twitter for business Archives - Page 3 of 3

Aug 21 2015

Twitter for Business 101: How do I Tweet to a Specific Person?

Welcome to another edition of Twitter for Business 101!

You may have already noticed that Twitter is a fantastic platform for broadcasting your message to a bunch of people, whether it’s your followers, the Twitterverse at large or a hashtag. But what happens if you want to talk to a specific person? Do you just throw the tweet out there and hope the person you’re talking to sees it?

You could, but you don’t have to. Twitter already thought of that, and provided some nifty options for you to get in touch with specific individuals. They consist of:

Mentions
Replies
Direct Messages

Let’s break it down one at a time.

Mention

You know how each Twitter handle has the “@” sign at the front of their name? That’s what Twitter uses to identify specific names in a tweet. It kind of works like the “To:” field in an email, except in this case all of the Internet is bcc’d when you send it out. For example, typing “@WilliamShatner” in your tweet will flag it for the attention of, you guessed it, William Shatner.

Twitter has a special section called “notifications” that alerts you every time your name is mentioned in this manner.

So if William Shatner wanted to know who is tweeting him or talking about him, he just needs to read his Notifications.

When do I use mentions?

Mentions are most commonly used when:

Making a public statement that you want the other person to see, either because they’re a part of the conversation or it’s relevant to them in some way.Example: “Met some great people at tonight’s networking event! @HelenHunt”
Quoting someone or referencing their work. Excellent when you want to give credit where it’s due.Example: “Identified my own “Tipping Point” today courtesy of the amazing @Gladwell”

Starting a public conversation that you don’t mind other people reading.Example: “Hey @jenkellyjen, when can we meet up for tacos?”

In addition to the “Notifications” tab, there are a lot of tools like Hootsuite and ManageFlitter that help you track any time someone is mentioned on Twitter, whether it’s you or someone else.

Reply

Do you want to respond to an interesting Twitter post? Hit the “reply” icon on their tweet!

Twitter will automatically fill in the original tweeter’s name, similar to the way mentions work, so that your message will be addressed to them. But the reply will also be attached to the tweet you’re responding to, thus creating a conversation threat that’s easier to follow.

When do I reply to tweets?

It’s just like replying to an email, or answering someone verbally. If you want to ask a question, answer a question, make a comment or even just strike up a conversation, replying to someone’s tweet is a great way to do it.

Even if it’s “just” the Internet, the standard rules of social decorum still apply. Make sure your reply is relevant to the conversation. Don’t spam them with a barrage of messages. Never say something you wouldn’t say to their face. Above all, be interesting.

Direct Message

Finally, Direct Messages (or DMs) are a way to initiate a private conversation with either one specific person or a group. To send a direct message, you have to go to your Messages page on your Twitter account and start a new conversation by entering the Twitter handle (or handles) of who you want to talk to. Only people explicitly mentioned in the address box will be able to see and participate in the conversation.

You can only send a DM to someone who already follows you, and vice versa. If you want to use Twitter for business purposes and encourage people to contact you anytime, there is a setting that allows you to receive Direct Messages from anyone, even if you don’t follow them.

When do I use direct messages?

Marketers love using Twitter for business because it allows for direct messages. Direct Messages are ideal for discussing sensitive and private business topics, and for exchanging contact information if you and the other user want to meet face to face or via email.

The Twitter support page has more great information on how Direct Messages work.

To learn more about using Twitter for business, sign up for the Nimble Quotes newsletter.

Aug 18 2015

Who Sees My Tweets?

When you send out a tweet, just who sees it? Can anyone see your tweets, or just your followers?

Can Anyone See My Tweets?

Once you’ve tweeted your update, those who are following you will see it appear in their Home timeline. The Home timeline is the first page seen once someone has signed in to their Twitter account. It’s where you can see all the recent tweets of the accounts that you’re following.

Your tweets also appear on your profile page. This is where anyone from the public can view your tweets – if your account is public, then anyone can look up your profile and see what you’ve posted. So people don’t necessarily need to be following you in order to view your tweets.

Your tweets won’t appear in the timelines of those who are not following you, but they can search for them. (Except for your direct messages – these cannot be viewed by the public.)

What About Hashtags?

Hashtags are keywords or phrases that begin with the hashtag symbol (#). They are used to categorize tweets. On Twitter, when you click on a word or phrase with the hashtag symbol before it, you will be taken to a page with a list of tweets that contain that same hashtagged word or phrase.

If you use a hashtag in one of your tweets, someone who doesn’t know you but is interested in that topic can see your hashtagged tweet. It’s a great way to generate more interest in what you post and more awareness for you and your business.

Click here for some helpful information from Twitter on using hashtags in your tweets.

So, whether you use hashtags or not, many people can see your tweets. But using hashtags will boost your potential audience!

The Nimble Quotes service posts famous and industry-related quotes to your Twitter feed as if you’ve tweeted them yourself. We offer a 30-day free trial with no credit card required. You’ll get to try 1-8 thought-provoking quotes per day automatically tweeted from your Twitter account, with the option of adding a variety of hashtags and specific timing for your audience. Once your trial is over, it costs about $1/day or about $1/week to continue. Check out Nimble Quotes in action on @jenkellyjen or @newimarketing. Not ready for a trial just yet? Sign up for our newsletter instead.

Jul 10 2015

When Good Quotes Turn Bad

I have a confession to make: I used to love Donald Trump.

It was hard not to! After all, Trump was a successful businessman, he owned multiple franchises, and he had a hit show with a great, quotable tag line: “You’re fired!” He was a sound-bite machine, coming up with pithy, hard-hitting business and life statements that fit perfectly on Facebook and Twitter. A lot of my customers thought so, too. Quotes for Donald Trump were always a popular choice when setting up content streams.

And then he became a U.S. presidential candidate, and it all went to hell. His good quotes turned bad.

You’ve probably heard about the racist comments he made upon filing for candidacy. For those who aren’t aware of it, he basically blamed Mexico, Mexicans and Mexican-Americans for bringing their problems into the United States. They did not take kindly to this, of course, and people have been severing ties with Donald Trump left and right.

Yikes! You wouldn’t want someone like that on your feed, whether you’re using Twitter for business or for fun!

Protecting Feeds with Content Watch

This scenario is one of the major reasons we introduced Content Watch into Nimble Quotes.

We want to make sure every tweet in your business account aligns to your brand. That means only quoting people whose views you support and reflect you as a business.

If any of the authors (I use the term “author” loosely—mainly to indicate whoever said the quote) in our library do anything that would damage the brand you’re trying to project (and I think obscenely racist comments qualify), Content Watch will filter out their quotes from your feed without any action on your part.

You no longer have to worry about quoting people that shoot their mouth off and say reprehensible things—like Mr. Trump.

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