The Executive Guide to Using Twitter Effectively
Twitter is an emerging social technology that can help you grow your network, build your personal brand online, and listen and connect with customers. These tools can connect you with potential clients and help build a relationship prospective customers. Twitter has about 4 million active users and is continuing to grow very rapidly.
What is Twitter
Twitter is also known as a microblogging service. Most users publish short updates of 140 characters or less to their Twitter account. They can be thoughts, interesting links, or what you are doing. Anyone can follow your account and receive your “Tweets” every time you update your account.
Setting Up Twitter
Setting up is fast and easy. Log onto twitter.com and enter your username. You can use your real name, your company’s name, or a made up name.
It is ideal to integrate Twitter with your mobile phone. You can make updates with your mobile phone by sending a text to 40404. In order to do this, Go to twitter.com, go into settings, click on “devices” and enable Tweets by cell, by entering your phone number. (you can edit which users updates get sent to your phone if you perfer, you will get charged by your cell phone company for each update unless you are on an unlimited plan).
For a good example of a Twitter account, check out Chuck Besondy’s at twitter.com/cbesondy or the twitter.com/oneaccord
Networking
Start following people that you know or want to know. Often when you follow someone they will follow you back. If you have set up Twitter on your phone you can text “follow ___” to 40404 to start receiving updates. For example if I want to follow Paul Travis I could text “follow paultravis”.
There are over 6,000 companies currently on Twitter. For a list of these companies visit www.Twibs.com
You can also find executives using Twitter at www.exectweets.com
You can also send direct messages to people that follow you. Online go to “direct messages” in the sidebar. From your phone enter “d username” followed by the message. For example d oneaccord I really liked that article you linked to. Very interesting!
When referring to another Twitterer it is customary to use @. For example @cbesondy had a really good thought about the sales funnel.
Some advice on what to Tweet:
Some people question the value of Twitter when they first hear about it. They may ask “why would someone care about what I’m doing”?
Usually it is best to tweet valuable content for the target customer. This could be thoughts on marketing, sales, or business. Also you can point out interesting articles that you read. Finally a little personal information can help followers get to know you.
The greatest value of Twitter is the direct communication channel to your followers. A Twitter update gets sent out to all your followers, instantly reaching many on their cell phones via SMS. Many brands such as Zappos and Comcast have used Twitter in this way to reach thousands of customers instantly and directly. Many marketers such as Chris Brogan and Scott Monty have built well known personal brands with 10,000+ followers.
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Twitter as a Marketing Research Tool
by Charles Sipe
By now many are realizing the tremendous potential of Twitter as a marketing vehicle to communicate to a community that has given you their permission and attention. According to TechCrunch, Jason Calicanis just offered $250,000, just to be listed on the suggested Twitterers for 1 year, and thinks a spot on this prestigious list will be as valuable as a superbowl spot within 5 years. Even Facebook wants to be like Twitter as demonstrated by their new profile page. Twitter has appeared to have made it mainstream with Twittering celebrities like britneyspears, the_real_shaq, aplusk (Ashton Kutcher), jimmyfallon, just to name a few. The network effect means that as Twitter continues to grow it will become more valuable to each user, and thus more valuable to marketers.
One of the major applications of Twitter is in market research. Imagine having a test group of millions, that can provide real time consumer feedback at a unprecedented level. Companies will be able to release a new product and almost instantly find out what people think. Additionally they can get take the pulse of customer sentiment and then make changes to increase customer satisfaction. Twitter could also empower customers to get their complaints heard as unhappy customers will have a way to tell thousands of followers about their bad experience. All it takes is a short text message that gets retweeted and a brand’s reputation can be tarnished overnight. This could mean a stronger focus on improving customer experience to prevent a fiasco ten times worse than Jeff Jarvis’ infamous Dell Hell blog post. Optimistically, companies will be able to better understand the customer by listening more closely and using the data mined from the Twitersphere to create improved products and services that will increase customer satisfaction.
Can Social Marketing Work for B2B?
by Charles Sipe
How can companies that target other companies use social technologies to grow their business? Well Forrester Research Vice President Josh Bernoff argues that it can be extremely effective to leverage the power of communities in a B2B environment. The example that he gives is a company called Constant Contact which helps businesses with their email campaigns. They have set up a community focused area of their site called “Connect Up” which allows customers to interact, share knowledge, and help each other. The community of customers can ask each other questions and learn about best practices in email marketing from members in the same business as they are. This helps customers of Constant Contact use the tools more effectively and are likely to be more satisfied customers.
Intuit also has a similar online community for their Quickbooks product where customers can find useful information and get their questions answered by the community. This not only acts as a free support team for Intuit but makes the lives of their customers easier which often leads to customer loyalty and higher satisfaction.
The Recession May Make CMOs More Numbers Driven
Filed under: Brand Leadership, Consumer Behavior, Interim management, Revenue Growth, Social Media, interim marketing executive, marketing video
John Quelch wrote a thought provoking article (How CMOs Should Function in a Recession) which touches on how the recession can alter the role of the CMO in an organization. Not only do they have to come up with creative ways to stretch marketing spend further but they have to be more cognizant of the return on investment on marketing spend.
The recession will have two important, lasting results for CMOs: First, financial accountability of marketing is here to stay. Only in a few high-margin fashion-intensive categories will the shoot-from-the-hip right brain marketer survive. Second, improved accountability requires CMOs to be financially literate, to understand the balance sheet as well as the income statement impacts of marketing initiatives. The result will be a new generation of CMOs who command more respect in the C-suite and hold their jobs longer as a result.
