Listen

Listening is as much a key element of a meaningful conversation as is speaking. We go to a party, get introduced, listen to what people are saying and then engage in conversations on a particular topic that both or all of the participants are interested in. We add our ideas, thoughts and opinions on topics that are being discussed in real time.

Twitter is no different. Think of Twitter as a real world conversation – because that’s what it is.

Sending out an unsolicited tweet that your company is offering a special deal has about as much impact as interjecting in a cocktail party conversation about politics that you love chess.

How do you listen?

Unless you want to sit in front of the computer and watch 100’s of tweets scroll across your screen, the main way you listen to the conversation is through searching Twitter for posts that are of interest to you.

Searching is your entry into the Twitter chatter, and an invitation to join the party. There are quite a few ways to search, Twitter Search and Twitter Troll just to name a couple.

The next question is what are you searching for?

You are searching for people discussing things that are relevant to you. Searching for your name, company name, products you sell (or would like to sell) and industry chatter are all a great way to start.
These are the conversations you want to join. These are the people you want to interact with.

Respond

Once you have got the essence of the conversation, and hopefully have a good idea of general mood, enter the conversation by responding to the posts.

Be careful again not to barge in, but add to what is being discussed. This should be very easy since you’re following conversations of importance to you and your business, and your know-how in the area being discussed will have something to add.

When responding your first order of business is to ask yourself “where can I help?” Helping could mean passing along specialist advice, addressing an disappointed customer, or giving an outlook of the topic at hand.

If you find a client who is unhappy with you, your business, or your merchandise this is low hanging fruit in establishing the sincerity of your company. Address these issues up front, and honestly. Take liability and make any wrongs right. You’ll go a long way in restoring the relationship with those customers and attracting new ones due to your stellar customer service.

Back to the conversation you were responding too. Much like the cocktail party, you are integrating into what is being discussed. Establish a presence in the discussion by being on topic – and always add value to the discussion before expecting the discussion to add income for you.

Engage

The third and final step in the process is to engage. By now hopefully you’ve followed the right conversations, and woven yourself into the discussion by responding and adding value. The last step is to engage others in the dialogue.

Remember as you have been listening and responding, others have been listening and responding to you. It’s a good time to engage your audience. Get them involved. Start new conversations with them by asking questions, soliciting feedback, or asking for advice and opinions.

Full Circle

Since this is an iterative process, it repeats itself. Listen-Respond-Engage.

The more you do it, the more credibility you gain, the more you learn about your market, and the more you put yourself in the path of prospective clients.

At this point you’ll start to see the true benefit from using Twitter for business.  As an active Listener – Responder – Engager you will be able to occasionally share the “Hot Deal” or “Once in a lifetime offer” with your followers and have them actually respond to it.

You’ve build the relationship with your customers where it is appropriate. You can sometimes “help them” by “helping yourself” as well.

SysComm is an Internet Marketing, Search Engine Marketing, Social Media and SEO Company. We provide a complete service package including Internet marketing strategies, SEO services and search engine marketing. SysComm is also an SEO consultant. To know more about our services or to claim your free social media marketing analysis, fill up the contact form or email us on info@syscomminternational.com.

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