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  1. Twitter Tips for Better Marketing

    November 15, 2011 by Blair Stover

    If you are looking to market like the pros, take these tips when marketing on Twitter. First, improve your tweets. In your own voice, share valuable content with a style which goes along with your brand.  Also, provide key words in your tweets. Use words that describe your industry and business best. Include many of these words when creating your 140 word posts.

     

    Image representing Twitter as depicted in Crun...

    Image via CrunchBase

    Share useful content by providing links. By doing so, you are effectively retaining and growing followers. This is a stronger tactic than actually engaging in a conversation with them. This is due to the fact that growing a fan base requires you to share more links than replies.

     

    Take advantage of customer search orders to learn what consumers want. Once you know what your clients want, you can
    work on providing it. Then, engage them in a conversation to  about the problem your business can solve.

     

    The most crucial part of a Twitter marketing strategy is to tweet with the right people after connecting with them.  Do not just follow anyone. Seek out relevant people who are willing to follow you. Having thousands of followers does you no good if none of them are interested in your content. Local businesses can even do this by finding potential followers who live in your region and have shown interest in your industry.

     

    Use icebreakers to make connections with the strangers who will follow you. Try to find a connection with them. Try sending them an @messaging and detail something that was insightful in their last blog post.
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  • Twitter Tips for Small Businesses

    May 24, 2011 by Blair Stover

    Every year Merriam-Webster issues a list of new words they are adding to the English dictionary. One of the words they included on that list for 2010 was the word tweet. Despite the reality that many small business owners want to hide under a rock when it comes to technology, its clear that Twitter is here to stay for awhile. That reality has proven that small business simply cannot afford to be without a Twitter account. By being on Twitter, you are where your consumers are, which helps to increase name recognition within a business and helps open a dialog with you and your customer.

    However what many small businesses have found is that Twitter can be confusing, and having one done wrong could be catastrophic to a company’s future. So to save you a headache, we’ve created the top five tips any small business can – and should – take to reap the benefits of the digital age.

    1. Get a Twitter Yourself

    The first, and probably, most important thing is to have a personal Twitter account where you can build relationships, get followers, and learn how to use the program, all before you put your small business  – and possibly your very livelihood – on the cutting block. Find not only friends you know personally, but those who might be interested in you and eventually your small business.

    2. Set Up Account, Get Followers (Employees Are A Great Start)

    Once your account is set up, the next task, and probably the most important, is building a community who reads your tweets. This means you need to get followers. Those following you as a person can only go so far, so encourage your employees to follow your as well, and to re-tweet your postings so their friends can join too. It’s all about networking here, and building that network cannot be left on your shoulder alone. (Bonus tip: Eye your competitors followers and invite those who have expressed they aren’t satisfied as consumers to also follow you).

    3. Be Complete

    Not filling out a complete profile is just creepy. You’re a business and in order for people to want to follow you, you need their trust, so you must completely fill out profile.  This includes a profile picture!

    4. Add the Twitter Account
    No point in having an account to get more people interested in your small business if you aren’t going to promote it with those who are already interested. This means add the twitter account to business cards and websites.

    5. Use It

    Having an account that isn’t updated at least 3-5 times a week, if not everyday, is a waste. Be sure to update often enough to keep your name and logo easily out there. But not too often. Find a balance, and use it wisely – this should come naturally. (Another bonus tip: Don’t be boring while updating, be human. Technology has already decreased face-to-face human interaction, your consumers need to know you’ve got a heart.)

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  • Mashable 2010 Awards Winners

    February 15, 2011 by Blair Stover

    Over a million people voted on the 2010 Mashable awards this year, and now it’s time to take a look at some of the top winners. Most of these are brands or products, etc. that you already know about Blair Stover on Social Media: Mashablesand perhaps are even using.

    1. Android took best platform – No big surprise there, as it’s the most innovative OS to-date.

    2. Eurail.com was awarded best customer service for its versatile and social media fed customer service platform.

    3. Fizy, a music site from Turkey, was awarded best music site for its easy to use software and vast library of 75 million songs.

    4. The iPad was awarded for being the best new gadget, and that’s no surprise. It’s easy to ask: What doesn’t the iPad do?

    5. Twitter was awarded for being the most breakthrough website, seeing as its features have vastly grown and that it’s also one of the most used sites on the web.

    6. Apple took home an award for having the best mobile device thanks to the iPhone.

    7. Ebuddy was awarded for offering the best mobile user experience, namely for its amazing instant messaging service.

    8. DriveSafe.ly got an award for best mobile application.  It audibly reads you text messages from your phone and replies to them while you are driving, hands-free.

    9. Angry Birds, one of the most downloaded mobile games, was awarded for being the best and most popular mobile game.

    These are some of the more notable winners that come to mind from this year’s awards. Seemingly, Apple did the best out of the bunch by winning an award for two of its innovative devices.

