3 Business T’s for Twitter: Telling, Talented & Tangible
Advice I give my clients often is that you have to tell your own story or someone else will tell it for you. There’s been a lot of focus lately on the dynamic, changing role of social media in journalism and PR and I am amazed by the sheer volume of information on Twitter everyday. Last week I successfully demonstrated to a new client how her iPhone and Twitter could help her advance her business.
She’s committed and is appreciating this newfound leverage which we both believe will yield added revenue to her business. Oh how I love the process of conversion! However, the corporate jury of social media is still out and, for a business to use Twitter, it has to have what I call the 3 Business T’s: Telling, Talented and Tangible.
Telling: PR is about storytelling and to quote a fellow Twitter friend (@TrendTracker) “nothing thrives more in social media than a rich character.” I believe smart companies and organizations (especially non-profits) will benefit greatly by telling their own, unique story through the social media channels.
It’s both what you say (content) and how you say it (style, message). Clients I’m helping use Twitter to tell their story include restaurants, non-profits, and even a real estate professional. We’re taking the strongest, most compelling information about their business and posting it strategically on Twitter. And we’re following the people who want to hear those messages.
Blended with traditional PR and marketing, Twitter is like adding a megaphone to your business’ communication plan. There’s no limit to the number of people who can see tweets and can re-tweet them (like compounding interest).
Talented: The talented are thriving on Twitter! You don’t have to look far down your Twitter “stream” to see real talent right there in front of you. I’m getting direct access to some of the best PR folks out there such as @MikeLizun, @TheRealPRMan, @markwschaefer, just to name a few, and businesses can access these folks too!
If you want talent in the social media world, look no further than @jeffbullas, @socialnetdaily, @trendtracker, @mashable (of course), @treypennington, @Twitter_Tips. So much talent, not enough time to learn it all! I am working now with clients to help them identify talent that’s on Twitter and that is relevant to their business. Once identified, we follow, listen, learn and apply complimentary strategies!
Tangible: In the corporate world, everything revolves around one thing: revenue. As a small business owner myself, you have to financially benefit from Twitter and social media or you can spin your wheels and end up with a lot of wasted time and the doubters who will love to say “I told you so”.
So, here’s what Twitter HAS to do for your business:
It has to provide tangible results. Can you point to a new client as a result of being on Twitter? Have you found a new employee through Twitter? Have you had more traffic in your restaurant because of Twitter? Can you point to news coverage for your business as a result of being on Twitter? The real strategy with Twitter’s tangibility for results is in what you say (content is king), how you say it (strategic style) and how often you tweet (consistent messaging).
