8 Ways to Use Twitter to Attract Awesome Business Opportunities
Are you still wondering why you should bother with Twitter?With younger, prettier social media channels cropping up all over, you might have bypassed this l’il powerhouse for your small business marketing.But did you know it’s one of the best ways to attract awesome business opportunities quickly, easily, and for free?Yep, it's true.For example, meet my client, Rebecca Perkins. She went from self published author to bagging an international publishing deal for her first book in just a few short weeks. All through connections she made on Twitter.Another client, Ash Rishi, cut a deal worth $22,000 and tripled his website traffic - in just 6 weeks - thanks to Twitter.Or how about Meredith Blair, owner of ShopBizi, who landed a new online retailer for her fabulous line of exclusive leather handbags. It all started with a retweet.And, just to prove that Twitter is a BIG social media marketing contender, feast your eyes on these juicy stats…• Twitter was the fastest growing social network last year, adding 40% more active users in the last 6 months of 2012. (US topped the growth of active usage by a staggering 94%)• Twitter has over 288 million active users with a presence in almost every major country• 340 million tweets are sent per day with people spending an average of 36 minutes there each day(Source: GlobalWebIndex)When you’re a small business owner and budding entrepreneur, leveraging your precious time effectively is crucial. Especially, when you have a household to manage and school runs to juggle.So here are eight simple ideas to make the most of your Twitter time, and instantly your return on time investment in amazing connections, fabulous opportunities, and more sales!
8 Ways to Use Twitter to Attract Awesome Business Opportunities
1. Say something!
Let’s nip this one in the bud right away…If you’re thinking "I’m no wordsmith and snappy tweets don’t just roll off my tongue", think again! You’re an expert, and you have amazing talent and a wealth of experience.I bet you have a selection of snazzy soundbites you use when speaking to clients and prospects, in your blogs, or material from articles, presentations, or books. These can be adapted into a perfectly formed, totally re-tweetable format that you can schedule ahead of time using Buffer or Hootsuite. Or, ask your VA to do it!
2. Retweet with authenticity
Compile a small list of 5-10 tweeters that you value for inspiration and sound advice. Get busy retweeting their funny, intelligent content on a regular basis so that others can enjoy them too.The very best approach is to make this retweeted content relevant to your audience, and ideally retweet folks you want to establish a longstanding relationship with. This can lead to all sorts of exciting opportunities.
3. Become a media source
Twitter works in real time, and just like life, is fast-paced. It never stops! Which is why journalists and influential bloggers flock there for the latest insights to help them with their creative endeavours.If they have a question or query that their latest piece hangs on, their communication tool of choice is Twitter. One tweet can provide a variety box of delicious answers from their peeps instantly.Make a list of useful media connections that you can make yourself invaluable to (but not in a creepy, stalker kind of way), and make way for perfect media opportunities to flow in your direction!(For more on using Twitter for publicity, check out Get Famous.)
4. KISS your followers
No, not that kind of kiss. The other kind: Keep It Simple, Sista!Many people complain that they're tweeting into a black hole , and that no one pays any attention to them.Questions are a great way to get a conversation going. So ask lots of them, and listen carefully so you can learn a ton about your audience.Don’t make your questions complicated. K.I.S.S. with simple questions that are easy to answer. Rinse and repeat.
5. Be yourself
This is where people get in a little tizzy and worry that they have to share private information to be ‘personal’ on Twitter.But there's a BIG difference between being ‘personal’ and ‘showing personality’.What do I mean by this?Sprinkle in some social small talk, funny observations and daily musing type tweets.Remember Twitter is a social network, so don't be afraid to be just that - social. People will get to know you, and you know what they say about business - people generally only do business with those they know, like, and trust.
6. Inspire with quotes
Love them or hate them, people go nutty for quotes on Twitter.I mean, who doesn’t love a dose of inspiration floating through their stream?It’s why quotes are the most shared tweets of all, and with Twitter’s 140 character limit, you’ve got the perfect match.The more original the better, so look for "quotables" when reading books and magazines, listening to music, or watching movies and interviews. If you can use quotes that relate to your business expertise, even better.
7. Get out of your comfort zone
Neale Donald Walsch says, "Life begins at the end of your comfort zone", and on Twitter that means tweeting with people you don’t know.It’s easy to just hang out with your inner circle peeps, but Twitter offers a fun cocktail party vibe that makes it easy to meet new connections, no invitation required!You never know where new friendships will lead.
8. Soft sell
This isn’t the hard-sell of a car salesman, it’s subtly seeding your tweets in a way that gets people curious about you.Tweet about what you're working on in your business, give us an exclusive peek behind the scenes, and into your day to day.Inquiring minds will want to know more, and they'll likely click on over to your website.
How are you going to use Twitter to attract awesome business opportunities? Tell us in the comments, and be sure to leave your Twitter handle.
About the author:Alicia Cowan is a social media mentor and strategist for small businesses, and creator of Twitter Brilliance, the Twitter marketing online training school. Grab your free Twitter goodies to help you amp up your Twitter impact with ease right here.