10 Ways Twitter Can Help Your Business

Does this sound familiar:

Market -> Find leads -> Pitch -> Convert -> Track -> Analyze Data -> Adjust -> Rinse & Repeat?

If so, there is a good chance you can improve this process with Twitter. Social marketing is steadily becoming its own beast outside of the almighty Google search. The younger generation are using social sites more than ever to find content, and completely bypassing Google’s search results. Moral of the story? Get on the social bandwagon.

Here are 10 ways Twitter can help your business.

1. Reinforce Your Brand

Even though you only have 140 characters to get your message across, Twitter is still a fantastic way to communicate your brand. Choose a profile picture, background and bio that represent your company. Tweet about products, news and causes your company cares about. Let your followers get to know you.

2. Find New Customers

According to expandedramblings.com, approximately 284 million people use Twitter. Don’t just sit in your store and wait for customers to wander in. Get on Twitter and start pitching, integrating, retweeting, and messaging.

3. Answer Customer Questions Efficiently

If you had to sit and answer customer questions all day, you probably wouldn’t get much else done. Another effective strategy is to let your customers help each other. When you create a dedicated space on Twitter, you give customers the opportunity to communicate with each other. And, of course, make sure your brand gets involved in the conversation – they will love you for it!

4. Drive Traffic to Your Website

The more traffic your website has, the more profitable it’s going to be. Don’t just connect with your new found followers on Twitter. Use the social machine to drive customers to your website where they can learn more about your brand.

5. Create Excitement

Do you have a new product or promotion happening soon? Twitter is the perfect place to announce it and get people excited!

6. Check Up on Your Competition

Twitter isn’t only useful for connecting with your newest followers; it can also be helpful for checking up on your competition. Check out their stats, their promotions and their strategies to keep a competitive edge. Their weakness may just be your strength.

7. Stay Up to Date on Industry News and Trends

What are your customers talking about and searching for? Checking Twitter is a great way to tell. Not only can you research the current hottest hashtags, but just by being involved in industry conversations you can learn more about consumer needs.

8. Drive Traffic to Your Store

Twitter may be global, but that doesn’t mean it can’t help your store on a local level. Gather fans in your area and let them know about current specials and promotions going on at your physical store.

9. Get Important Feedback

Not every product or service you offer is going to be a slam dunk. Instead of moving on quickly when things don’t work out, use Twitter to gather valuable feedback on your products and promotions. Websites such as Whotalking.com will let you search to see what people are saying about you.

10. Offer Faster Customer Service

Lastly, once you know where you have failed, use Twitter to correct it. With Twitter, you can respond to customer complaints in real time.

If you’re ready to grow your business, you can’t afford to ignore Twitter any longer. Sign up today and experience the benefits.

Guest Blogger: Lindsey Patterson

Lindsey is a freelance writer who specializes in technology and the latest social trends, specifically involving social media.