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  • Are You Using Twitter Search to Find Potential Customers and Clients?

    December 15, 2010 by Blair Stover

    Twitter happens to be one of the most popular social media engines of the modern day, even comparable to that of the envious might of Facebook, the world’s largest social media website. Funny how something as simple as 140 character status update profile could become such a gargantuan social media juggernaut, but such is indeed the case.

    One thing that many self employed persons as well as businesses are quickly realizing is that they can take advantage of the power of Twitter to find potential customers and clients. You can do this as well – and for that matter really anyone who has the time and the patience to do so can – and it not difficult at all.

    The following is a really easy and streamlined approach to targeting potential buyer or clients by using the search prowess of Twitter.

    Use the Twitter search bar and use quotation marks so you can directly search for relevant keyword matches. For example, a person selling a product could use quotes such as the following to find buyers: “I’m Buying X,” or “I’m thinking about buying,” or even, “I will be buying.”

    From there you can further expand on that train of thought. A well worded and informative blog on your website about your products or services can further entice the potential clients or buyers that you attract from your Twitter marketing endeavors.

    Of course, conducting the searches and contacting prospective buyers will take you time. But if you can convert a small percentage of them to sales, you may be on to something sweet!

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  • Twitter Can’t Keep Up With Facebook

    October 25, 2010 by Blair Stover

    The “network effect” is a phrase that is used to describe systems whose value is based on the total number of users. Take the fax machine, for instance. You may have the newest or best model available but if no one else uses one, your fax machine becomes useless.
    The network effect is the reason why many chat rooms have disappeared. Not enough people were using these chat rooms which is why they closed down. However, two online services that are currently benefiting from the network effect are Facebook and Twitter. At present, Facebook has over 150 million users who use the service to connect with old friends, discover new ones and hook up with the right people.
    At second place is Twitter, which has more than 30 million users. Twitter is a mini version of Facebook except that the length of information you can share with others is limited. In this social networking service, people send out updates that are no longer than 140 characters each. Unlike Facebook, the most you can do with Twitter is share status updates. This is why it doesn’t come close to Facebook in terms of the network effect.
    Twitter also doesn’t allow users to share extensive photo albums, or display a lengthy profile.  Facebook also provides groups and a chat feature, which twitter lacks. It’s up to you which one you like better, but in my opinion Twitter just can’t seem to keep up with Facebook.

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  • Business Twittering Basics

    August 3, 2010 by Blair Stover

    If you are considering joining the Twitter community to help market your business, there are a few things you should know. Make sure you develop a strategic plan so that you can track your progress. Here are a few things to consider:

    1. Target a specific audience. You should try to find your existing clients and partners on Twitter and follow them. Likewise, see who they are following and do the same.

    2. Familiarize yourself with Twitter lingo. Make sure you know how to follow, mention and retweet individuals. For example, if you are mentioning someone use the @ symbol and their name.

    3. Track your progress. Look at how many people are following you and how often they are mentioning your name.

    4. Be engaging. Hold conversations with individuals. Invite your followers to ask questions about your products or services. Position yourself as an industry leader or expert.

    For more information on Twitter tips, try checking out social media blogs online or ask experts in social media how you can best tailor your approach.

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  • Online Business Branding with Social Media

    December 8, 2009 by Blair Stover

    One of the most important ways to make your business brand stand out is by making it known.  Take Snickers for example, and their campaign using just their standard color, shape and font for billboard and other media ads.  Even with the words “Patrick Chewing” in place of Snickers, most people could connect the advertising to the right product.


    Online business branding can be just as important.  Making your brand name known across the most popular social networks can get your message to many new clients every day.  And if you are already well known, then it can remind those who like your brand about it on a daily basis.


    So how do you brand your business in social media?  For starters, you will want to register your brand with the most popular social networks.  You can begin with Twitter, the social network that allows you to communicate with your followers using 140 character public and private status messages.  Getting started on Twitter is easy – sign up with your brand name as your user name, then create a custom background image for your Twitter profile.  Whole Foods on Twitter is a good example of a simple custom background that maintains their corporate brand.


    Facebook is another great social networking site for business branding.  On Facebook, you can setup a business page.  Once it has gained 100 fans, you are able to create a custom URL for your page.  Sears is a great example of a successful Facebook page, where they offer a coupon for anyone who becomes a fan.


    Depending on your brand, there are also many other social networks that are geared toward a particular niche.  For example, Flickr is a great network for those interested in photography, which would be a perfect site to target for a business that sells digital cameras.


    The key thing to remember about business branding on social media – social media is social.  You cannot just create a profile on Twitter, abandon it, and then hope that followers will flock to it.  Look at the ways other successful brands are using particular networks, and follow in their footsteps.  Interact with your fans and give them good reasons to come back to your social media presence.



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