Twitter Tips For Big Success

[mikestenger]

Hey guys,

I've been away from the forum for a week or two. Been super busy but plan on being here as much as I can everyday.

Anyways, I have my own Twitter oriented blog and I don't see a ton of posts on here about Twitter so I wanted to possibly start up a "Best Twitter practices/tips" type of post.

Mine to add is think targeted when building your presence on Twitter. I see a lot of people auto-follow which is cool and all but if you have a gazillion people following you that are just auto-following as well, with no interest or paying attention to what you have to say, how's it helping?

Just a thought....

Another very important one is to take the time every so often throughout the day to engage & interact with your followers. It builds better relationships and shows others you care which can translate to more followers in the long run.

What do you have to add? Let's get this ball a-rollin'!

[Adam Carn]

Nice one Mike,

My Twitter tips include:

- Engage in conversations (stole your tip there!)
- Every now and then tweet something that would benefit, interest your followers.
- ReTweet interesting tweets, the original tweeter will love you for it. Good for building relationships.
- If your tweet is re-tweeted, make sure you thank the re-tweeter for it.
- Try and reply to all your @replies.

Thanks,
Adam

[Lisa Gergets]

One thing and one thing only, and this applies across-the-board to all social media:

Be genuine.

[Andyhenry]

I've already posted hundreds over at one of my blogs - Twitter Reality - The real story about how to use twitter effectively and avoid the problems.

I don't really want to repeat them all again here and fill up the forum with Twitter stuff, many people aren't interested.

[Andyhenry]

Originally Posted by Adam Carn

Nice one Mike,


- Every now and then tweet something that would benefit, interest your followers.


Thanks,
Adam

I'd say almost ALWAYS, rather than every now and then.

[Wade Watson]

I think the most difficult thing for marketers trying to use Twitter is avoid over-tweeting. The most common reason people unfollow is in response to too-frequent or serial messages. Take it easy. Three or 4 a day is OK. Try not to tweet more than once per hour, anyway.

Also, autotweeting has become so common that it's easy to recognize and has become a real put off. It's not that hard to write a few personalized messages a day. Twitter is about people connecting, not machines connecting.

[Lisa Gergets]

Originally Posted by Wade Watson

I think the most difficult thing for marketers trying to use Twitter is avoid over-tweeting. The most common reason people unfollow is in response to too-frequent or serial messages. Take it easy. Three or 4 a day is OK. Try not to tweet more than once per hour, anyway.

Also, autotweeting has become so common that it's easy to recognize and has become a real put off. It's not that hard to write a few personalized messages a day. Twitter is about people connecting, not machines connecting.

I agree with your autotweeting comment, but definitely not with your once-an-hour tweet. Many of my customers know me on Twitter and I can have entire conversations with three or four people at a time. They know that I'm a real person, not a persona. I've organically grown my followers that way because they just love knowing there's an actual person on the other end, ya know?

Now, in terms of advertising tweets, I'd say maybe one in ten of my tweets is an advert. People have to know you're real before they're going to check out anything you're advertising.

[Peter Temp]

You are right, Twitter gives big succsss.
Adding niche related followers is best. Say, you want to promote something about degree studies, so, when you search for "online degree", there you will find your COMPETITORS not your target people..., in this case, you have to little bit wise on how to get targeted follwers
Am I right?

[Andyhenry]

Originally Posted by Wade Watson

Take it easy. Three or 4 a day is OK. Try not to tweet more than once per hour, anyway.

That's me stuffed - I've tweeted 10 jokes today and 10 DMS, about the same @ replies too. And retweeted about the same.

The problem is -people keeping saying they like it and asking for more...

YouTube - Twitter Reality Intro (leaked)

[mikestenger]

Originally Posted by Wade Watson

Take it easy. Three or 4 a day is OK. Try not to tweet more than once per hour, anyway.

It all depends on your followers & what you post. The real kicker is, as long as you post something of value or interest to your followers, they won't care if you post 20 times/hour.

One way to gauge this is to just pay attention to your follower numbers and what people are saying. If you've got people saying "Slow down!" or "I'm unfollowing you because you tweet so much", or you're losing followers consistently, you may want to tone it down a notch.

[Lisa Gergets]

Oh, I forgot to add that there's no better advertisement than someone gushing on in a tweet about how they LOVE your product!

[DyLan Lee]

Originally Posted by mikestenger

Hey guys,

I've been away....

What do you have to add? Let's get this ball a-rollin'!

Auto follow/unfollow can make your life easier. There are many people out there follow others manually. Also twitter users tend to follow back when others followed him/her.

These software helps get as many followers as possible at the beginning. When your followers hit 5000, then you should start engaging them by giving good values information and tips. Building the trust before you link them to your sale page.

