How to Sell on Twitter With These 13 Tips

How to Sell on Twitter – Twitter as a marketing tool can be applied to PR, thought leadership, brand building and lead generation. Selling on Twitter takes some skill and practice, but it’s a viable platform for growing your business that is definitely worth the effort.

What can I sell on Twitter?

The short answer is Everything! The great thing about social media marketing is that you can use it to sell so many different products. There is a lot of business to be done on the internet through many channels. Somewhere on the web, there is a niche for anything you need to sell. Follow these best practices to tap into your niche and sell like the pros on Twitter.

The internet can be unpredictable, but there are some specific steps you can take to ensure that you are getting positive ROI from Twitter. No sales are guaranteed, but using some of these best practices will help you get the most out of Twitter as a sales tool.

1. Interact with your audience.

Social media was created for people to be social, so don’t be shy! Respond to your mentions and retweets, conduct questions and answers and be active not only with your followers but also with other relevant people in your industry. This will help build interest and trust, which will also encourage your audience to join the conversation.

2. Share things your market is interested in

Your tweet stream shouldn’t just be about what you’re selling. People will be more likely to follow you when they see you share content they want to see and posts to identify with. And the more eyes you get on your profile, the more potential leads you have.

3. Monitor your company’s reputation.

Track what users are saying about your business online with routine social listening. Every time you or your product is mentioned, double-check what is being said so you know how people are discussing it. Analyze the information for useful insights to improve what could be preventing leads from becoming customers.

4. Be consistent.

The Twitter algorithm favors users who tweet frequently and regularly. To help you with this, there are many social media management tools that you can use to schedule posts in advance. That way you won’t feel pressured to open the app every day and come up with something new and insightful. A scheduling app can keep your tweets consistent, which means your leads will also stay consistent.

5. Accept feedback.

Don’t just watch what users are saying about your company or product, listen. Customers who have had a negative or positive experience can share their opinion on Twitter. Take the free feedback that you would normally have to pay a focus group for and apply changes that can improve your sales.

6. Stay up to date on industry news.

Stay up to date on big (or small) changes in your industry by regularly checking it out on Twitter. For example, if you’ve heard that your competitor made a big announcement but didn’t know the details, Search on Twitter for the competitor’s name to get the latest news and what people are saying about it. Twitter’s real-time updates are a great way to find out important news before it’s even posted on the web. This upper hand tells you about ways to get more sales over the competition.

Social media has grown immensely as a business tool, which means you are always behind the competition when you are not using them. In fact, Twitter’s daily active users (mDAU) can be monetized to 206 million people. That’s a lot of ways to sell on the platform. Some of these users might fall into your target audience. Unfortunately, a large fan base alone does not guarantee sales. Use these tips to get the most out of the business revenue platform.

Using Twitter as a platform for selling your product can be very effective if done right. It’s not just about building a huge following or promoting most of the content. Focus on the tips below to improve your sales on Twitter.

1. Have a plan.

Don’t blindly dive into sales on Twitter. Create a Twitter marketing strategy that works for you and your product, and then execute it.

2. Determine which trends and hashtags will benefit you.

You don’t have to go viral to be seen, but you do need to empower yourself to be found. By following relevant popular trends and using hashtags, your profile will be presented to the users searching for your content.

3. Create a great profile.

It’s easy to Customize your Twitter profile with adjustments that fit your product. Your “handle” doesn’t necessarily have to be just the name of your company, it could relate to your product or your branding. And that includes having a special pinned tweet that you want to draw attention to as part of your profile.

4. Establish a personality.

Will your tweets be humorous? Serious? Carefree? Memes? Decide what you want people to see of your brand and how you want your Twitter profile to express this.

5. Connect with influencers or relevant followers.

Find and keep up with the changemakers in your industry. Continuously review what they are saying and decide which collaborations could benefit your company. For example, co-branding partnerships are a mutually beneficial proposition that you can make to another successful brand that you connect with on Twitter.

6. Pay attention to your follower ratio.

Believe it or not, the myth that users care about your follow-back rate is actually true. It’s a signal of your account’s success. So be more selective about which users you want to follow.

7. Don’t be afraid of promotions.

Twitter ads are a great tool to use. They are a smart way to promote your brand and product once you reach the right audience.

Use Twitter effectively as a sales tool

Different social media platforms require different strategies to be effective. For example, Twitter focuses on text while Instagram focuses on media. Think of the unique aspects of Twitter as a platform and use them to your advantage as you develop a strategy. Social media is an essential tool for selling your product that cannot be ignored as you continue to grow your business.

Editor’s note: This post was originally published in October 2009 and has been updated for completeness.