de-cluttering your online presence with these brand pages.

Twitters Role in Your Business

Your Twitter brand page will become a complete profile for your business. You can upload an attractive header, for additional brand identification and exposure. You are also able to showcase images and videos here, which open directly on your page. To make it even more interesting, you can ‘pin’ a particular tweet to the top of your page.

Twitter has secured a more prominent role in your social strategy. It ties in nicely with your Youtube video feed, and makes any image marketing more efficient. Now that you can tweet with video and images, you’ll be able to attract more followers. There is one concern though – once someone has followed you, they don’t need to return to your brand page.

All of your tweets will show up in their feed. They may get lost in the ever scrolling torrent of followed tweets. You’ll have to work extra hard at keeping your business profile up to date to make any impact. If anything, these new brand pages have made tweeting often even more compulsory. Time them right, and you’ll enjoy a lot of clicks, views and comments!

The question on everyone’s mind is: when will brand pages be available to everyone? We can only hope as soon as possible. Early adopters will enjoy increased exposure, and increased interaction on their pages – as tweeted conversations are grouped together, like they are on Facebook. Watch this space!

Do you like the new Twitter brand pages? What do you like about them? Leave your insight below.

Courtesy of slashgear.com

Redesign and Simplicity

Twitter’s mantra has always been about simplicity, and they do a great job of keeping that intact with these new changes. The redesign has shifted their basic navigation buttons to the left, instead of the right – and the three main buttons are now home, connect and discover, at the top. The most interesting is the discover tab that pulls in articles and posts from around the internet, that have been tweeted about.

Twitter Brand Pages are Coming

Aside from small improvements to search and navigation – the biggest change was the introduction of Twitter brand pages. Right now, you can’t set yours up yet, but the microblogging platform plans to open them to the public in the next few months. This is what you’ll want to keep an eye out for, as it enhances your business profile on Twitter. More clicks, media and sales are on the horizon.

The brand pages are outstanding. They’re reminiscent of Youtube’s brand pages, only they’re much easier to look at, and use. When the brand pages are rolled out, you’ll be able to display a much larger logo or avatar to your fans – and you can upload a ‘banner’ graphic below your information for better brand identity.

In the spirit of providing great content to your Tweeting fans, you can also pin certain tweets to the top of your page. This means businesses can promote certain tweets continually, without having to tweet a million times about something important. On the right, you’ll have a list of your information – like who you’re following, and what lists you’re involved with.

But I have to say – the best part of the new brand pages is the media functionality. Now, each tweet that contains a video or image has the ability to expand that media right on the page. And every single reply that you get from fans is detailed below the tweet, so that others can join in the conversation more efficiently.

Improved Communication Across The Board

This has turned Twitter into a much more convincing social community. Before, on personal profile pages, messages were disjointed and it was difficult to keep track of group conversations. The new layout means that videos and images are equally as important as Facebook videos and images – as they prompt additional interaction.

Brand page owners can set certain tweets so that the media is open, for visual impact, to enhance their pages. The pitfalls of this new functionality are already becoming apparent. Coke for example, spends a lot of time replying to individual tweeters, which makes their brand page seem one dimensional.

The new layout and design will have Twitter marketing strategists searching for ways to even out the content influx and replies. Timing, scheduling and media are definitely going to become more important. All in all, a fantastic step up for Twitter. We can’t wait until we can get our brand page up!

Check out these live brand pages: @DisneyPixar, @CocaCola, @McDonalds.

Do you like the new Twitter layout? Tell us what you like about it!

Courtesy of myresonancescore.com

#1: Use Your Background Space

Get a custom design created for your Twitter page that promotes your other pages, business or products that you sell. This space is free to use, so use it! Marketers that have great background info go on to get more clicks, follows and sales.

#2: Tweet About Trends

You want to get more followers on your page, so keep up with the daily trends – and include them in your tweets. Tweeting trending topics is a great way to source new followers, and drive more traffic to your websites.

#3: Use Links!

Tweets that contain links are retweeted more often than tweets that don’t. If you want a tweet to go viral, or to syndicate properly – say it with a link. Just use your tweet space to promote the link, instead of trying to cram a story in 140 characters.

#4: Add Photos

People love to see that who they’re interacting with on Twitter – are real. Add unique photos to your Twitter feed that promote your business. The key is to keep these photos unique to your Twitter page, so don’t syndicate them anywhere else.

#5: Blog Product Punts

Punting a product gets very little response on Twitter, unless you’re a corporate giant with an excellent deal. Instead, shape a blog post around your product, and promote the post. Include great info, and make it relevant for more clicks.

#6: Free Offers

If you’re giving something away on Twitter, you need to find an interesting way to offer it to your community. A lot of ‘free’ things are given away on this platform that end up being spam, or worse. Include a link and a friendly, witty comment.

