yourself and your business to be,
without checking on the reputation
equity you may already have out
there in the marketplace. Stay open
to listening, even if you hear some
things that surprise you.
STAKE A CLAIM, AND MAKE
IT REAL » Find a quiet place to
start organizing your thoughts and
research. Start collecting images
and words that re;ect your ;nd-ings. Wordsmith statements about
your company that are visionary
yet grounded in truth. Write about
the uniqueness of your company
and move into making strong yet
realistic statements. And stop being
so humble. Choose strong, maybe
even edgy words, that authentically
capture you and your business.
Twitter for
Your Business
[A Novice’s Guide]
Even for the layman, it’s not too
late to get started on Twitter—
Here are some basics.
BY COLIN HIRDMAN
« COLIN HIRDMAN
(colin.hirdman@
localtweeps.com)
is cofounder of
Localtweeps, a
Minneapolis-based
company dedicated
to localizing the
Twittersphere.
TRY IT ON FOR SIZE » Before
you set them in stone, use your statements in conversations—from the
elevator and cocktail party, to sales
calls and networking co;ees. Observe how your words resonate with
others. See if they feel natural to you,
and notice the ways you paraphrase
them. Don’t forget to do a gut-check;
do your messages sound solid, natural and personal to you?
FINE-TUNE AND START THE
BUZZ » Every touch point you
make—from one conversation to
millions of people—is an opportunity to speak for your business.
Over the culmination of all of your
future years in business, it will be
important to be strong, unique and
consistent no matter when and
where you (or others) talk about
your business. Your strategic value
proposition will be the most important start-up or revisiting time you
spend getting your business ready
for its future.
SO, YOU DON’T use Twitter for your business, or
maybe at all. Maybe you don’t see how Twitter can help
your business and it seems like a waste of time more than
anything else. What if I told you that Twitter CAN help
your business and it really doesn’t take much time to start
generating results? What if I also told you that I’m going
to show you how to start generating results in this very
article? Well, you’re in luck. Read on.
I’m going to assume that you may think Twitter could
be useful to your business because
you’re still here. I’m also going to
assume that getting new customers
through Twitter is about the best
possible result you’d want. Great,
now that we’re on the same page,
let’s get started.
The ;rst step to succeeding on
Twitter is to create your account.
Yep, it’s kind of hard for people to
;nd you on Twitter if you’re not
there. When you create your pro;le
make sure you select a good Twitter username that represents your
company—it’s tough when you can
only use 15 characters. Upload a nice pro;le picture
(maybe your company logo), enter your website address,
write a nice, concise company bio and enter your location
(preferably your city). Lastly, don’t protect your tweets
because you want to share the good things your business
does with everyone.
Ok, your account is now set-up. But there’s a prob-
lem, you aren’t following anyone and no one is following
you. This is where most people give up, but don’t despair.
It’s now time to start stroking egos. Unless you’re Oprah
no one is going to follow you if you’re not following them
;rst. This is a key point: follow
others ;rst and hopefully they’ll
follow you back. But you don’t
want to follow just anyone,
you want to follow people that
could become customers.
Twitter CAN
help your
business and
it really
doesn’t take
much time
to start
generating
results.
much time
