The 10 Commandments of Twitter

Twitter is Powerful, probably more than you think. In Fact, twitter users are 3 times more likely to follow brands than Facebook users! Moreover, research shows twitter users are the most likely to be mass influencers and encourage others to interact with brands.

The following infographic shows how twitter users interact with brands and between themselves, how their opinions are expressed and why you should care about it:

As a bonus, let’s look into the 10 commandments, written by Jeff Bullas that may guide you to the Twitter promised land of a large and loyal following. That engages with you and shares your content with speed and velocity.

Thou shalt

Moses used this term so I thought that I couldn’t go wrong if I borrowed the term “Thou shalt”

1. Write a meaningful “bio” description

If you are using Twitter for purely personal reasons then go crazy and knock yourself out with a crazy and cute bio. If you are serious then make sure that when they read it they know in a heartbeat what you are about.

2. Have a link

I don’t know how many times I have looked for a link to take a deeper dive into a Tweeter to see what they do and where they have come from but get stymied. If you don’t have a blog then take them to your Linked account or Facebook page.

Let them discover the real you. The bio is just the start

3. Be focused

Build a tribe of Twitter followers who are passionate and interested in your topic of interest. That can be done with tools such as Tweepi or Twellow.

4. Automate where appropriate

This may seem evil to some but as you grow your follower base things like following back become time consuming and unmanageable. Automate the boring tasks such as content distribution and follow back but not the conversation and engagement

5. Not neglect Twitter

Keep the stream of Tweets rolling out so that followers see activity and content. Keep that activity going. Do this at a level that you are comfortable with.

It is different for everyone. Remember it is a tool not a religion.

6. Use Hashtags

Hashtags allow you to put content into followers accounts that are topic driven and organised. If you are interested in blogging then include a tweet with the hashtag #blogging.

It will lead to increased awareness and sharing of your tweets.

7. Manage with a tool

The Twitter eco-system of tools and apps evolved because Twitter kept its network simple. It has been effective and been part of its charm. To manage and monitor both the tweets and the people you interact with on Twitter and organised like your mum would be proud of then Hootsuite and Tweetdeck should be used.

8. Brand your Twitter account

Ensure that when people trip up on your Twitter account that they recognise your brand that is on Facebook, Pinterest and YouTube. My caricature works for me.

Consistent branding is good.

9. Use Twitter sharing and subscribe buttons on your blog

Make it is easy and obvious for people to share your content on your blog with obvious Twitter buttons at the top of your article. Make sure they can follow you on Twitter with buttons that don’t confuse and again are in a position that is prominent..

10. Write the best headline you can

As Twitter has only 140 characters your tweets should be written with the best headlines you can muster. Learn and practice this skill until your fingers hurt and your mind burns.

You only have 2 seconds to capture their attention until they click away.

#infographic #Strategy #tips #Twitter