For example, if you have 100000 followers, 1% read your tweets(good quality) and trusted you. Then you prospect sales would be 1000. Each gives you $10/month. You will be earning $10k/month.

Auto tweet application will also help you in giving good tips to your followers. Eg. tweetlater, twitrobot etc allow you to schedule your tweet for future. This might make your life easier.

One important point here to share:

When you follow manually and engage them manually, who do you think will actually follow you back and like you?
Answer: Those who are searching tips & info using twitter/chatting online.

When you auto follow and engage them, who do you think will follow you back and like you?
I don't see any different between both question.

So, why not we use auto follow software which can save your time? Use this extra time to engage and i think you will get higher conversion rate.

DyLan

[Andyhenry]

Originally Posted by DyLan Lee

For example, if you have 100000 followers, 1% read your tweets(good quality) and trusted you. Then you prospect sales would be 1000. Each gives you $10/month. You will be earning $10k/month.


So, why not we use auto follow software which can save your time? Use this extra time to engage and i think you will get higher conversion rate.

DyLan

Sorry but I disagree with this logic.

There's a HUGE difference between manually following targeted people who can help your business and automatically following thousands of random people who you don't know.

It's a recipe for disaster.

If you follow more than a few thousand people in this way you will lose track of virtually all the 'good' people because a big percentage of your followers will be people doing what you're doing - autofollowing and you're on their list of endless promotions.

This is really bad advice for someone starting out and it's the reason so many people don't get where the value is in Twitter.

Andy

[katiec]

Sending a Direct Message to one of your followers simply asking how they are is always a way to reach out and interact.

[mikestenger]

Yeah, I gotta agree with Andy on that one Dylan. Some autofollow, others manually follow. I think manually following & being selective is truly the way to go when it comes to personal accounts. It's not about how many followers you have or any of that stuff but who actually listens and cares and the same on your end.

Someone with 2000 followers can be just as effective as someone with 20000 followers, as long as they build value and showed they care by engaging and interacting with others. IMHO, John Reese summed the whole auto follow ordeal up pretty darn good - 5 Reasons Why Twitter Auto-Follow Is Bad Marketing

[mikestenger]

Originally Posted by Cecille20

As far as I know as long as you handled your twitter account in a right procedure you will succeed. Also, if you are going to use some software, you should still implement what twitter rules. I mean like don't just promote your link at all with your account.

I agree. Not sure what u meant with your last sentence but I've heard linking directly to salespages tend not to work too fantastically as compared to user generated content such as reviews, videos, blog posts, etc..

So yeah, probably not the best practice to link directly to salespage. I'd recommend video or a blog post with some great info in advance. Not too often and only once you've built a good following who is already appreciating what you're doing.

[mikestenger]

Originally Posted by katiec

Sending a Direct Message to one of your followers simply asking how they are is always a way to reach out and interact.

Yes and not some copy & paste mumbo jumbo if ya know what I mean ;-) @replys work just as well too and with all the spam people get in their DM's lately, if they follow quite a bit, could get your message lost.

[Alex Rich]

Lots of great insights and advice forum mates... Twitter is definitely about posting value filled tweets. I find it interesting that many are posting tweet after tweet of ads and invitations to look at something that's making them rich...without one single person to person type of post.

The key to Twitter happiness is that hundreds of thousands are joining twitter looking for something, however, their search is mostly for interaction with someone who will help them get what they need...be it chatter, where to find the parties this weekend or how to melt love handles before next summer

To borrow a thought from my real estate buddies, Twitter success is about Value...Value...Value!

Happy Tweeting,
Alex

[kendrickyi]

Hey all

I have a dilemma.
I have followers from different timezones and I'm wondering whether I should retweet the same tweet 2 or 3 times a day.

For example, I'm in the GMT+8 timezone.
I might wanna tweet "Content Message 1" at 9am, 1pm and 7pm my time
and then tweet "Content Message 2" at 10am, 2pm and 8pm.

I haven't been doing that though because I though my followers would think I'm too spammy.

What would you do if you were in my shoes?

[mikestenger]

Originally Posted by kendrickyi

Hey all

I have a dilemma.
I have followers from different timezones and I'm wondering whether I should retweet the same tweet 2 or 3 times a day.

For example, I'm in the GMT+8 timezone.
I might wanna tweet "Content Message 1" at 9am, 1pm and 7pm my time
and then tweet "Content Message 2" at 10am, 2pm and 8pm.

I haven't been doing that though because I though my followers would think I'm too spammy.

What would you do if you were in my shoes?

I would not retweet the same message multiple times/day. If people are interested, they'll go back and look through your tweets. Not sure if you are but if you are automating your tweets, make sure to still engage every day so you don't look like a drone.

[Wade Watson]

Originally Posted by TinkerAndPo

I agree with your autotweeting comment, but definitely not with your once-an-hour tweet. Many of my customers know me on Twitter and I can have entire conversations with three or four people at a time.

