Within a few weeks of using Twitter it becomes clear how it works and more to the point how you can make it work for you. However if you are feeling uncomfortable using it and have thoughts in your mind like:
"Why on earth am I exposing myself to this nonsense"?
or
" I really don't have time for this, it isn't working for me".
Then you might be suffering from a mismatch scenario. The platform is mismatched to you. What you need to appreciate is that there are lots of other platforms available that might better suit your skills and personality.
Don't give up, instead change platforms and give it another go!
Micro-blogging is fun for personal interaction and for business, it's a very worthwhile addition to your marketing tools. Remember though it is not a broadcast medium, people do not want to get the business 'hard sell' all the time, they can after all simply unfollow you. They want to get to know what makes up the brand.
It's called 'pull marketing': when you like something well enough you gravitate towards it. So when people on Twitter like your message and begin to understand your ethos, they warm to you and will in all probability want to recommend you to others, at the very least, and may even choose to buy your product over another.
Here's a super screencast production by one of my Twitter contacts Su Butcher who uses the Twitter ID @justprofs, she explains the issues very clearly.
She tells us Twitter isn't the best interface for beginners and shows us how it lets us down. Sometimes the frustrations we feel with a piece of software can deter us from using it, right from the word go. Other times when we use something that we like from the word go, it often becomes a favourite of ours.
Did watching the video change your mind? Will you give Twitter another go? Do let me know if you found more satisfaction using something else – may be Tweetdeck or Hootsuite?
You might like to follow my Twitter account @LadyBizBiz
Slightly longer version of this blog appears here.
I think we will all agree that your brand whether personal, professional or commercial, is definitely something that should be protected. Why would you allow it to be tarnished when you have endured blood, sweat and tears in establishing it over the years?
You may have sacrificed a huge amount of family life in the making of your business, so protection for your brand is probably top of your list.
Have you considered how Social Media and in particular Twitter can affect your brand?
People have the notion that if they aren’t interested in engaging in social media, and stay well away from it, then their brand is protected. So, it’s a nasty wake-up call when they discover that actually whether they are registered on social media platforms or not, their brand, be it personal, professional or commercial, is probably being talked about in their absence.
You simply cannot prevent people from talking about things on Twitter, or even complaining, so let’s hope they aren’t complaining about your products or services? This isn’t all bad because it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that if you are being talked about it’s better than NOT being talked about.
Here’s why it’s GOOD ….. you can make sure that the moment someone does complain publicly on Twitter that you are brand monitoring and you then nip the problem in the bud.
You can turn it to your advantage and walk away feeling proud. You can help someone who in the first instance expressed a negative opinion of your brand, to change that opinion. Following your efficient response in engaging with them, you can leave them with a glowing impression instead!
This is precisely why you would want to respond efficiently and effectively to that Twitter comment:
Sue is a Broadband customer of Company A and she’s been attempting to query the low download speed through customer service. She’s angry and frustrated and she tweets that “Company A has dreadful customer service – I can’t get anyone to appreciate my problem, they just ignore the fact that I’m paying good money for an appalling service.”
Now you are Company A’s person monitoring the brand on Twitter. And you use various search functions to make sure that whenever anyone tweets about Company A you know about the tweet within a reasonable amount of time.
When you see this tweet by Sue, you immediately tweet her publicly: “@username I can help you. Call me at xxxxx and I assure you I will personally attend to your problem.”
Sue calls you, you take care of the problem, and she’s so delighted she then tweets:“Company A just took care of my problem. That’s good customer service!”
Now imagine if you hadn’t been brand monitoring and Sue’s tweet went unanswered. Then her complaint escalates.
For example, someone could reply to Sue: “@username I also had crappy customer service from Company A.”
Sue could then reply: “I wish I could switch to another Broadband provider. I really dislike Company A.”
Before you know what’s happening because of the viral nature of Twitter, and the fact that it is real-time, a whole load of people – people who perhaps don’t even have a complaint with your company, but want to offer their ‘opinion’ – have jumped on the bandwagon.
It might, or it might not be, too late at this stage to undo the damage. Without a doubt though, this is the way that a brand can suffer damage. It could probably have been prevented if you had caught it early, taken care of the problem promptly and efficiently, and then you and the satisfied customer, could have tweeted about the successful resolution.
