Twitter

With so many social media platforms, unless you have a team member or two as social media managers, you alone can’t do it all. Try them all for a period of time, then decide which brings the results you like. Everyone is different; what works for one business owner might not work for you. So try ’em all!

Onward to Twitter! Facebook is for connecting with people; it’s about relationships. Instagram is about images, and working with them to attract new followers. LinkedIn is about business networking. Twitter’s strength is in sharing ideas and information – without personal drama.

If you’re not that familiar with Twitter, it’s fast-paced, real time posts. People and companies are found through hashtags. And yes, you can freely use links! Learn some strategies, and you’re on your way to growing a following of potential clients!

Until recently, Twitter “tweets” (posts) were limited to 140 characters, but you can now tweet with 280. The beauty of Twitter is keeping everything short and sweet, so for the second that your tweet scrolls into sight, make it grab people’s attention in a few words. Just because you can use 280 characters doesn’t mean you should. When in doubt, keep it short. Your links are included in your character count too; shortening your link using bit.ly is the usual way to shorten them. Also, retweeting (RT) uses up characters too.

 

Become a Hashtag Wiz

 

How to choose hashtags? What do they do? Hashtags are “labels” that you add to your tweets; they make your tweets able to be found by users looking for tweets in a certain topic. Use a hashtag that you made up, and no one will know to use it to find your tweets. Use a hugely popular one, and your tweets get buried in a sea of thousands of others with the same hashtag. There’s a handy tool called Hashtagify.me that will help you find and choose the right ones. The rule of thumb is to limit your tweet to two or three.

Provide value in every tweet. As in other platforms, give and you will receive. Share information that potential clients will find useful. Include  a link to your own content. Share local events, especially those your business is involved in. Your tweets will attract a following. Remember to follow people back and interact with them.

 

Timing Matters

 

Timing your tweets can influence results. Surprising, but true. A tool called Tweriod.com will analyze your tweets so you can see what works best. And remember to account for time zones, if a certain region of the country or world is important to target.

Good Twitter etiquette includes responding to everyone who interacts with you. If someone retweets you, go ahead and say thank you!t is also good manners on Twitter to follow those who follow you if their account interests you. Because of this, Buffer suggests if you are looking to gain more followers who are relevant to your art and business, try following people who are already following a Twitter account which shares your target audience. For example, this could be an art gallery, an artist organization, or an art collector.

From artworkarchive.com

 

Sharing Is Caring

 

Encourage users to share (retweet, or RT) your tweet by posting useful content. Don’t be afraid to ask for a RT (“pls RT”). And follow follow follow…judiciously; there are spam accounts out there – you’ll be able to spot them easily, but the #1 tipoff is lacking a profile picture and sketchy or no bio. Use the Search feature to find users and hashtags.

A cool feature of Twitter is the ability to organize the accounts and people you follow into lists. Sorting them into lists let you target your tweets better. You might have a list of clients, influencers in your industry, fellow creatives, suppliers, etc.

As in other platforms, put your profile to work for you. Be consistent in the use of your logo and business name, and what your business is about. There are programs out there that allow you to schedule your tweets, such as Buffer and Hootsuite.

Promote your Twitter account to your website, portfolio, and other platforms. Promote other business owners and creatives! And remember the Golden Rule: Tweet others as you would like to be tweeted!

Photo by freestocks.org on Unsplash