5 Tips for Twitter Success

Social media stresses some people out.  That’s largely because the possibilities for promoting who you are, and what you, seem endless with Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, YouTube and other applications.

And most people don’t feel like they have the time to use all these tools.  The good news is, you don’t need to spend every waking moment on these social media platforms to create an effective online presence

Over the next few weeks, I’ll offer a series of tips that maximize the impact of social media while minimizing the amount of time you spend online.  Let’s start with Twitter, the “microblogging” site.  Here are five things you can do right now that are easy and fast:

1. Retweet – Retweeting sounds basic, but this is the fastest and easiest thing you can do when you are pressed for time.  By reposting what one of your followers said, you provide value and gain creditability.  Just make sure the links before you RT as there is nothing more irritating than being taken to a broken link.

2. Answer Questions – This is especially true when the person asking has a large following. This is how you become part of the conversation. Respond with the @NAME sign and say something interesting. If you do, those who follow the questioner will see your post, and come to see what else you have to say.

3. Ask a question – This also starts a conversation and gets people talking. Add a hash tag (#) so people can follow along.  Health is Social (@HealthisSocial) has launched a Twitter chat for doctors. They are talking and asking questions and generated a lot of interest in #MDchat. Why not try the same thing with your followers?

4. Be Relevant – The quickest way to lose followers is to say what you had for breakfast (are you listening Joe?) so make sure you tweet something that has value.  If you read or hear something great, tweet it, even if it’s not focused on your industry.  You can cut a broad cloth, just make it interesting and make it your own.

5. Follow Friday – Recommend someone to follow with #FF hash tag. This is an easy way to offer something valuable, quickly. I like to tell people why too. Like this: “#FF @ShabbirSafdar 4 great analytic tips” or “#FF @AdAge 4 great case studies in digital” or “#FF @dearShakti 4 what’s going on with food in NYC.”

While this may seem like a lot, you can do all of these things very quickly at some point during the day and greatly increase your visibility online.