The Definitive Twitter Marketing Guide for 2017
We show you how to effectively market yourself or your company on Twitter.
Twitter has over 313 million monthly active users and allows anybody to engage with anybody (unlike Facebook which usually requires people be "friends" first) it also allows users to discover each other by the content of their tweets making it an ideal tool for targeted lead generation. Twitter is easy to use but using it for marketing can be hard work unless you know what you're doing and that's where are definitive guide to Twitter marketing in 2017 comes in:
Optimize your Bio, Avatar, and Background Image
Your bio, avatar and background image are crucial, as it's the first thing users see - it's your chance to sell yourself.
Your bio should include a link to your website and a short (you're limited to 160 characters) but compelling summary of what you or your company offer. You should also include a call-to-action if you have enough space.
Your avatar should be a picture of yourself or your company's logo.
Your background should be an eye-capturing image, ideally one that further clarifies (through imagery) what it is you or your company offer.
Follow and Engage with Influencers in your Niche
The beauty of Twitter is it allows you to engage with anyone no matter how high profile. You can find influencers by searching for the most highly related keyword for your niche and clicking on the "People" tab. Follow them and tweet at them. Why? Because if you're lucky they'll retweet or engage with you, and then some of their many followers are likely to become your followers as well.
Mass follow and unfollow targeted users
It's a crude tactic, but it works. Follow users that tweet keywords related to your niche (targeted users), some will follow you back. After a while unfollow users that don't follow you back and repeat the process over and over to gradually increase your follow count. You can use Tweet Adder to automate this process if you wish.
Find and engage with prospects using keywords
Perform Twitter searches for keywords related to your niche. Engage with those users you find by these keywords; either by tweeting at them, or liking or reweeting their tweets. If you're lucky they'll follow you, if you're really lucky they'll become a new customer.
Incorporate images and video in your tweets
Why should you incorporate images and video into your tweets? Because tweets that incorporate images and tweets that incorporate video are proven to perform better than standard text tweets.
Ask for retweets
It's a proven fact that when you ask for retweets you're more likely to get them. So ask.
Copy successful competitors
You can find competitors by searching for the most highly related keyword for your niche and clicking on the "People" tab.
Take time to explore your competitors' tweets to see which of their tweets are successful and then duplicate their ideas.
Make your tweets conversational
Encourage user participation by asking questions in your tweets, or if you're sharing your latest blog post ask users what they think or include a poll. The more engagement you get the more other people are likely to follow and engage with you, this is called social proof.
Engage with Twitter Chats
Twitter chats are a great way to gain new followers. Find Twitter chats related to your niche (there is a list here) and begin participating. Users that engage with Twitter Chats are just the type of followers you want because they interact with Twitter as opposed to just using it for consumption; that means they are more likely to interact with your tweets as well.
Make use of hashtags in your tweets
Hashtags are one way people find content on Twitter, using hashtags means users are more likely to discover your tweets through search even if they don't follow you. You can find suggestions for hashtags related to your niche at X.
Auto DM new followers
When someone follows you, you are able to send them a DM (direct message). This is a great opportunity to introduce yourself and pitch what you have to offer. You can automatically send a DM to all new followers using SocialOomph.
Schedule your tweets for maximum exposure
If you want your tweets to gain maximum exposure it's a good idea to schedule your Tweets to the time of day most of your followers are likely to be online and therefore more likely to see your tweet. You can use Tweriod to discover the optimal time to Tweet and you can schedule your Tweets using Hootsuite.
Use AddMeFast to fake social proof
AddMeFast is a free social promotion service that allows you to gain likes and retweets in exchange for points. You can easily earn these points simply by liking other peoples tweets through the AddMeFast interface. This is a great way to boost - albeit in a somewhat fake manner - social proof.
Get your account verified
Getting your account verified adds more social proof as people associate bigger brands and individuals with verified accounts. It also confirms to users that your Twitter account is genuine and official. You can apply to get your Twitter account verified here.
We hope you found this guide to Twitter marketing useful. If you think we missed of any utterly-essential ideas then please let us know.
