Six Time-Saving Tips for Business Tweeters
I have been an active user of Twitter since June 2007.
A lot has changed in that time, but the one challenge that has not gone away, is how to reduce the amount time spent on Twitter each day.
For most of us, Twitter is just one small part of our job.
Sourcing content, constructing tweets, following, unfollowing and tracking clicks and conversations takes time.
In past few years, this task has been simplified.
Twitter applications like Hootsuite and Tweetdeck, have been built to make this task easier, but their sophistication now means there is more data to crunch, followers to segment and clicks to track than ever before.
If you manage one, or multiple accounts for a business, these are my practical tips on how you can maintain your daily presence on Twitter in the same time it takes to drink your morning cup of coffee.
Pick a decent Twitter management tool If you are still logging into twitter.
com - stop.
This is a waste of time.
The market is now flooded with free twitter applications designed to save you time.
I have used Hootsuite at multiples companies and like the fact it is browser-based and simple to use, but there are dozens of options out there.
Advantages include tweet automation and a single-screen snapshot of all of your activity.
I'd start with Hootsuite, Tweetdeck or Seesmic and go from there.
Pre-source your content Finding new and interesting content which your followers will like, and more importantly, click on is probably the most time consuming part of managing a twitter account.
My advice is to let someone else do the hard work for you.
By creating lists, you will be able to source content quicker.
The types of lists you want to create are up to you, but a list of the people 'retweet the most' can be very handy.
It can take time to set lists up, but they will cut the time you spend searching and scanning tweet streams in half.
Schedule and get on with your day One of the best features about Hootsuite, Tweetdeck or Seesmic, is their ability to pre-schedule tweets.
I recommend pre-scheduling a handful of tweets each morning to be posted throughout the day.
This will ensure that even if you get caught up in meetings, your tweets remain consistent and timely.
This should also ensure that your time is only spent responding or retweeting comments throughout during the day, and not spent sourcing content.
Auto-follow and keep it casual A great way to grow your Twitter account is to follow people who follow your business.
Even nicer, is ensuring that they receive a thank you message for 'the follow'.
Socialoomph has a lot of features, but one of its most popular is its ability to set an auto-welcome message to new followers.
My advice is to keep it friendly and light.
Don't send them a sales pitch.
It is worth noting that a disadvantage of using these tools can be SPAM and a long list of people who follow you, not for your content, but just because they know you will follow them back.
Socialoomph offers you the option to delay follow-backs so that you can 'vet' new followers.
If you have time, this is the best way to ensure you follow the right people and grow a relevant stream of followers on Twitter.
Go mobile Installing a mobile twitter application on your business mobile is the ultimate time saver allowing you to track comments or deal with customer queries on the go.
I have a HTC phone and have installed Plume, which is excellent.
Direct Message notifications are a great way to ensure you don't miss any customer complaints.
A lot has changed in that time, but the one challenge that has not gone away, is how to reduce the amount time spent on Twitter each day.
For most of us, Twitter is just one small part of our job.
Sourcing content, constructing tweets, following, unfollowing and tracking clicks and conversations takes time.
In past few years, this task has been simplified.
Twitter applications like Hootsuite and Tweetdeck, have been built to make this task easier, but their sophistication now means there is more data to crunch, followers to segment and clicks to track than ever before.
If you manage one, or multiple accounts for a business, these are my practical tips on how you can maintain your daily presence on Twitter in the same time it takes to drink your morning cup of coffee.
Pick a decent Twitter management tool If you are still logging into twitter.
com - stop.
This is a waste of time.
The market is now flooded with free twitter applications designed to save you time.
I have used Hootsuite at multiples companies and like the fact it is browser-based and simple to use, but there are dozens of options out there.
Advantages include tweet automation and a single-screen snapshot of all of your activity.
I'd start with Hootsuite, Tweetdeck or Seesmic and go from there.
Pre-source your content Finding new and interesting content which your followers will like, and more importantly, click on is probably the most time consuming part of managing a twitter account.
My advice is to let someone else do the hard work for you.
- Use a curation tool like Scoop.
it! which pulls in the latest posts and tweets for you - Check out the growing number of 'top news' sites like Alltop, which pull together the most popular content on the web.
- Setup Google alerts and get relevant news sent to you
- When you find a good source, subscribe to its RSS feed.
By creating lists, you will be able to source content quicker.
The types of lists you want to create are up to you, but a list of the people 'retweet the most' can be very handy.
It can take time to set lists up, but they will cut the time you spend searching and scanning tweet streams in half.
Schedule and get on with your day One of the best features about Hootsuite, Tweetdeck or Seesmic, is their ability to pre-schedule tweets.
I recommend pre-scheduling a handful of tweets each morning to be posted throughout the day.
This will ensure that even if you get caught up in meetings, your tweets remain consistent and timely.
This should also ensure that your time is only spent responding or retweeting comments throughout during the day, and not spent sourcing content.
Auto-follow and keep it casual A great way to grow your Twitter account is to follow people who follow your business.
Even nicer, is ensuring that they receive a thank you message for 'the follow'.
Socialoomph has a lot of features, but one of its most popular is its ability to set an auto-welcome message to new followers.
My advice is to keep it friendly and light.
Don't send them a sales pitch.
It is worth noting that a disadvantage of using these tools can be SPAM and a long list of people who follow you, not for your content, but just because they know you will follow them back.
Socialoomph offers you the option to delay follow-backs so that you can 'vet' new followers.
If you have time, this is the best way to ensure you follow the right people and grow a relevant stream of followers on Twitter.
Go mobile Installing a mobile twitter application on your business mobile is the ultimate time saver allowing you to track comments or deal with customer queries on the go.
I have a HTC phone and have installed Plume, which is excellent.
Direct Message notifications are a great way to ensure you don't miss any customer complaints.