Twitter for Small Businesses

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www.itcoursesdorchester.co.uk Twi$er for small businesses IT Courses Dorchester @itcoursesdorch

Transcript of Twitter for Small Businesses

www.itcoursesdorchester.co.uk  

Twi$er  for  small  businesses  

IT  Courses  Dorchester  @itcoursesdorch  

www.itcoursesdorchester.co.uk  

Who are we?•  Trudy  Ritsema  –  Bitesize  Training  – One  2  one  IT  training  for  small  businesses  

•  Jane  Askew  –  Carers  Connected  – One  2  one  IT  training  for  the  over  50’s  

Together  we  are:  •  IT  Courses  Dorchester  –  IT  related  workshops  

We  are  researchers  of  technology  who  love  teaching!  

www.itcoursesdorchester.co.uk  

What we will cover•  What  is  TwiCer  •  SeEng  up  an  account  •  Who  to  follow  •  What  to  tweet  •  When  to  tweet  •  Network  hours  •  Time  saving  techniques  •  Analysing  your  tweeIng!  

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A word about social media•  It  is  social  –  so  be  sociable  •  It  is  not  about  just  selling  your  services/products  

•  Its  about  engagement  &  telling  your  story  

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What is Twitter?•  At  its  most  basic,  is  a  series  of  short  (140  characters)  online  announcements  or  ‘tweets’  

•  A  real-­‐Ime  informaIon  network  of  what  is  happening  right  now  in  the  world  

 •  You  can  read  or  share  informaIon  instantly  with  people  and  businesses  around  the  world  

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A tweet•  Is  a  message  posted  on  the  plaVorm  TwiCer  •  It  contains  only  140  characters  •  It  can  also  contain    – video  – Photos    (note  these  take  up  22  characters  so  you  only  have  118  characters  for  text)  

 

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Why should you be on Twitter?•  Because  with  over  500  million  users,  and  135,000  new  

users  signing  up  every  day    •  Because  it  is  quick  –  we  are  all  Bme  poor!    •  Because  it’s  the  most  widely  used  social  network  for  

customer  service  

•  Because  it’s  an  amazing  research  tool  

•  Because  it  is  the  best  social  media  plaVorm  for  driving  traffic  to  your  website  (apparently!)  

www.itcoursesdorchester.co.uk  

Start with a plan•  Want  do  you  want  from  TwiCer?    

– To  see  what  compeItors  are  doing.  – To  gain  more  customers.  – To  research  industry  informaIon.  – To  promote  your  product  or  services.  – To  tell  your  story.  – To  see  what  your  customers  are  tweeIng  about.  – To  keep  in  touch  with  other  small  businesses.  – To  see  what  is  happening  in  Eastenders.  

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Where are you using Twitter?•  Mobile  app?  Which  app?  •  Tablet  app?  •  The  web  on  a  computer?  •  All?  

Note:    TwiCer  is  slightly  different  on  different  devices.  

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Setting up Twitter•  You  will  need:  

–  An  email  address  

–  A  password  

–  A  user  name  up  to  15  characters:  @TrudyRitsema  or  @itcoursesdorch  

–  Profile  photo:  a  logo  or  photo  of  yourself?  (recommended  size  are  400x400pixels)    

–  Header  photo:  a  larger  photo  to  engage  your  customers  (recommended  size  

are  1500x500  pixels)    

–  A  bio:  A  short  bit  of  text  (160  characters)  about  your  business.  The  text  can  be  linkable  and  responds  to  hashtags  and  @menIons.  Show  personality.  

–  A  locaIon:  eg:  Dorchester,  Dorset  

–  Website  link:  as  this  will  be  linkable  to  your  website.  

 

 

 

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www.itcoursesdorchester.co.uk  

Write a killer Bio in 160 characters!•  Profile  photo  (you  or  your  logo?)  •  Website  link  •  What  you  do  •  Show  your  personality  •  Other  social  media  accounts  you  are  on  –  how  can  people  get  in  touch  

•  Keywords  –  these  are  searchable    •  Be  creaIve  –  use  emojis,  play  with  spacing    

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Who to follow•  Industry  influencers    •  Customers  •  PotenIal  customers  •  Local  businesses  /  news  /  events  •  CompeItors  ?  •  Other  small  businesses  (like  people  here)  •  Breaking  news  •  Suppliers  

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Should you follow people back?

