Twitter Best Practices for Businesses

Twitter is a great platform for businesses, especially small and medium businesses (SMBs), to raise awareness around their products and services. Regardless of the industry, whether a bakery or an IT services company, you can use Twitter to grow your business and connect with potential customers through engaging with them on Twitter.

According to the Customer Insight Study conducted by DB5 and Twitter in 2014, 50% of Twitter users visited or shopped on the websites of the companies they followed. Additionally, 60% of Twitter users purchased from an SMB because of something they saw on Twitter, while 43% of Twitter users plan to purchase regularly from the SMBs they follow.

As you use Twitter to boost your company’s profile and reach, here are some best practices that have helped businesses across Nigeria reach their target audience:

1.  Learn the basics of Twitter - To start off, you need to familiarize yourself with Twitter’s numerous features. Learn how to compose a Tweet, how to best use Hashtags (https://support.twitter.com/articles/49309), and how to find relevant Twitter users that you can engage with to increase your reach (https://support.twitter.com/articles/14022). This could range from thought-leaders in your industry to other businesses, or even influencers that are of interest to your company .

Tip: join the conversation by Tweeting using a relevant Hashtag.  For example if you bake cakes, this could be  #CakesInNigeria, which may show you people who are looking for where to buy a cake in Nigeria.

2.  Ensure your Twitter profile is up-to-date - It is important to ensure your Twitter profile fully represents you, as this will be the first thing a potential customer sees. Make sure your profile photo, header photo, and details in your bio, are all up-to-date.

Tip: include your website URL in the bio section so that consumers can find out more information after visiting your Twitter page.  For example e-Commerce store @ShopKonga have a frequently updated page with a header photo and website link.

3.   Develop a content strategy - To engage with your followers and gain new ones, it is important that your Tweets engage the people reading them. It is always a good idea to plan, so why not create a content calendar which will help you spend time developing engaging Tweets for customers.

Tip: use the Tweetdeck app to manage your account and schedule Tweets in advance.

4.            Grow and engage your followers - Constantly Tweeting, using Hashtags and creating a unique voice for your business on Twitter will help to grow your followers. Followers on Twitter can help further the reach of your business, and as a result, increase sales and raise awareness around your product or service.

5.            Track your results - Use Twitter analytics (analytics.twitter.com) to view how you’re doing, discover who your top influencers are, and learn more about your followers. Through this tool you will be able to find out how to better optimize your content and expand your reach.