One of the main reasons businesses don’t use Twitter is that they don’t know what to tweet.
There appears to be a common misconception that tweets generally comprise of ‘I’ve just had a cheese sandwich’ or ‘time for a coffee’ or other such mundane updates.
There is a lot more to Twitter than that and no, by being part of it you’re not going to be subjected to an onslaught of dietary updates from all your followers.
The whole point of Twitter is to engage with others, to chat with them, share great information and offer help and advice wherever possible.
But if you’re still sat there, fingers poised over keyword, without a clue what to tweet, take a look at the list below.
Things you should be tweeting about
1. Share links
If you blog, every time a new post is published, tweet the link. Tell everyone you have a new blog post out, give its title and then insert the link. You will be offering them great information and promoting your blog at the same time.
Also, if in your daily reading you spot and article or blog you found interesting, share the link with your followers, you never know, they might find it interesting too.
2. Ask
Rather than just pushing your opinions on people, ask what they think about current issues, or things happening within your industry. This is a great way to get conversations started and draw new followers to you.
3. Respond
Twitter isn’t just about you pushing your stuff out there. You also need to listen to your followers and respond to their questions too. If they have a problem that you can help them with, tweet back to them and lend a hand.
4. Business updates
Let your followers know what’s going on in your business. If you’re involved with local charities, tell them. If a member of your team has a story to tell, let them. This is a great way to show the human side of your business. If you have photos of events etc., share those too.
5. Tips
People love to get helpful tips. So if you tweet something that’s going to add value to your followers, they’re more likely to start engaging with you.
6. Retweets
If someone you follow tweets something interesting, retweet it so other people that follow you can also see it.
7. Shout out about others
If you deal with a company that offers great customer service, or helped you out when you needed it, tweet about them. You will come across as the caring, sharing type and they’ll benefit from greater exposure.
8. Talk about events
Even if it’s a local networking event, tell people about it. You never know how many other tweeters are there. Also, it’s a good idea to tweet about it before the event so fellow tweeters can let you know that they’ll be there too so you can have your very own mini tweetup.
9. Comment on news
If there’s something new happening in your industry tell people about it and stimulate discussions.
10. Have fun
Twitter is supposed to be fun. It’s a great way to engage with people, so be human and share videos and photos that made you smile.
So there you have it, 10 things to tweet about. But remember, much like texting and email, intonation and sarcasm don’t translate well in tweets, so:
- Don’t get dragged into arguments, you’ll always end up looking bad
- Make it clear when you’re being flippant
- Don’t tweet something that’s going to cause offence
In other words, think before you tweet.
Over to you
How are you using twitter? What successes have you had?
Leave a comment below.
Sally Ormond (@sallyormond) – copywriter
2 comments ↓
Great post. It can sometimes be hard to convert social media newbies from Facebook to Twitter (or get them to add it), but the interaction potential and level of content is far superior on Twitter. You’re right. It doesn’t have to be scary–it’s just one more way of building relationships.
And that’s exactly it, Isla, it’s about building relationships. One additional way to do that with Twitter is to click into your followers’ websites. Visit and comment on their blogs (if they have them). You’re not just relegated to communicating with followers on the Twitter platform. Nice post.
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