why? the series — twitter

So much of what businesses do is now centered on social media, but why? Why are marketing companies setting their sights to Twitter, Google+, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram?  “Why?” is a blog series created to help unpack the benefits that social media has on businesses. 

First, let’s look at Twitter…

Since hitting the scene in 2006, Twitter has taken social media by storm and now has over 200 million active users. It’s new Twitter for Business page points businesses in the right direction – explaining everything from sending a Tweet to setting up ads to promote your business.

But why do we stress the importance of Twitter to our clients?

Lets focus on the Real-time – Hashtags – Content

Real-time. Twitter was designed to be used on mobile devices. This means that you can send a  “tweet” no matter where you are – 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Twitter’s users desire to be connected to what’s happening right around them and what’s happening right NOW. This means, no matter what business you are in, you need to be relevant in real-time. The brand-new Twitter for Business section of Twitter explains “Engaging with real-time Tweets can influence conversations in a way that can help build your business”.

Hashtags. Or,“#”. This little symbol, once known as the long forgotten “pound-sign”, has now been promoted to be one of the most crucial components to social media messages. “Hashtags” are placed in front of a word to allow users to quickly search keywords to see what’s being Tweeted around it. These searches allow for both businesses and customers to find the topics that they are interested in.

Humor and entertainment focused hashtags can be a huge benefit to your brand. Finding humorous hashtags that are currently trending and incorporating them into your tweets can draw people to your twitter profile. This means that not only will people will see your branding, once they are on your twitter profile, people may stumble to your company’s website too. #Winning.

Content. While the 140-character limit is sometimes inconvenient, it allows for key messages to be promoted without being watered down. Businesses now have an outlet to be short, sweet, and to the point, and the best part is… it’s appropriate to do so! Your company’s tweets can be effective and quick, saving you time while your company is being marketed to at network of 200 million users.

Twitter has found a pattern:  “the most retweeted content tends to contain links, pictures, videos or quotes.” This is important, because it gives your followers a chance to go deeper into the content you’re tweeting about. If they’re interested, they’ll click the link. If they love it, the’ll Retweet it for all their followers to see. Free, instant advertising to the right demographic. You can’t get better than that.

Twitter is the NOW of social media. Get on board.