By Katt Stearns. Twitter is the platform that I get the most questions about and that many people and businesses still don’t understand. One of the biggest challenges people have is learning what to tweet. Or should they even tweet at all?
As you get to know me, you will see that Twitter is my favorite platform. I have had the pleasure of meeting some amazing people who have helped grow my business; I’ve planned trips around the world; and I was asked to write for Abbotsford Today through Twitter. But, Twitter can still be a powerful tool even if you NEVER tweet.
Below are the top 5 ways you can use Twitter without ever sending a tweet.
- Stay up to date with news
One of the great attributes about Twitter is that it is in real time. Unlike Facebook, Twitter doesn’t have an algorithm so you can always see the latest tweets at the top of your news feed. It has been estimated that news breaks on Twitter 15 minutes sooner than any other source. If you are someone who likes to keep up to date with the news or your favourite sports team, follow them on Twitter.
Create a Twitter list for all of your news sources, and then spend five minutes reading the headlines to get a quick update of what’s going on. If you want more details just click the link to read the rest of the story. This will save you time and keep you in the know.
- Stay on top of your competitors
For any business market, knowing what your competitors are doing and what’s going on in the marketplace can help you stay ahead of the crowd. Similar to the first tip, creating a Twitter list of your competition can help you learn what they are up to. If you don’t want your competitors to know that you are following them on Twitter, create a private list so they don’t get notified.
- Take advantage of contests and special pricing
Do you like deals and discounts? Many companies offer their social media communities special pricing and deals. Harbour Air releases their latest sales, contest and deals to their Twitter community. Follow your favorite brands and companies to see if they offer special deals too.
- Get your customers to tweet for you.
Put Twitter widgets and tweet buttons on your website for your customers and web traffic to tweet for you. Having a Twitter widget on your blog so readers can easily share your content will increase your reach and web traffic to your blog. Another tool is “Click To Tweet” which allows you to create customized tweets and place them anywhere on your website—like product purchase or event registration pages.
- Monitor mentions of your brand
Even if you aren’t tweeting about your company, your customers might be. Use Twitter search to monitor your company name to see what conversations are taking place. By doing this once a month or week (depending on your company), you can gain customer insight.
If you decide to use the tip we shared in #4, then monitoring your mentions is important if you want to see who is sharing your content.
Twitter can help you stay up to date on information and help increase awareness of your company. Even if you are not tweeting, Twitter can be a powerful tool.
If you found these tips helpful, please click the “TWEET” button to help spread the word.
Do you have a question about social media and how it can help your business? Leave your questions in the comments below!
About Katt Stearns
We all have a story to tell. Capturing it in a manner that engages, educates and entertains your audience requires Strategic Social. Katt Stearns is a social media marketing consultant, speaker and trainer. She has worked with numerous organizations including BC Hydro’s Power Smart, Thompson Rivers University and Mission Folk Music Festival to develop strategic social media strategies that help them share their stories, and make a difference in the world. Katt is also the Director of Social Strategy for We Make Stuff Happen. You can find Katt at KattStearns.com, Google+ or on Twitter at @KattStearns.