Brand monitoring can take advantage of positive comments, here’s how:
Track your brand on Twitter so that you can also pick up the positive comments. Until someone can convince me otherwise I will continue to use Tweetdeck for this purpose because it meets all my needs. If, for example, someone tweets a compliment for your brand, you can re-tweet that compliment and potentially send it farther into the ether.
By tweeting worthwhile information in connection to your brand, there is also the added advantage that the perception of your brand can be emboldened in the public mind. This will enable you to cultivate goodwill so that, should a problem arise your customers or clients will be magnanimous and likely to forgive you.
Finally I urge you to recognise that brand monitoring is a very important marketing activity in the social networking Twittersphere.
In the words of the minstrel in the light-hearted video that follows
" You might as well not have existed".
THE BALLARD OF TWITTER
Would you kindly leave a comment and tell me how Twitter has been successful in endorsing your brand, be it personal, professional or commercial?
The tone of this article is not meant to be heavy-handed: it hopes to provide a pragmatic view of what steps can be taken to keep your business from becoming a statistic in the insolvency tables.
If we all stopped spending on little pleasures like dining at restaurants and visiting sports events etc. the economy would feel the effects and this wouldn’t do much for recovery. The same is true in our business lives, we still need to spend money on networking, travel and office sundries. The crux of the matter is the amount we are spending: have we made proper adjustments in order to give our business the best chance of survival in these tough times.
‘Get ahead of the game’ ……
This check list might be of use to you in reviewing your action plan:
Focus on cashflow
Make sure you invoice promptly and chase up outstanding debtors. Strengthen credit control, reduce stock levels, sell surplus assets, negotiate extended credit terms, including so called “time to pay agreements” with HMRC. Obtain up to date credit reports on major customers.
Cut your costs
Look for savings in all areas of your business – are you still getting the best deals from your suppliers – if you don’t have the time to ring round why not use the price comparison sites to check? Could you get better credit terms? Renegotiate your ‘terms of business’ for slow paying clients: you might make your formal credit terms shorter where possible and perhaps in staged payments? Could a meeting be held over the phone – it would save you money (and time) if you held a video-call – Skype B2B. Keep an eye on the simple things: check your equipment is turned off at night. Make certain you are using the correct postage on mail to avoid penalties.
Add more value – don’t cut prices
Improve what you are offering – look at possible customer care initiatives that add value as opposed to slashing prices that will impact your bottom line and won’t be easily recovered when the crisis has passed.
Increase your marketing
It’s more important than ever that you market your company. There is as much competition in the market place as always however you are fighting for a smaller pot. Don’t neglect to engage in attraction marketing using social media websites such as Twitter and one that I rate very highly for professional contacts, LinkedIn. (I call LinkedIn ‘the serious professional’s Facebook).
Analyse staffing costs
Could you function with a reduced number of staff? Could you make more of their existing skills. Staff is a valuable resource, they may provide you with ideas to help you survive the crunch, and involving them will also be good for team building and morale.
Could staff become home-workers for your business in order that you lose the overhead costs involved in employing them? You might also consider working with a VA, a virtual assistant who has their own business. They provide expertise on an ‘as-and-when-needed basis’, from their own office-space, at an hourly rate between £20-£40 depending on the nature of the work involved, (This is a very cost effective option if you consider the hourly rate of employing full-time staff can be twice as much cost again). As a last resort, if absolutely necessary, take advantage of the redundancy payment loan scheme operated by the government.
Communication is essential
Keep in touch with your bank and your professional advisors. The warning signs are more obvious to an observer than they will be to you. If you think there is trouble ahead, face problems head on and don’t adopt a head in the sand approach. The earlier you deal with it the more options there are open to you. Recent case law has clarified that as long as directors act in accordance with professional advice they should avoid personal liability. Do keep detailed records of all decisions made by minute at board meetings.
Take your chances – when you get them. For every business that fails there will be customers, key personnel and other assets available to those that survive.
Register on IP-Bid.com, the UK’s online insolvency market place, to receive email updates and opportunities.
Sources: AIMS Accountants for Business and McTear, Williams & Wood
Within a few weeks of using Twitter it becomes clear how it works and more to the point how you can make it work for you. However if you are feeling uncomfortable using it and have thoughts in your mind like:
