The Tweet That Sparked The BOB War

It was a day like any other, one that Nabisco brand Oreo’s, would soon remember as the day a single tweet sparked a brand war. The tweet in question was basic – almost mundane, except that it made one fundamental mistake. Can you see it?

“Ever bring your own Oreo cookies to the movie theater? #slicksnacker” – @Oreo

At first glance, this has the makings of a decent tweet – it invites fans to tell personal stories about their experiences with Oreos. Of course, it also flies in the face of theatres that don’t allow people to bring outside food into their cinemas.

In case you overlooked the #slicksnacker hashtag, the tag irrevocably says that Oreo supports breaking theatre rules. Who cares right, as long as people are eating cookies!

There’s a reason they don’t allow customers to bring food from home – they lose revenue at their own food stands, and as we all know – since pirate downloading became so popular, cinemas need every bit of income they can get to survive.

The Response That Sparked The Public Comments

The response came from AMC Theatres, a bulky 136,000 strong vs. Oreo’s own 53,000 Twitter fans. It was as they say in Twitterland, a ‘social media smack down.’ These smack downs are happening increasingly, as brand ideals and ideas cross paths.

Shane Adams, the man behind the “NOT COOL, COOKIE” tweet, was rightfully insulted by Oreos flagrant lack of consideration for other businesses. Surely at this point, the cookie brand would apologize, like any decent brand would.

Instead Oreo replied: “Fair enough, @AMCTheatres, but don’t hate the player, hate the game”

Tacky, and worse – Oreo thought a bit of slang could excuse the way they carelessly published poor advice, on an ignorant hashtag. You don’t expect that from a large brand online, not at this stage in social media. Fail! AMC only had one thing to say – GAME ON!

SMM’s Take on Responses and Oreos Fail Reply

The #slicksnacker hashtag became a place for Oreo fans, AMC Theatre fans and everyone else to snicker at Oreos idiocy, and applaud the way the theatre company stood up for itself.

Fan replies ranged from ‘looool,’ ‘best tweet ever,’ and ‘stealing Oreos hashtag’ to ‘I now have a new found affection for Oreo cookies, concession prices are outrageous.’

Clearly, the public sentiment split both ways – some people supported Oreos and others the theatre chain. Ethically, Oreos was wrong. And that is the end of that. No amount of snarky replies could polish the dent that Oreos has made to itself online.

Other companies will be watching to see if Oreos self-motivated Twitter strategy will end up posing a threat to their business next.

Which side do you support – Oreos or AMCTheatres? Tell us why and contribute to the brand on brand debate!

Courtesy of digitalorganics.com.au

#1: Use a Validation Service

Are you tired of the thousands and thousands of tweets, and absolutely no interaction from any of your followers? A lot of Twitter accounts are spammers, and there’s only one way to deal with those – sign up for a Twitter validation service! Each person that follows you will have to validate that they are human.

#2: Use Your Direct Messages Properly

Direct messages are a great way to share incentives with select fans. Run a Twitter competition, and tell your fans that the prize will be delivered in a DM link. You can get a lot of interaction on Twitter from this one simple marketing play.

#3: Streamline Your DM Auto Delivery

If you have an auto-tweet that is delivered to the direct message box of new followers – please make sure that yours is friendly, non-intrusive and does not sell anything to anyone. People don’t like spam, sales spam, or other spam, disguised as an incentive.

#4: Advertise As Much as You Can

If Twitter is a big earner for you, there’s nothing more lucrative than setting up an advertising campaign on the platform. People are hesitant to spend advertising dollars on social sites, but once they do – they never go back. Step out of the box and advertise – your earnings will increase rapidly in no time!

#5: Don’t Only Use Hashtags, Create Them

Hashtags can be used to great effect, when the small business marketer creates and markets something unique across their social pages. Use hashtags to promote a new product, give away a great incentive – or to get the word out on a local event. It doesn’t have to trend to be extremely valuable to your users.

#6: Use Your Connect Page To Open Dialogues

Click on your ‘connect’ page to open your interactions section in Twitter. Find out who has retweeted your tweets, favorited them, followed you, spoken to you and more. Target recent folks who want to open a dialogue, and do! Create genuine friendships with people, and Twitter will become a marketing hive for you.

#7: Use Your Twitter ID Everywhere

If you haven’t yet put your Twitter handle on your business cards, emails, pamphlets, on your blog author signature – everywhere – do that now. You have to build credibility for your Twitter ID, by making it as popular as your actual name. Think of it as a name, with a lot of information attached to it. You want people to see it!