#7: Real World Promotion

If your business exists in the real world, you need to let your customers know that you’re on Twitter. Instead of running an online Twitter promo, do one in real life – where a client gets the prize. Post the results and photos on Twitter!

#8: Help Other Sellers

Retweet the links and product placements of other Twitter users, then shoot them a message to say that you’ve helped them. Do this often enough, and you’ll build an army of people that are always willing to retweet your posts.

#9: Advertise on Twitter

Take advantage of Twitters sponsored tweets, or become a promoted business. Really, this is the only sure-fire way to build a large following in no time on the platform. If your community is a little thin, start here.

#10: Tweet on Facebook

Add your Twitter stream to your Facebook page. It will help filter some Facebook fans over to the microblogging platform. You could also run Twitter promotions on your Facebook page, and drive new traffic there that way.

How do you monetize Twitter? Is there something specific we’ve left out? Please let us know, under the post!

Courtesy of oomeo.com

#1: Big News Always Wins

A sure-fire way of creating and promoting a hashtag that has the potential to go viral, is by monitoring the news. Big stories always hit Twitter first, and if you can get in there with a valuable hashtag – the moment is yours. The bigger the issue, the longer the trending topic will be on Twitter. Learn how to spin these stories to your advantage, and keep your eyes on Google news.

#2: Your Opinion Matters

Or more directly – everyone else’s opinion matters. Hashtags that prompt personal opinion are very popular, especially if they’re funny or teach your followers more about who you are. Everyone likes to speak about themselves – use that in a strategic hashtag to get people to notice your business. Once the trend gains momentum, you can do a bit of PR about its success for additional exposure.

#3: Don’t Underestimate Incentives

How do you get almost ten thousand Twitter users to use your hashtag in a tweet? Easy – promise them something for free. A large prize will get people tweeting your hashtag repeatedly, and the retweets will never end! Remember to make the entry easy, the prize something special and to spread it everywhere you can. These tweets have been known to go viral in a matter of hours.

#4: Occasions Trend Often

The next time Christmas, Halloween or Easter happens (or a famous celeb passes away) – use it to create a trending topic. There will be a lot of competition here for the most imaginative and user friendly hashtag that will beat the rest – but it’s totally worth it if you succeed. When something big is on the horizon, you can bet its going to trend on Twitter. Question is – will it be your hashtag?

#5: Finding The Niche Market

The creator of the hashtag #FollowFriday was a genius. He came up with a way to engage all Twitter users, every single Friday for all time! While these are the most difficult to create, you should always be thinking about it in the back of your mind. What do people in your niche obsess about? What does everyone need all the time? On specific days? Brainstorm! Include your community in the search.

Creating a Twitter trending topic can be good for exposure, but they are quite difficult to achieve and sustain. No one knows why a hashtag will trend, but this much is clear – it’s not because all your friends used it, or because you used it 1000 times. Trends are genuine products of viral sharing. You can’t force a trending topic, but you can certainly reach for it.

What was your favourite trending topic today and why? We want to know, so please leave us a comment below!

Courtesy of misstechie.wordpress.com

That’s what its like for Twitter, a lot of the time. Because Twitter is so time consuming, and let’s be honest – difficult to use as an effective sales tool – we get people putting it down, writing it off and bleating about how rubbish it is every chance they get. This is obviously because they have tried, and failed to make money off the platform, or worse – just can’t stand how it works.

The Delicious Truth About Twitter

This is mostly because people have unrealistic expectations when they start to use the platform. Recent statistics suggest that the most active Twitter accounts are celebrities, large corporations, famous businessmen and other marketers.

As the months roll by, more and more ‘real’ people are signing onto Twitter, for recreational reasons. There is this false perception that because there are 14 million US users alone, that most of these people are ‘real’ people, or a primed market waiting to buy something.

Being Active About Your Community

The real truth of the matter is that many Twitter accounts that are the most active, and therefore have the highest potential for relationship development and sales – are other marketers. Too many marketers dismiss this fact, and alienate themselves from a growing community of ‘other marketers who also like to buy things.’ Marketers on Twitter are not the enemy. They need to be viewed as a potential sales base.

The only problem is, that because Twitter is still a newborn on the internet – most of these marketers have no idea how to use it properly. They spend hours sending out promotional material about themselves or their businesses, and they don’t truly make the relationship connections they should.

As this changes (and it will change) more and more marketers will begin to see the value in JV partnerships, sales and relationships made on Twitter with other marketers.

Your Primary Goals Revealed

If the goal on Twitter is to gather a community of interested ‘potential consumers,’ then other business people will surely have to be a large part of that. They have the most reason to spend time on Twitter, and are more likely to read your feed than ‘real’ people.

As more sign ups happen everyday, and mobile technology spreads the Twitter bug around the globe, we will see a shift to more ‘real’ people with active accounts. Eventually and hopefully, Twitter will become as active as Facebook.

So when you are marketing on Twitter, keep in mind that many of the people who read your feed are also trying to sell something to you. If you can interest them in what you’re selling, there’s hope for your services or product.

In the meantime, keep building your community and trying to connect with people any way you can. Reach out to other marketers and make friends. Stimulate a genuine Twitter community that goes beyond sales, competition and frivolous posting of random nonsense.

What do you think about the ‘real’ users of Twitter? Let us know!

Courtesy of reportageonline.com

So why does MC Hammer have more Twitter followers than Jay-Z and Kanye West, both two very popular rappers? His Twitter feed as of today is 1,999,750 strong. How did he do it?

Everyone Knows His Name

The one thing that MC Hammer had going for him was his famous name. Who hasn’t heard of him? He used this name-fame to capitalize on a fresh and new Twitter market.

Hammer already had thousands of fans on Twitter before any of the bigger stars were told to use the platform. He got in early, and he did it right. The first thing we can learn from Hammer is that he turned a little fame into a large community. If he can do it – anyone can stimulate a sizable community from a little promotion.

Maintaining an Incredible Fan Base

MC Hammer is not the only person using his Twitter account. Celebritytweet reports that he sends out a whopping 15 tweets a day, to maintain his relevance in the Twitter community.

While 15 tweets a day for a marketer is pure spam, for a celebrity with a huge fan base – it’s perfectly acceptable. People want to hear what he has to say. This is because he’s a real person, he’s interesting, and he actually has something to say.

For businesses looking to maintain a large Twitter fan base, you need a mascot or a front-man (or woman) to keep the public interest alive. Without it, you won’t get that priceless interaction that leads to lucrative sales.

MC Hammer knows that the more time he (and his social media manager) spends on his Twitter community, the more he can leverage his influence on the platform. This translates into sold tickets, or actual hype generated from his feed for an appearance, TV show or concert.

Interaction on a Ridiculous Level

One of the reasons MC Hammer still has more Twitter followers than most celebrities is because he replies to almost all the messages he gets. With a whopping 97% reply rate, his feed is always engaging, interacting and addressing. The more lifeless feeds of rappers like Jay-Z, have a total reply rate of 0%.

The difference is, 1,203,283 people prefer an active feed. That’s why to stay relevant, MC Hammer suggests that you reply to as many messages as you can – or you’ll lose followers.

Diversity is Key

One of the great things about MC Hammer’s Twitter feed is that he uses all the tools that Twitter provides to stimulate his community. He hashtags relevant words, he @ replies to people that comment on what he says.

And he has a 130% link posting ratio, which means he isn’t afraid to promote and share information. By diversifying his Twitter feed with all the functionality it deserves, he keeps his community engaged and active. We can learn a lot from his feed – check it out here!

Are there other celebrities getting it right?
Mention them below, and let’s see what we can learn from them!

Courtesy of slodive.com

Either that, or they try to ram it home with repetitive marketing messages, spammy posts and incessant promotions you can’t escape from. That’s why when choosing Twitter apps, they might as well boost your bottom line.

Here are some of the best must-have apps available:

TwtQpon

Instead of wasting time and money on old school coupons, why not create some Twitter-specific coupons for your tweeting community. Offer them in your Twitter feed and you’ll get more followers, not to mention the sales you’ll wrack up from the brilliant ‘once in a lifetime offers’ kept exclusively for your Twitter followers. That’s how you promote your feed and get sales at the same time.

Tweetburner

Ever wonder if your Twitter marketing strategy is actually working? With Tweetburner you can track and record data from your Twitter feed, which means you’ll know exactly which tweets get the best responses, and which ones sell the most products. Now you can adjust, rewrite and repeat the most successful parts of your strategy –for better time management and increased profits!

Twellow

It can be difficult finding real people among the businesses on Twitter, especially people who might be interested in buying your product or service. When you run out of ideas (or time) then register on Twellow, the Twitter yellow pages. Here you can find the right people to follow – which means more interaction on your profile and greater lead generation overall. Search by category for best results.

Tweetlevel

If you’re looking for real stats about your influence on Twitter, then look no further than Tweetlevel. Here you’ll find out how much your community trusts you, how much you entertain them, and how strong your influence is over them. These are all very useful stats when developing and adjusting your social media strategy. Remember the more influence you have, the more money you make.

Twibs

Real time search is the new Google search, with Twitter leading the way – predicting what is hot and happening down to the second. That’s why business networks like Twibs are working so well. It’s a business directory based on Twitter business accounts, and it’s global. If you’re looking to place some convincing advertisements somewhere – why not let your Twitter feed be your advert? Just add it to Twibs.

These 5 Twitter apps will help you increase your bottom line – which is what it’s all about. The next time you scan the net for some great new Twitter apps, ask yourself – will they make me money? These certainly will! Don’t forget to broaden your social media strategy to include some excellent apps, to maximize the potential hidden inside your Twitter feed.

What are your top 3 Twitter apps?
Adds yours and let’s see which app is taking over the Twitter business world.