Originally Posted by mikestenger

It all depends on your followers & what you post. The real kicker is, as long as you post something of value or interest to your followers, they won't care if you post 20 times/hour.

I was actually referring to broadcast tweets, not conversations, but if all your followers see it, some could be put off. I suppose if you know your audience well and they're that devoted, go for it. Most of us can't pull that off, I think. One of the sharpest IM-ers in the business sent 45 tweets in 3 hrs. the other day and I thought it wore on a bit much.

Originally Posted by kendrickyi

I have a dilemma.
I have followers from different timezones and I'm wondering whether I should retweet the same tweet 2 or 3 times a day.

Just freshen the message with a slightly different angle, but the same link. I see people do this all the time successfully.

Wade Watson

[kendrickyi]

Thanks!

Originally Posted by mikestenger

I would not retweet the same message multiple times/day. If people are interested, they'll go back and look through your tweets. Not sure if you are but if you are automating your tweets, make sure to still engage every day so you don't look like a drone.

I automate some of my tweets. I don't always have the time to reply or mention people on twitter so I guess I don't do much engaging. I can't interact too much with some of my followers as they are 12 hours or so ahead of/behind me so I might be sleeping by then.

Originally Posted by Wade Watson

Just freshen the message with a slightly different angle, but the same link. I see people do this all the time successfully.
Wade Watson

Got it. Thanks!

[Kevin Regier]

I agree and being somewhat new to Twitter I find that is does depend on what kind of followers you have what the purpose of your Twitter account is. I have several Twitter accounts now and I am thinking about adding another one tonight. So different ones, again for different niches and with different kinds of followers the amount of tweets depend on them and how you interact with them.

And I do think that some auto tweet programs can be useful in that same was auto-responders can. I think it is all about the intention of the autotweeters not all auto tweets are spam in the same way that all auto-responder messages aren't.

Originally Posted by mikestenger

It all depends on your followers & what you post. The real kicker is, as long as you post something of value or interest to your followers, they won't care if you post 20 times/hour.

One way to gauge this is to just pay attention to your follower numbers and what people are saying. If you've got people saying "Slow down!" or "I'm unfollowing you because you tweet so much", or you're losing followers consistently, you may want to tone it down a notch.

[Kevin Regier]

I for sure think you have to post the same comment more often due to time zone difference, but as an option what about saying the same information in different ways. Look at the same thing in a different light that way it will not appear to be spammy.

Just a thought.

Originally Posted by kendrickyi

Hey all

I have a dilemma.
I have followers from different timezones and I'm wondering whether I should retweet the same tweet 2 or 3 times a day.

For example, I'm in the GMT+8 timezone.
I might wanna tweet "Content Message 1" at 9am, 1pm and 7pm my time
and then tweet "Content Message 2" at 10am, 2pm and 8pm.

I haven't been doing that though because I though my followers would think I'm too spammy.

What would you do if you were in my shoes?

[kendrickyi]

Originally Posted by Kevin Regier

I for sure think you have to post the same comment more often due to time zone difference, but as an option what about saying the same information in different ways. Look at the same thing in a different light that way it will not appear to be spammy.

Just a thought.

Yup, got it. Thanks!

[DyLan Lee]

Auto tweet software or applications do helps in getting followers. As people in different time zone using twitter as well, we got to repeat our valued info/tips/secrets more often so that it benefits everyone.

When one manually follow people, most like he/she will go "find people" to search for people with same interest to follow. Try to use popular keywords.

Auto follow software helps to get you followers. It does not help you to generate sales. It is up to what you do to convert your followers to you buyers. Engagement is the best thing you can do to build trust and sell.

[supreme]

I also use feeds from interesting blogs and content network. this increases keywords and get you massive following

[Rich Lowe]

Hi,

I aslo agree that being genuine is fundamental and no tricks, no software that makes automatic posts.

Rich

[mikestenger]

Originally Posted by DyLan Lee

Auto follow software helps to get you followers. It does not help you to generate sales. It is up to what you do to convert your followers to you buyers. Engagement is the best thing you can do to build trust and sell.

I do understand what you're saying Dylan. My experience has always been that a lot of the people I added through doing auto-follow when I first started out, was a lot of the people were spammers. They'd post a few good things then spam the hell out of the stream.

It probably had to with my business niche but I do agree with some of the things you're saying. All in all, if you can do it well AND get targeted followers that are interested in what you're saying, props to you.

[mikestenger]

Originally Posted by Kevin Regier

I for sure think you have to post the same comment more often due to time zone difference, but as an option what about saying the same information in different ways. Look at the same thing in a different light that way it will not appear to be spammy.

Just a thought.

That's a very good tip Kevin, I never even thought about that! What's great about the 140 characters Twitter gives us is that it makes us a think a little bit harder of what to post and how to say it. With that said, if we already know what we need to say in that short little space, we can surely make a few variations of that tweet while it still being informative and/or interesting.

[netcatapult]

Please do not use automated replies as people can easily spot this and this is no way to build a relationship. Tweet and retweet relevant topics that your followers are interested in. Its really pretty simple. It just takes some time and comittment to it.

[DyLan Lee]

I get your points mikestenger, but auto-follow still have its own benefit. My auto-follow and auto-tweet software spare me a lot of time to engage people manually. While auto-following, I am also manually following people.

There are few points that I want to make it clear:
1) When you auto follow people or auto tweet, please do not tweet rubbish! Tweet tips, news, information instead.

2) Don't simply link people to your sales letter page. there is no points doing that. If you check out my twitter, I do link people to some sites, but not selling anything... Build trust before you sell.

3) I keep giving free ebook out for sharing and make people like me before selling. There after people come back to me to buy.

4) Auto follow did convert some buyers to me, but couldn't say all. We must take into account those who are using auto follow software but also physically active in twitter. This are the potential buyers to us.

Lastly, when you auto follow, follow those user with tweet "where to buy...", "where can i buy...", where can i get..."

There are software out there allow you to get all this online ready buyer... All the best

DyLan

[Andyhenry]

The short answer to the auto-following stuff is:

It's useful for creating social proof, but it makes your account much more subject to crap and promotional messages from others using automated systems.

You need to build relationships to get maximum results, so temper your efforts to be a useful balance between your personality and using tools and systems to maximize your efforts (retweeting to ensure all of your followers saw your message - not just for the sake of it).

Andy

[kevinpotts]

Some people will tell you to not waste time on twitter but those who DO make a profit of it will give very good tips on how to use Twitter the right way.

As said before it all depends on the people you're following.
In an another Forum a friend of mine put an excelent thread about what to do to make money from twitter and gave me the liberty to use it a post it here so... here it goes:

1. Charge for your Twitter Message

Well you know your username is private and your friends will only receive your twitters. If you have important information and you may have a subscription-based service charging people who want to be your friend to access your twitters. Remember a newspaper will do this to give you access to the news first. Maybe a blogger with online shopping deals could do that. The user will have to pay an amount per week or month to be in the know.

2. Sponsored Contests

Some advertisers want to run a contest via a popular twitter user in order to get feedback on their products. This can be a strategy to create a brand awareness. Get them for you. Suppose for a feedback ask what new things would the consumer like to see in the Product.

3. Tweet for Companies

There are a large number of companies out there looking to join the realms of social media. Why not be a professional Twitter contributor for a company. The companies need professionals who are very good at blogging, social media and search.

4. Paid Reviews

It is an idea for direct ads but you don’t need to suggest a product blindly. What you can do is some paid reviews. Say for instance you can do a paid review for services like say SEO Services or Web hosting Services etc.

5. Micro Fundraising

Combine your micro blogging with micro funding to make money. Look for the Twestival for that.

6. Affiliate marketing

This strategy is used by a lot of affiliate marketing people. Send the links of websites in your tweets. Those subscribed to your tweets will be able to click on the links and be redirected to the web page.

7. Sell the Twitter apps

There are a myriad of professional applications for Twitter on the web. Sell anything from Twitter analytics to Twitter CMSs such as HootSuite (erstwhile Brightkit). They would surely like to pay for it.

8. Promoting Music

There are some great ideas for selling music online. Why not look for the Tra.kz. This offers an combination of a short URL service with a market place as well as the music community.

9. Ads in the blank space

At the end of your 140-character messages put an ad like Drink a refreshing COKE etc........

10. Twitter Consulting

There's a lot to know about twitter. It only becomes easy if someone tells you what you can do best in Twitter. If your acquainted with the nitty-gritty of Twitter, then why not act as a consultant to companies who are looking for someone to acquaint them with good twitter.

[Nicholas Ho]

Don't sell your stuff in twitter, share your ideas and show others the best you've got ( Resources, great info and etc )

Others will follow ( Credibility, trust and etc )

[DyLan Lee]

Got a research recently, don't always tweet with links. Share your life in your tweets like blogging at warrior forum, going out for clubbing with friends etc etc.

I am not telling you not to send link in your tweet but not all the time.

I found out when I share random tweets, i get more clicking rate on my links.

[mikestenger]

Killer killer stuff guys! I appreciate every one of your contributions :-)

Instead of replying back to you all and taking up a bunch of post space, yesterday I came across a very informative post on when the best times are to tweet. I think we can all agree we want maximum exposure so why not post our most important stuff when it's most effective?

That was my thought. Here's the post: 4.01pm – the best time to tweet if you want to be noticed malcolm coles

Mad props to the dude that took his time to put together this test. Some very valuable information...