Eight tips to professionally manage Twitter
Digital skills have the potential to save time, money and effort, yet many African companies are yet to fully realise the power of a well-placed Tweet, so here are 8 straightforward tips for marketing professionals.
1. Agree your objectives
What do you want to get out of Twitter? Decide what you want to achieve and make sure your tone of voice is relevant (professional, funny or personal). The purpose of the company Twitter account could be anything from simply having an established digital presence, to engaging with customer queries and proactively promoting your brand. A great example of the latter is MTN South Africa.
2. Claim your brand
Even if you are not going to be a regular user of some social media, it is worth claiming your brand or company name and posting/tweeting occasionally.
3. Decide which identity to use
Is it a personal identity? A corporate identity? Or both? Decide your ‘persona’ and stick with it – consistency is key. You may even want to have dedicated employee accounts.
4. Use one photo for all your profiles
If you are building a personal brand identity, use one photo across all your social media spaces. You would not change your company logo every five minutes, so do not change your photo.
5. When it’s in place, don’t change your Twitter name
When you have selected your Twitter name, don’t change it as it confuses your followers and dilutes your brand.
6. Repurpose your content
Whenever you create a press release, write an article, say something - make sure it is on Twitter.
7. Don’t use auto responders
People hate them and they are not that useful unless you are offering something of value, for free!
8. If you want to be re-tweeted…
Make sure your tweets are shorter than average – especially if you have a long Twitter name.
According to data collected by Portland Communications, cities in South Africa and Egypt had the highest volume of Twitter traffic in 2013, with Mondays and Fridays being the most popular day for activity, with traffic peaking at about 10pm.
Tips provided by: Annmarie Hanlon, Lecturer in Digital and Social Media Marketing at the University of Derby, United Kingdom.
Image:dolphfyn / Shutterstock.com
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