“I tweeted…”, “He tweeted at me…” and “I saw this tweet earlier on Twitter…” I’m sure you have heard one, if not all, of these phrases at some point. This jargon comes from the wonderful world of Twitter. Twitter is a social media platform where users are able to “tweet” a.k.a. post status updates on the forum using 140 characters or less. 140 characters is a pretty concise thought, and that is exactly why the creators; Jack Dorsey, Noah Glass, Evan Williams (no, not the cheap whiskey guy) and Biz Stone chose 140 characters… well not really. The origin of the 140 characters is because Twitter was originally a mobile messaging based platform and messages were limited to 160 characters but an extra 20 were needed to create a unique weblink address/user name, hence the 140 characters. But to make a long story short, Twitter only allows you to post 140 character status updates.
What in the world can you do with 140 characters? Good question!
-Post a short description with a link to a photo that offers a weblink to content that is more involved.
-Post a short and concise status update or question
-Post a link to a blog has more content
-Respond to consumer comments and questions
-Give a quick shout out to your customers
-Ask a short-but-sweet question
-Post a link to a website that has more content
-Say something ridiculous or witty
-Re-tweet something that someone as already tweeted, that you find interesting or relevant
Why Twitter?
Twitter is a great way to keep in contact with your target audience. It allows you to check trends and to see what your target market is “tweeting” (otherwise known as talking) about. You can interact with them in a super casual way without having to invest too much time or effort and if you do it right, the results can be amazing. Twitter is also a great way to promote your brand or business with flash updates and without being too overwhelming/overbearing.
All you need for Twitter is a good username (related to your business or brand), an e-mail address and a plan. In a later blog we will discuss scheduling cohesive status updates across social media platforms.
As always, subscribe to the BOSS Pro Net blog for tips, tricks and updates on social media.
Yours Truly,
Danielle Maravelas from ESM Social Media for BPN