Recently I was asked by a large company to carry out an assessment of their Twitter account as they were concerned that there SEO company were not managing their Twitter account effectively. Great I thought to myself, not because this was the chance to impress a new company, but I get the opportunity to use my investigative skills so I was really looking forward to this piece of work.
As social media is a relatively new concept for many companies they do not necessarily understand how effective social networking can be when used as an effective marketing tool. It can enhance customer service and actively promote their business and brand if used correctly. Many large companies are therefore leaving their SEO companies to manage their social media for them.
This can be a very costly mistake, so I have created a free worksheet called “The 5 Day Business Twitter Spot Check“ on page 9 I have given 2 examples of how SEO companies are managing 2 accounts that I am aware of that are being outsourced. Last week I also received a call from a local website company after asking me how much I charge they then laughed and said I can outsource that cheaper to Indonesia!
If you are outsourcing your Twitter account you must check what the company is doing on your behalf against your social media marketing goals, at the end of the day they are representing your brand – it’s not just about improving your website SEO.
I’m sharing these findings with you so you know exactly what you should be looking for when you carry out a spot check on your online Twitter activity. If you do not do this you run the risk of not only having your Twitter account being outsourced to Indonesia but mismanaged damaging your online reputation.
Key findings taken from a recent spot check
The account in its current state is totally useless and is damaging the company’s online reputation within the context of social networking. Experienced social media users would easily assume that the account is being managed by a robot. Less experienced social media users would assume that the account is being handled with integrity.
-
Only 3 Tweets sent out a day, within an hour of one another and sent out after 11pm
-
Days when there are no tweets at all
-
8 out of 10 tweets are self promotion and go back to the main webpage
-
Replying to random messages; when tracing these back to what look like random spam websites
-
Links are not shortened
-
Connecting to other Twitter accounts that look suspicious/robots
-
The profile link is broken taking the click through to an error page
-
Searching for key words and replying to any messages rather than taking the time to check the other Tweeters level of credibility, then sending a self promotion tweet.
-
Following and connecting to a high number of competitors
-
Following back a high number of Tweeters from outside of the UK
-
There is no strategy in place for identifying new Tweeters as evidenced by static following figures
I recommend if you outsource your Twitter account that you carry out a regular spot check to determine your providers credibility.
Contact Me today!
Request your FREE 5 Day Twitter Spot Check Worksheet!
Now you have carried out a five day spot check on your Twitter account it should be very clear if the company you have passed this task over to are working towards your social media marketing goals.
For a healthy Twitter account I personally recommend the following :-
-
A minimum of 5 unique tweets per day
-
Tweets sent should add value for your followers; these could include blogs, news articles, events, Photos etc.
-
Tweets should be spread apart during the day when your target market is online.
-
Check all articles for their level of credibility before you send them.
-
If you are forwarding “RT” other Tweeters articles also ensure they are credible before you send them.
-
Say thank you to Tweeters who “RT” your tweets.
-
Make sure your Tweets are short enough to be “RT” re-tweeted.
-
Shorten your URL links.
-
-
Build the relationship with your followers by sending no less than
-
2 x Resending a Tweet “RT”
-
2 x Mentions a day “@”
-
-
Have a very clear “call to action” this should run through your weekly Twitter activity once a day only! Please avoid sending this self promotion if you’re not following a clear marketing strategy/goal and have not implemented the above recommendations.
-
Be consistent with your messages try not to jump around and keep your material industry related.
-
Look at your social media marketing plan what is your goal for making new contacts (following)? How many new Tweeters do you want to connect with on a daily basis?
-
Keep a note and an eye on how many Tweeters you are following to check against your targets.
-
When Tweeters follow you back send a personal message with a specific link giving them more information about your business.
-
Identify 4 Tweeters a day from your own stream who you can send a Retweet “RT” or “@”Mention
-
Keep your account clean
-
-
Keep an eye on who is following you do they fit your target market?
-
Don’t follow Tweeters back just because they are following you
-
Firstly check their account to see if they are genuine Tweeters and not spam. You need to ask yourself if their account looks credible then make a decision to follow them; where they live is always a good indication.
-
When you connect with new followers send them a direct message thanking them and a link to a specific welcome page on your website.
-
-
Make sure any links on your Twitter profile are not broken.
-
What is your bio saying about your company?
-
Be social give a name of a person as a point of contact.
-
Create a specific landing page on your website for people who are clicking on your profile link directly to your company website.
-
Welcome them and provide details of a named person/team to contact.
-
Other special promotions for Tweeters only
-
-
Create Twitter lists for specific groups you wish to follow
-
Tweet a thank you to Tweeters who add your details to their own lists.
-
-
Regularly monitor your account to see if your level of influence is growing HubSpot and Klout are reliable Twitter grading tools.
-
Regularly monitor your account to see if you are growing your network with Mentionmap
Time Management Tip
After drafting my initial 5 Tweets I enter them into Hootsuite a content managing system that enables me to manage multiple social media accounts. The tweets are programmed to go out at different times during the day. I then pop back in to make sure I have not missed any messages. This is a great time to send a mention and re-send another Tweeters message.
You may find running through a check list complicated especially if you’re not familiar with Twitter and its terminology. If you already outsource your Twitter account and you’re finding this task complicated then just email me your Twitter name and I will take a look at your account for you. I will take a look over the last five working days and make recommendations for improvement.
About Wendy Kier
