The title of a recent blog at BNET.com struck me as relevant in today's virtual world where people think they have to be glued to the computer to make any marketing efforts online stick. The headline was: How to Tweet Infrequently and Gain a Huge Following.
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The author of the blog post on Twitter has tweeted fewer than 500 times over the course of her feed, and has more than 70,000 followers. Even more importantly, almost every "tweet," as Twitter postings are called, gets "retweeted" by others using Twitter. This is an easy way to spread the word with very little effort.
Some of her more useful tips on making Twitter postings interesting so that people you reach through that medium keep coming back:
- Don't focus your entire Twitter feed on promotions. People will follow you if you give them something: tips, links to interesting articles, and others that will make them see you as an expert or a resource to turn to.
- Have a clear goal for your feed. It's just like any of your other marketing tools – know why you are using it.
- Edit yourself just as you would if you were speaking in person to the people you're trying to reach.
- And be funny (if you're so inclined).
And, I'd like to add, keep your Twitter feed (or blog) up-to-date.
MDM has a page at www.twitter.com/mdmnews, as do companies like Graybar, Sonepar, Thomas and Betts, Activant, and Bison Gear & Engineering. More and more companies are using these tools as part of an overall marketing strategy.
The ROI of course on social media tools is hard to measure. Read a recent MDM article on the subject: The Social Media Challenge: ROI.
