By elliemirman@gmail.com (Ellie Mirman)

Connecting with your audience on social media might seem as simple as a post and a follow, but it’s actually a lot more complex. Twitter as a marketing tool can apply 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: Anything! The great thing about social media marketing is that it can be used to sell such a wide variety of products. There’s a lot of business to be done on the internet across many channels. There is a niche somewhere on the web for anything you may have to sell. To tap into your niche and sell on Twitter like the pros do, follow these best practices.

The internet can be unpredictable, but there are some specific actions you can take to make sure you get a positive ROI from using Twitter. No sale is guaranteed, but utilizing some of these best practices will help you get the most out of Twitter as a tool for sales.

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, do Q&A sessions, and be active with not just your followers but other relevant people in your industry. This helps build interest and trust that will encourage your audience to participate in the conversation, too.

2. Share things your market is interested in

Your stream of tweets shouldn’t only be about what you are selling. Users will be more likely to follow you if they see that you are sharing content they want to see and posts they can relate to. And the more eyes you can get on your profile, the more potential leads you’ll have.

3. Monitor your company’s reputation.

Keep track of what users are saying about your business online with routine social listening. Anytime you or your product is mentioned, check out what is being said so that you’re aware of how people are discussing it. Analyze the information for any helpful insight to improve what might be preventing leads from becoming customers.

4. Be consistent.

The Twitter algorithm favors users who tweet frequently and consistently. To help you do this, there are a lot of social media management tools that allow you to schedule posts in advance. This way, you don’t feel pressured to open the app everyday and think of something new and insightful to say. A scheduling app can keep your Tweets consistent, which means your leads will stay consistent, too.

5. Take feedback.

Don’t just watch what users are saying about your business or your product, actually listen. Customers who have had a negative or positive experience may voice their opinion on Twitter. Take the free feedback you would usually need to pay a focus group for and apply …read more

Source:: HubSpot Blog