Using Twitter as Part of an Overall Strategy
As a Twitter user, you should realize that Twitter should be used as part of your overall strategy. It is not enough to just focus on Twitter all day long, as that is putting your eggs all in one basket! If you have a successful following in your niche, it is time to encourage them to visit your blog or website. Better yet — they should be able to easily purchase a product from you since they have grown to trust you.
This message serves as a warning that too many people waste their days away on Twitter. While it’s fun to chat with people, there has to be a limit you set for yourself. Otherwise, while Twitter is keeping you busy, it’s not actually productive. It’s best to set a time limit each day for how much you time you can spend on Twitter. For some people, just 10 minutes per day works well. If you’re having trouble with that low number, and enjoy Twitter as entertainment, you might increase that to an hour or so. The problems occur when people spend hour upon hour on Twitter. That’s no way to build your business!
With that said — that does not mean Twitter isn’t a great IM platform! There are some people making thousands of dollars on Twitter, and have no problem doing so. That’s because they have dominated their niche and have added so much value that people have no problem ordering from them or visiting their website. It’s best to emulate these people. Find out who is successful on Twitter and ask some questions, or model their strategy. You should be following them in your own Twitter account to see what successful Twittering looks like.
Along with Twitter, you might develop a squeeze page, product, affiliate offer, or whatever else is part of your overall business strategy. Please realize that Twitter is just one traffic generation/networking tool, and that there are many others out there as well that you can take advantage of. Writing articles, creating videos, networking on Facebook, networking on MySpace, and other avenues are the perfect ways to advertise your business. Twitter is incredibly fun, and incredibly useful, but it’s just one part of your overall marketing message.
As you start to use Twitter, set those limits for yourself and figure out a game plan. That will help you use it as effectively as possible, so you can start marketing and getting more traffic and more money.
Opening Different Twitter Accounts
Some people are concerned that if they open one Twitter account they will not be able to open another Twitter account. Fortunately, many people have successfully opened multiple Twitter accounts according to the niches they are in. For example, some people might have an Internet marketing Twitter account, and then they might have a Twitter account that focuses on another niche they are in, such as parenting.
You may want to concentrate on building one follower list first before moving on to another. However, if you find that you’re getting many Twitter followers and are successfully getting traffic and sales in one account, it’s time to try your methods in another account. Scale it up!
It’s easy to create another Twitter account. You will need another e-mail address, which is easy to get at Gmail.com or Yahoo.com. Simply put in this e-mail address, choose your username, and you are good to go. This is helpful because you want to really match your marketing and networking to the right people. If you have a list full of people from hundreds of different niches, it will be very hard to match this kind of marketing. Doing so in different niches is really the best choice you can make.
Unfortunately, it can become quite overwhelming to manage all these different accounts. That is when you’ll want to make use of some of the automated tools and methods out there that help you manage multiple accounts. In fact, there’s a product available that is very comprehensive and includes a method for managing more than one account. For the savvy marketer, this is actually a must! To see this product please visit TweetLater.com
Figuring out whether you can open up different Twitter accounts is just one thing you need to educate yourself on if you want to dominate your niche on Twitter. You do need to be careful about automated methods and building many different Twitter accounts very quickly, because that will definitely raise a red flag in the Twitter system. You want to work with the system, provide value, and develop a good Twitter business model in order to make as much money as possible and drive as much traffic as possible to your website.
If it fits into your current business model, open another Twitter account! This’ll be a great decision that will help you to drill down into different niches and master all of the ones you decide to target.
Marketing vs. Networking on Twitter
It’s unfortunate that some people are using Twitter as a spam tool. That’s why it’s essential for you to understand the difference between spamming, marketing, and networking on Twitter.
First things first — why are you on Twitter? If you’re an Internet marketer, the chances are good that you hope to either make sales or generate more traffic to your website. There is nothing wrong with this, but it is important to understand that the way you go about this can either make or break you in the world of Twitter.