•  Old  school  –  Yes  it  is  polite  to  do  so.  • What  is  your  TwiCer  goal?  Is  it  worth  you  following  them  back?  

•  The  more  you  follow  the  more  Tweets  you  have  to  read!  

 

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How many followers should I have?

•  Don’t  get  bogged  down  by  the  numbers.  •  Is  quality  beCer  than  quanIty?  •  Could  it  be  said  that  if  you  have  lots  of  followers  then  you  must  be  tweeIng  interesIng  things?  

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What to do with Tweets you get•  Read  them.  •  Like  them  (if  you  do!)  •  Retweet  them  if  you  think  you  wish  to  share  the  tweet  with  your  followers.  

•  Reply  to  a  Tweet.  •  Follow  the  link  in  the  Tweet.  

REPLY   RETWEET  LIKE  

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Like a Tweet•  Likes  are  represented  by  a  small  heart.  •  They  are  commonly  used  to  show  appreciaIon  for  a  Tweet.    

•  You  will  be  noIfied  if  someone  likes  your  tweet.  

•  Any  tweets  you  like  are  stored  in  one  place  so  they  act  as  bookmarks  too!  

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“A  brand  is  no  longer  what  we  tell  the  consumer  it  is—it  is  what  consumers  tell  each  other  it  is.”  

 ScoC  Cook,  the  founder  and  CEO  of  Intuit  

The Followers

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Reasons why people follow you

•  They  love  your  brand  

•  To  discover  new  things  

•  Find  content  interesIng  or  funny  

•  They  can  find  you  easily  

•  You  liked  their  tweet  

•  You  engaged  with  them  

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What can I tweet about?•  A  promoIon  •  Behind  the  scenes  of  your  business  •  Helpful  hints  •  Something  about  your  industry  •  Q&A’s  •  A  quote  •  A  tesImonial  you  have  been  given  •  A  link  to  a  page  on  your  website  •  Something  funny!  •  Show  off  achievements  •  A  selfie  of  what  you  are  doing  right  now  •  Coming  soon  news  •  New  products  •  Something  relevant  to  a  trending  hashtag  •  A  poll  •  Show  you  are  an  expert  in  your  field  

 

80%  about  your  business  20%  about  

you…maybe…!?  

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What can you put in a tweet?•  Text(!)  •  A  menIon  •  Hashtag(s)  •  Link  to  a  webpage  •  Photo  /  video  

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What is a mention?•  If  you  Tweet  something  and  you  want  to  bring  it  to  somebody’s  aCenIon  –  then  use  their  TwiCer  handle  in  your  tweet  

 •  This  is  good  way  to  ask  a  quesIon  to  someone.  (They  receive  noIficaIon)  

•  Eg:  Hi  @TrudyRitsema  when  is  you  next  Instagram  course?  

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Demo: Lets Tweet!Look  for  the  feather!  

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The hashtags #

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What is a # ?•  Word  or  phrase  (no  spaces)  beginning  with  a  #  •  Used  to  organise  tweets  by  topic  •  Click  on  a  #  to  go  to  all  the  tweets  about  that  topic  

•  You  oren  see  #  on  TV  programs,  news  arIcles,  local  events  eg:  #DWBGD  (conference)  

•  They  are  a  clickable  link  •  Can  be  placed  anywhere  in  a  tweet  

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Add a link to a website•  A  link  to  a  website  will  take  up  lots  of  characters.    So  use  a  tool  like  Bit.ly  to  create  a  shortened  link.  

 hCp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-­‐35278479    bbc.in/1JEQNad      

hCps://bitly.com/  

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Adding photos5  

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Where to get images•  Use  your  own  •  pixabay.com/  (free)  •  Google  –  check  usage  rights  •  www.istockphoto.com/  (paid)  

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Demo: Adding a photo

•  Change  the  filter  on  the  photo  

•  Crop  –  go  widescreen!  •  Magic  wand!      

