Many business owners new to the social media forum for, run the risk of alienating their audience of professionals, clients and prospects through simple misuse. Twitter can be particularly tricky for first timers and understanding why you are tweeting and to who you are tweeting, will go a long way toward achieving your social media business goals. As important as what you tweet, is what you SHOULDN’T tweet. This article addresses the basic guidelines for what NOT to publish in your twitter feed.
Have a Purpose
Think about what you are using Twitter for – is it to generate leads, build your brand, provide customer support, or to grow your network of professional contacts? You would tweet differently, depending on what you are trying to accomplish. And in general, tweeting pure ads are not going to go over well with your followers, it’s a social media after all. Tweet items that would interest your audience. Would you open a “commercial” if you didn’t have to?
Engage Your Audience
This is your online networking event. Just like real life, people will connect with you if you show interest in them and ask them questions. Let them do 80 percent of the talking, ask questions and listen to their responses.
Tweet Things Your Clients & Mother, Would Be Proud Of
Don’t post anything you wouldn’t want your mother, grandmother, clients, or employees to read and associate with you. This is your business – it’s not about you. Personal information and opinions should be omitted from your business Twitter feed.
Other tips for topics you should avoid Tweeting: (These may seem like a no-brainer, but every day people Tweet about them and they reflect negatively on their business.)
- Don’t disparage your competition.
- Don’t engage your competition in negative conversations.
- Disgruntled Client tweeting you in anger? Engage them by asking them how you can help them and invite them to email you or call you for assistance. Don’t fight on Twitter.
- Don’t Tweet about your sex life, partying, wild experiences and definitely don’t Tweet pics of any of it.
- Don’t Tweet about politics or religion.
Again, this is your business. Be personable, but not personal. You don’t want to get involved in any discussions about controversial subjects that could offend any of your customers or potential customers. Always be professional.
Source Article: What Not to Say on Twitter by Ted Prodromou