Use these 7 explosive Twitter tactics to expand your following, increase interaction and create a great name for yourself on Twitter. Once the word is out that you’re using your account like a pro, the rewards will come. People appreciate a well-managed account, even if it’s just based on ‘interaction’ page replies.

Are you harboring an explosive Twitter tip that you’d like to share with SMM? Leave it here!

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 paysoncooper.com

#1: Not Being on Twitter is Lame

Twitter exists so that businesses can find new and exciting ways to exploit its functionality for business purposes. Not being on Twitter, when all of your competitors are…well, it makes you look like you’re behind the times. Use Twitter to prove to the world (and your clients) that you love technology, and that you’re ready to use it to improve the lives of your staff, fans and clients.

#2: Presence Equals Presents

Twitter is a superb way to promote products, services, free giveaways and contests. A tweet can go viral in a matter of hours. If your business isn’t harnessing the power of the viral tweet, then where have you been? Use Twitter to give back to your client base, to grow it and take your relationships to new heights.

#3: Use Your Work Force as a Twitter Arsenal

Instead of complaining about how often your employees sneak a peek at their Twitter pages, enlist them in building your Twitter community. All you have to do is create a practical Twitter policy document, and let your employees loose on the Twitterverse. They all have different ways to connect, so you’ll grow your community much faster!

#4: Bite Sized News Updates Fresh From The Crowd

It can be tough wading through Google news, or checking the latest headlines on 5 different news sites. Instead simply follow certain hashtags in your niche to keep up to date on the latest breaking news. The news is so real, even the print media publishes versions of it from Twitter users. Use Twitter news to advance your own content marketing strategy.

#5: Branding and Fandom

Twitter allows your clients to experience your brand, not only see it. With every tweet or interaction, you are building a perception about your business that people can relate to. Use Twitter to take your brand identity to a whole new level online. Design is important, but these days – so is your tone of voice.

#6: Real Time Customer Connections

Dealing with clients or customers can be time consuming and costly. When you use Twitter as a place to respond to real life queries, complaints and suggestions – you save time, money and are able to connect with your client in an instant. It’s a very efficient way to keep tabs on customer sentiment, and to monitor your products progress online.

#7: It’s Not Who You Know, It’s Who You Know on Twitter

You’re practically expected to be close friends with your competitors on Twitter, or with other industry authorities. Twitter is an excellent place to foster these relationships, as the chatter is generally short and to the point – and easy to keep tabs on. Soon you’ll be guest blogging on each others blogs. Use Twitter to establish your authority. Learn about tweeting here.

There are a 100 more reasons why your business needs to use Twitter – can you think of any? Please suggest some below, and let’s build a super-list!

Courtesy of tastingtheinternet.com

Either way, listening on social media is what separates the successful campaigns, from the not-so-successful ones. But how do you use hashtags (#) to listen in on what people are saying about your brand, your competitor’s brands, or on hot topics you can include in your social strategy?

The Power of the Hashtag

Twitter is an amazing tool for listening in on what’s happening in real time – and at the heart of it all is the powerful hashtag. Hashtags are to Twitter, what keywords are to Google. In other words they give you the power to research, locate and monitor streams of conversation that are of interest to your business. No idea how to go about doing this? Here are some easy steps to get you started.

1. Research The Hashtags That Matter

Your business is niche specific, which means that right now, there could be 8 million people talking about a product that you sell on Twitter, and you wouldn’t even know it!

Now that people are becoming pro hashtaggers, you are able to research which hashtags are relevant to your business, and follow them. You could do some general searches on Twitter, watch out for relevant trending topics you could use, or – you could use Hashtags.org.

Hashtags.org is a stats site that evaluates each hashtag and provides you with usable data based on how popular it is, and when it’s used most often. Once you have this information, you’ll be able to join conversations, or follow people that use the tag in their Tweets.

2. Following Hashtags With Listening Tools

While the hashtag itself is a listening tool, it becomes nearly impossible to monitor all the streams of conversation that you could use to enhance your social media strategy. That’s why some clever developers came up with listening tools, for the listening tool. Sites like Monitter for example, allow you to keep track of a lot of keywords that are floating around the Twittersphere.

The great thing about tools like Monittor, is that they also allow you to narrow your real time keyword searches with a handy geographical location feature. Some alternatives to Monittor are Twitterfall, TweetChat and HootSuite. Each has their own charm and functionality, so pick one that fits in with your needs.

Once you’re dialed in to the various hashtags you should be following, it’s easy to listen in on all the great conversation happening in the Twitterverse. Don’t forget to follow your own hashtags too, using these tools to keep an eye on how popular they become. There you have it, that’s how you start using Twitter hashtags as a listening tool!