Spamming is basically when you auto follow a bunch of people and only add affiliate links. This is not spamming in the true sense of the word since that deals with e-mail and unwanted solicitation, but what matters is that many people consider this to be spam! People will quickly unfollow you and all your efforts will be wasted.
Marketing on Twitter is when you occasionally present products for sale to people who will be interested. This works well if the people who are following you are in the niche you are presenting the offer in. That way they’ll be very targeted and will be interested in what you have to offer.
Networking on Twitter is what you do to gain friends in your niche. You won’t directly make sales from this, but it is a great thing to do for your business. Networking can help you develop affiliate relationships and JV relationships. It also helps get your name out there so people in your niche are familiar with you when they run across your product in the future. There are incredible opportunities that open up as a result of networking!
Before you get started using Twitter, it’s best to define what your business model is. This will help determine the kind of tweets you put out, as well as the offers you present. Of course, you can use a mixture of marketing and networking, but never spamming! Always add value and your customers will come flocking to you. When you add value, people will definitely look for your tweets and will want to subscribe to your blog or website.
Twitter is an amazing tool when it is used properly. The good news is that there are many tools out there that can help you build a large list, and add relevant content. Gone are the days where you had to rely on articles to generate content — now you can micro blog and develop real relationships with people in your niche!
Twitter Protocol
If you’re part of any type of website that allows you to post blogs, pictures, songs and allows you to interact and mingle with other people, then you know that this kinds of websites have their own set of rules to be followed. Websites that have these rules include MySpace, Facebook, and the newly popular Twitter. These rules are not made to dampen everyone’s fun but to keep the peace and show consideration for fellow users.
Just like the other websites, there are some basic rules and tips to keeping your Twitter account alive and active.
Inactive account- Do not leave your Twitter account in sleep mode. Friends and family like to follow what’s going on with you because they find you fasinating. They want to know the person behind the Twitter account and want to know that you still have ties to the interactive internet world. Make it a point to check in several times a week. That way you can keep your followers interested and keep your account up and running.
Spam Is Bad- Twitter users want to know everything about you (you being the key word here). Sure they like to know how your baking business is going or how many vacuums you have sold, but that’s not as important to your followers as you. Do you like what you bake? Did you suck a toy up through the vacuum cleaner? Keep in mind the quickest way to get rid of your followers is to be detached from them.
Spam is considered someone who posts the same link a considerable amount on their website or page. The rule of thumb is if you are following more than you are being followed, you could be considered a spammer. Remember to keep an equal ratio between followers and the people that follow you.
Don’t SHOUT- One of the most aggravating these among users (on any website, not just Twitter) is when someone uses their CAPS LOCK to type. This is considered yelling and not necessary. If you need to get your point across, use your caps lock on one key word.
Reply to your replies- If someone leaves you a comment or reply on your Twitter, it takes no time at all to reply back to them. Failure to do so can be considered to be rude and snooty. To reply on Twitter, click on the @Replies button that is above your Inbox. Doing so can help make replying back to your Tweets a lot easier. Once you have done this, you should be able to see all of the comments your followers have left for you with @(yourusername).
Take advantage of the Direct Message System for those times when you are wanting to have a longer than usual Tweeter conversation. There’s no need for the whole world to see what you’re talking about.
Sober Tweeting- While you may think it’s hilariously fun to tweet after your two sheets to the wind, it really isn’t and should be thought through first. You may end up saying something that you never would or should say if you were sober.
Over-Enthusiastic Tweet-Head- Don’t tweet so much that it gives no one else a chance to reply back to you. Twitter, like many of the other websites, is available to you to build relationships and to get to know people.
Going Public with Tweeter- Again, like many other websites, what you say on Tweeter is for the whole entire world to see. If you need to say something that you don’t want the entire world to see, then take advantage of the Direct Message. Tweeter is public, so watch what you say and who you say it to.
