The major online social networking platforms are quickly turning into the preferred marketing outlets for many companies around the world. Business enterprises from diverse industries, from online car insurance to pizza delivery, are rushing to establish a solid social media presence. It is easy to see why companies are concentrating their marketing and advertising efforts on social media sites. Online social networking has gone beyond the phase of being an Internet curiosity; it has become the de facto mode of communication for more than 800 million active users around the world.

 

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Twitter’s Reach

Twenty-two percent of Internet are engaged in social networking at any given time, and the number of members registered on social media platforms is growing exponentially. Among the different online social networking sites, Twitter has become the preferred social media platform for marketing, advertising, customer service, and public relations. Twitter does not have the highest number of registered users; that distinction goes to Facebook, with more than 800 million members. Twitter, however, is acknowledged as one of the most dynamic social media platforms for businesses. Before figuring out how Twitter can work for your business, it is important to understand the basic Twitter functions of messaging and micro-blogging. Twitter’s approach to social networking is to allow organizations or individuals to freely connect with others via “tweets”, short text-based messages no longer than 140 characters. Skeptics may doubt the power of Twitter based on its fundamental premises, but the elegant way in which tweets are handled and managed within the system make it an ideal platform for business. Twitter isn’t limited to messaging; there are dozens of third-party applications that enhance Twitter’s functionality. Some of these apps can be used to send and receive payments, track time and expenses, plan events, post coupons, and more. There are several ways to make Twitter work for your business. Marketing is the most often cited business use, but there is a lot more that a company can accomplish on Twitter. The following three methods describe how your business can begin to harness the power of Twitter beyond mere marketing:

 

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Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

Managing the customer experience is a vital part of today’s business process. CRM software evolved from the contact management systems previously used by salespeople. For a company that has not yet implemented a CRM solution, Twitter can be the perfect stepping stone to building a social CRM. Twitter already provides the conduit for relationships between providers of goods or services and their customers. A collection of tweets can reveal a lot about a company and their customers. Ever since companies began establishing a presence on Twitter, customers have been eager to interact with them. Customers who choose to follow your company may be following a competitor as well, thereby giving you a chance to compare and manage relationships accordingly. Since Twitter is like a giant listening post for companies, it may be even more effective than traditional CRM tools. Twitter posts left by your customers are a goldmine of information waiting to be tapped. A handful of third-party apps make the CRM process on Twitter even easier, but the principle remains: Every tweet from a customer counts, and it deserves closer scrutiny.

 

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Developing Brand Awareness

Twitter makes it easy for businesses to build their brands. Twitter profile pages have enough room for the basics like the company name, logo, slogan, and contact information. It’s up to the business to engage the millions of potential customers and prospects. Word of mouth marketing comes naturally to Twitter. If a company manages to produce compelling tweets about their products or services, those posts stand a good chance of being retweeted. This essentially becomes free brand exposure.

 

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Content Marketing

A company does not have to live and die by Twitter’s 140-character message capacity. For businesses that already have Internet content on a blog or a website, a well-positioned tweet can direct customers to another site. In fact, content marketing isn’t limited to the Internet. Tweets can direct social media followers to other forms of advertising, such as guiding customers to listen to radio ads, watch online videos, read new blog posts, or print coupons.

 

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This guest post was written by Vikram from snakebytez.com .  Vikram is a professional blogger and loves to write articles on SEO, Blogging, Gadgets, Social Media, etc.

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