Twitter is a hard social network for my Halifax social media class to understand. If we were just using Twitter for fun, anything goes. But when we use it for business, we have to apply best business practices to Twitter and learn how to generate leads and create opportunities. Understanding how to use Twitter for business is critical.
Social media class learning how to use Twitter for business
The Halifax social media class began with a review of the five different types of Twitter posts. Each participant spent time composing and sending out the five different types. We discussed the visibility of each type, and what it could be used for. We also discussed the “Period” in front of the username to turn a Reply into a Mention and what I thought of this practice. I told them I was not in favor of this practice since it impersonalizes the original message. I suggested that they address the personal by name instead of using the period.
One of the greatest challenges for the participants to overcome was their fear of tweeting. Many are still having a hard time figuring out what they can say on Twitter. As the participants began tweeting in the class, we discussed each of their tweets that they had composed, and they began to understand that they don’t have to write great wordy tweets to use Twitter.
The problem that many people have with tweeting is that they over analyze their tweet. It is the paralysis of analysis problem. One thinks and thinks and thinks… and does not tweet. Through the process of demonstrating some simple tweets, I was able to show them how Twitter models real life conversations. Sometimes a simple “Hi, how is your day going?” tweet is a great way to get started.
I used the analogy of walking into a room and starting the process of speaking to someone there. We talked about how the conversation would start, and how they would do it. They all agreed that they would start off with a simple greeting. Then I asked the question, “Why do you think Twitter is any different than life?”
Many times, conversations on Twitter start off simple and move forward in complexity and focus. Using simple chit chat at the start of the conversation is a great way to warm things up.
Once we covered these five different types of tweets, we moved along to HootSuite. I began the process of showing these business owners how they could monitor and more effectively use Twitter throughout the day with HootSuite. We also looked at using our smartphone’s to monitor Twitter and respond to our messages on the go.
One of the first few things that I had the participants do was to set up streams for monitoring their Twitter user name and their company name. It is my hope that none of the participants will ever have anybody saying anything bad about them, but it can happen.
People will attack you and your business behind your back by putting a “#” hashtag in front of your Twitter username, instead of the “@” sign. For example, they will use #4JeffBrown instead of @4JeffBrown to say something bad about me. Setting up a stream on HootSuite to monitor what others are saying about you is critical to the success of your business.
We also looked at setting up search streams for certain key words on HootSuite. Participants were encouraged to think about what keywords their customers would use when they’re asking for help, or looking for something. Their homework for the week was to experiment with search on HootSuite and see what turns up.
The beauty of using HootSuite is that a lot of information is pulled inward, instead of having to go out and spend time searching for it. Time is critical for business. Having search results automatically pulled into HootSuite can prevent a lot of wasted time and energy.
Hootsuite off on second monitor while I work on primary screen
The other thing I share with my participants is that if they had two monitors, they could throw HootSuite onto one screen and monitor what is happening on Twitter without having to flip back and forth between screens. Distractions are very bad for business owners. Having HootSuite off to the side on another screen prevents useless distractions. What do I mean by this? Unless you see a red circle in a column, you don’t need to look at HootSuite any further. You just keep on doing your work.
We also looked at composing tweets using HootSuite. Everything we had learned previously to this point on Twitter, reinforced what we will be doing on HootSuite. So for the most part, while participants are in the office, they can monitor their Twitter using HootSuite. If there’s a need to respond to something that they see, they can quickly respond and go about their business.
We will be covering more of HootSuite in next class so that they can become more proficient using it. My main job for this class was to introduce them to HootSuite, and show them that they can use Twitter effectively with the time that they have. It was important today to help them understand that they can market and engage with their customers on Twitter, and still do business.
In the near future, we will also be looking at bringing in other social networks into HootSuite. We will talk about the pros and cons of posting from HootSuite to these different social networks; reminding them that each social network has different people in them.
Curious about training with Alpha Social Media Inc? Contact me through the Contact Us form or connect with me on Twitter as @4Jeffbrown