Do you have a favorite hashtag? List it below and tell us why you love it!

Courtesy of paper.li

What we haven’t done yet is explored how to use the hashtag (#) function more efficiently, so that your target customers can easily find your lists, streams and Tweets in general. There’s an art to hashtagging, and it’s your responsibility as a social media manager to get out there and make it work for your business. Here’s how.

1. Find Out Which Keywords / Tags Are The Most Popular

You know what your business is all about, and what your main keywords are going to be in each Tweet. What you need to do know is a bit of research. Spend some time wading through the hashtag destinations on Twitter, and see which groups offer the most value to the reader.

While the tag #socialmedia might be very popular, there may be a prominent business or a personality in the social media field that is getting a lot of attention in trending topics for example. In this instance, instead of using the generic tag, use a more inspired tag to get more exposure for your business.

2. Join Hashtags and Contribute To Build a Community Presence

Many people follow specific hashtags on sites like SocialOomph, where their favorite topics are discussed live on Twitter. These communities are ready made, and waiting for your business.

Establish a non-intrusive, yet solid and regular presence by using the specific hashtag in your social media strategy. Soon, the people that follow this hashtag will connect with your business – and your credibility will grow as a leader in that field. Be sure to select the best hashtags to follow and integrate into your campaign.

3. Create Some Original Hashtags And Make Them Popular

Create your own unique hashtags that are simple, and that other people might use. When you create your own hashtag it’s your responsibility as a social media strategist to promote it, so that it spreads and catches on around the net. The goal is to make the ultimate viral hashtag that you dominate.

To do this come up with a hashtag that is short and easy, and use it on other social media networks like Facebook, LinkedIn and your blog. In fact, use it everywhere you can. Contribute thoughtful, interesting Tweets and interact with others that use your hashtag for the best results.

4. Watch Your Hashtag Via Real Time Search on Twitter

Now that you have your own hashtag going, monitor who is using it and why, and make a point of always trying to encourage its use. If you do this enough, it could one day become a trending topic. Soon you could be adding your hashtag to your business cards!

Let your hashtagging evolve, and don’t be afraid to move on to better tags or to shut down a particular tag campaign if it isn’t working. Remember the goal is to make your business easier to find for potential clients.

Do you have your own Twitter hashtag? List it below!

Courtesy of engagemetweets.com

In some cases these hash tag dissidents are asked politely to stop, or they are banned from the platform. But mostly, people who misuse them go unchecked, which spoils the conversation for everyone. That’s why it’s important to know what you are, and aren’t doing on Twitter.

You may be irritating thousands of people, because you don’t know how to use the hash tag properly. If that’s the case, then you need to check out the hash tag best practices. It’s good for business, you know.

1. Only Use Hashtagging As Directed

Twitter tells us to use hash tags to help categorize topics or subjects that we are talking about – so if someone wants to find some information on say…’bugs,’ you’d use the #bugs hash tag in your tweet, to help them find it. Simple enough, so why then has the hash tag become a silent monster on tweet decks everywhere?

2. Try Not To Stuff Too Many Hash Tags Into Your Tweet

A tweet with three words and a string of hash tags, isn’t a tweet at all. We understand your need to help people find your tweet so that they can connect, comment or re-tweet what you’ve said – but lets be honest, that isn’t going to happen unless the actual tweet is good. Try to limit your hash tags to 3 or 4, so that your tweet still holds some relevance in the world.

3. Going Off The Topic of Conversation

When you use a hash tag that bares almost no relevance to the tweet you’ve just published, you are contributing to Twitters ever-mounting page clutter, or tweets that make no sense. It’s like having a friend ask you a question, and instead of answering it politely, you go completely off topic and start speaking about that fishing trip you went on last year. It’s selfish, it’s irritating and it’s not going to win you any fans.

4. The Corporate Sabotage Hash Tag

As long as there is a way to ruin another company’s list, then competitors are going to try and do it. The hash tag has been the tool of many a corporate saboteur, assisting in the blatant degradation of a list that was once informative and interesting.

By adding a lot of negative rubbish, or plain nonsense to a competitors list – many businesses feel that their lists will do better. This is a huge no-no on Twitter! If you can’t create the best list without stooping to such levels, then you’ll never have the best list. Period.

If you can stick to the original and intended use of hash tags in your tweets, then you’ll be just fine. Anything else, and you’re abusing the hash tag system. All you’re doing then is complicating your profile, and reducing the quality of your own tweets.

Can you think of another Twitter hash tag best practice?
List it below!