If Quelch is right, successful CMOs in the future may require an analytical skillset that outweighs the creative skillset. In the classic debate of whether marketing is an art or science, this may give the science side the lead for now. The recent Stephen Baker book, The Numerati, describes how business is becoming more analytically driven as artificial computer intelligence is able to give marketers new insights into the behavior patterns of consumers, connecting the dots when human intuition comes up short. For example a computer sorting mountains of information from consumers online, found that Netflix users who rent romatic comedies are more likely to rent cars for the weekend. A data analysis also found that drinkers of hard liqour drinkers often buy Gatorade. These consumers likely wanted to prevent hang overs by drinking or mixing liqour with the electrolyte rich sports drink. This information could be valuable for Gatorade’s marketing department who could use this to target liqour buyers to increase sales.
Have you seen any examples of numbers becoming more important in the role of a CMO or marketing department?
Empathizing with Your Customer
Filed under: Executive Marketing Strategy, Social Media, customer value
by Paul Travis, Interim Marketing Executive
While the Big-3 auto makers continue spending their (same old same old) mass media dollars telling us that we can get the same pricing as their employees (same old, same old)… “second tier” companies are making more timely appeals:
Volkswagen is speaking to American families about “having it all” — high mileage, best safety, and green manufacturing, and clean diesel technology.
Hyundai is hitting breadwinners where their fears live… “What if I lose my job?” Their Assurance program lets customers bring their car back with no penalty they find themselves unemployed within 12 months of purchase.
Now that’s creative thinking. Unclear whether we can hand it to Hyundai for the innovation, as they merely partnered with a company called WalkAway USA whose raison d’etre is such financing plans. Nonetheless, Hyundai will undoubtedly receive credit in the mind of the consumer for respecting the tenuous economy.
And that brand halo — residing in the mind of the buying public — will pay off for Hyundai!
60-Second Takeaway: Where are your opportunities to let your customers know you understand their situation, and demonstrate that you care?
Paul Travis is an interim marketing executive at OneAccord. Mr. Travis is based out of Seattle with 25 years of experience in high technology, marketing, and consulting. He welcomes questions at Paul.Travis(at)oneaccordpartners.com and at 206-910-2222.
One Giant Falls as Another Giant Rises
Paul Travis is a principal at OneAccord which provides interim executive services. Mr. Travis is based out of Seattle with 25 years of experience in high technology, marketing, and consulting. He has also co-authored the book Leadership on Demand: How Smart CEO’s Tap Interim Management to Drive Revenue. His blog is www.60-Second-Marketing.com. Paul can be contacted at 206-910-2222 and Paul.Travis(at)oneaccordpartners.com.
In the past week, there has been a palpable feeling that our national government is going to march to a different beat than we’ve seen for the past 8 years [couldn't have come soon enough, IMHO].
Just as evident over the past week has been the nail in the coffin of the news print industry. Since the dot-com bust 8 years ago, we’ve seen media companies “dabble” in the online business while they rearranged the deckchairs on the proverbial Titanic. Look no further than the bankruptcy, sale, or pending exit of the venerable Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the Austin American-Statesman, the San Diego Union-Tribune, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the Rocky Mountain News, and on and on.
But here’s the real kicker…
In covering the Obama inauguration, CNN.com and Facebook had almost 14 million people streaming and chatting online — blowing away the past record of 5+ million simultaneous video streams on Election Day 2008.
So…
You’ve been hearing the change was coming. Online media advertising now exceeds that of television. You’ve been told — we’re experiencing the change as we speak. Things are different.
Now how does your present marketing mix compare with that of 2 years ago or 4 years ago?
It’s a race between who changes first — you or your competitor. Drop me a line if you need some help getting started down this path.
Paul Travis, Principal OneAccord
phone 206-910-2222
Paul.Travis(at)oneaccordpartners.com
Photo by adria richards
Joeseph Jaffe Speaks on New Media Marketing
Joeseph Jaffe, author of Life After the 30 Second Spot and Join the Conversation, speaks about the effects new media is having on the marketing landscape and how marketers can take advantage of this shift in how consumers use media.
Survey: Most Small Businesses Don’t Plan to Cut Social Media
by Charles Sipe
While advertising spending may be down for most traditional media, there is one media that is not being cut. According to a survey conducted in December 2008 by Ad-ology Research, 25% of small businesses stated they planned to increase spending on social media and 33% said they would spend the same amount in 2009.
This data suggests that social media will continue to grow in 2009 and we have certainly seen growth in Facebook and Twitter.This also shows the value that people see in social media marketing. Usually it only costs time to interact and build relationships with customers through social media. For instance Zappos has used Twitter to gain the attention of over 31,000 followers. Think of how valuable it is to get 30,000 followers to voluntarily give you their attention and for Zappos, it costs next to nothing to update their Twitter feed. Their marketing messages are sent instantly to interested and engaged consumers, many who receive Twitter messages directly to their mobile devices.
Another useful source for social media marketing is LinkedIn where you can find potential prospects and build relationships. Facebook has many marketing applications from targeted banner ads, to fan groups that empower evangelists to spread their enthusiasm about your product or service.
At time of economic crisis, companies big and small will look for highly efficient and trackable means of marketing their company, and that is likely to mean growth in social media marketing.
Christopher Penn Discusses Marketing Applications of Twitter
Christopher Penn Discusses Marketing Applications of Twitter on Six Pixels of Separation.
Image by bpolensky
Why Executives Should Approve New Media Marketing
Filed under: Executive Marketing Strategy, Social Media
David Meerman Scott, a new media marketing thought leader, explains why executives should approve new media marketing and how to measure the ROI of these efforts.