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Tweet the same thing multiple times•  This  will  reach  different  followers  as  not  everyone  is  on  TwiCer  at  the  same  Ime  

 •  When  they  do  go  on  TwiCer  they  will  have  many  Tweets  to  scroll  through  –  so  may  not  get    to  yours  you  did  that  morning!  

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Best times to tweet...apparently

When  people  are  commuIng  -­‐  morning  and  evening    Lunch  breaks  (12pm  to  3pm)    hCp://www.tweriod.com/  

However…when are your

followers online?

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Schedule a Tweet•  Simple,  this  has  to  be  done  via  another  app  

Eg:  Hootsuite  Get  the  app  or  hCps://hootsuite.com/    

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Join in with Twitter networking #hours

•  Industry  relevant  (eg  weddinghour)  •  Local  #hours  (eg:  #dorsethour)  

•  When  are  the  hours?    •  #Dorsethour  –  every  Monday  7:30pm  to  8:30pm  

•  A  full  list  at:  hCp://www.spaceandIme.co.uk/all-­‐uk-­‐twiCer-­‐hours-­‐hashtags-­‐updated-­‐regularly/#.Vguud7TBw5Q  

 

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Create Lists•  To  categorise  your  followers  •  Can  be  private  or  public  •  Use  lists  to  group  people  you  follow  by  type    •  Eg:  CompeItors,  industry  experts,  customers,  local,  personal  

 

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Use  the  cog  to  add  people  to  lists  

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Ideas of lists•  Suppliers  list  •  Event  organizaIon  and  management  •  CompeItors  List  •  Extraordinary  Customers  •  Users  who  Retweet  You  •  Your  Favourite  ConversaIonalists  •  Industry  Players  •  Prospects  •  Dorset  people  

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Do at home! How to set up a list on Twitter

•  Log  onto  TwiCer  via  www.twiCer.com  •  Click  on  your  profile  pic  and  choose  LISTS  •  Choose  CREATE  A  NEW  LIST  •  Name  the  list,  add  a  descripIon  and  choose  if  you  want  the  list  to  be  private  or  not  •  Search  for  people  you  wish  to  add  to  your  list  •  Click  on  the  COG  and  choose  ADD  TO  LIST  •  Choose  the  LIST  you  wish  to  add  them  (there  is  no  save  buCon  so  just  click  the  cross  to  close  the  

window)  •  Repeat  the  above  to  add  more  people  to  your  list  

To  view  all  the  Tweets  from  people  on  a  list  do  the  following:  •  Click  on  your  profile  pic  and  choose  LISTS  •  Click  on  the  LIST  and  you  will  now  see  all  the  Tweets  from  people  in  that  list!  

You  can  view  lists  on  you  mobile  devices  too  –  but  it  is  easier  to  create  them  via  a  browser.  

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Direct messages•  You  can  use  TwiCer  to  directly  message  someone.  ConversaIon  between  that  person  will  be  private!  

A  big  advantage  of  this  is  that  you  may  not  have  their  email  address    but  can  sIll  contact  them  directly!  

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Twitters Search Facility

hCps://twiCer.com/search-­‐advanced    

Top  Bp  –  this  is  best  done  on  a  computer  rather  than  smart  phone  or  tablet  as  you  

get  full  funcIonality  

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Example:    Search  for  all  Tweeters  who  are  from  Dorchester.    

Example:    Search  for  anyone  tweeIng  about  geEng  married  in  the  Dorchester  area    

Example:    Search  for  anyone  asking  a  quesIon  about  weight  loss    

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How to use the search results•  Follow  them  •  DM  them  –  eg:  I  can  help  with….  •  Reply  to  their  Tweet  •  Basically……..  

ENGAGE  WITH  THEM!  

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Let people know you are using Twitter•  All  markeIng  material  •  Use  the  logo  •  Business  cards  •  Put  it  on  Facebook,  Instagram  etc  

hCps://about.twiCer.com/press/twiCer-­‐brand-­‐policy    

   

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Get in contact•  Email:  [email protected]  •  TwiCer:  @itcoursesdorch  •  Instagram:  @itcoursesdorchester  •  Facebook:    

IT  Courses  Dorchester    Bitesize  Training    Carers  Connected  

•  Mobile:  Trudy:  07581  458326  Jane:  07989  322718