Why Use Twitter for your Business?
There is a great deal of Internet buzz about how social media should be part of your company’s marketing plan. You may have thought that you don’t have the time to answer that question, “What’s Happening” and can’t see any benefits “tweeting” would bring. With Twitter’s usage increasing nearly 1500% over the previous year according to Nielsen, September 2009, it may be time to think again.
How do companies benefit from Twitter?
Identify an avenue to harness the marketing power of Twitter to benefit your business. To inspire motivation, examine the following Twitter marketing strategies and analyze how they might benefit your company and/or organization.
- Announce coupon codes and special deals.
- Do you offer coupon codes or special deals? Providing specials to current and prospective customers is a phenomenal marketing tool. An incredible example of a company offering coupon codes on Twitter is DellOutlet at twitter.com/DellOutlet. They surpassed $2 million in sales offering coupon codes to customers via Twitter. Payless ShoeSource announces special deals at: www.twitter.com/PaylessInsider.
- Broadcast company news
- Do you have breaking news or deadlines that your customers need to know about? Examples of companies using Twitter to broadcast company news: Ford at twitter.com/ford and http://twitter.com/ATTNews.
- Build relationships
- Interact with clients and build professional relationships. An example of a company that aspires to build relationships by offering tips is H&R Block at: twitter.com/HRBlock and GM at twitter.com/gmblogs.
- Network development
- Do you value the power of a network at your fingertips? Tweets by networked colleagues and associates on Twitter are an invaluable tool to inspire, inform and keep each other connected. A example of a business network using Twitter to keep connected is twitter.com/MilfordLBN
- Promote corporate blogs.
- Have a company blog? Promote your latest blog postings by tweeting. An examples of companies that promote company blogs include: Kodak at twitter.com/kodakCB
- Provide customer support.
- Do you offer customer support? Examples of companies using Twitter for support include Comcast at twitter.com/comcastcares, Home Depot at twitter.com/HomeDepot and GM at twitter.com/GMCustomerSvc.
- Publicize upcoming events
- Tweet quick reminders of upcoming events to your Twitter network.
- Receive news and inspiration
- Do you have favorite Web sites and online newspapers that you read on a regular basis? Imagine receiving “tweets” from your favorite newspapers sections and quickly scanning through them on your Twitter account to find the ones that interest you most.
Microsoft co-founder, Bill Gates, joined the Twitter phenomenon on January 19, 2010 at twitter.com/BillGates and has become an overnight sensation with Twitter 260,276 followers and counting. His first tweets are about Haiti that point to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for reputable organizations to provide support to and an announcement about his new website, Gates Notes.
Whether you have a small or large business or organization, Twitter is one social media avenue worth exploring. Instead of “What’s Happening”, ask yourself, “What has my attention right now?” As with any new adventure, you won’t reach the top of the mountain until you first decide to climb.
Tags: companies that use Twitter, how to benefit from Twitter, Twitter, why use Twitter