Here are [...]]]> Twitter is one of the most popular, widely-used social networking tools today. Contrary to common misconception, Twitter is not only for sharing status updates. It may have started that way, but today, many entrepreneurs use this micro-blogging platform as part of their Internet marketing strategy—mainly to promote their business and generate traffic to their websites.

Here are a few pointers on how you can get more followers and drive traffic to your website:

Complete your bio – Studies show that Twitter users or “Tweeps,” as they are lovingly nicknamed, who completely filled-out their bio, have roughly 8x more followers than those who neglected this feature. So be sure to say something interesting about yourself or your company. Upload a nice image. And don’t forget to include your website’s URL.

Use Twitter search – This is the easiest and most basic way to obtain more followers. Simply research common keywords and phrases related to your website’s niche and look up these terms using Twitter’s search box. Twitter will then list the most recent tweets relevant to the subject. Feel free to connect with these users by following them. If you caught their fancy, they won’t hesitate to follow back and check out your website as well!

Take advantage of different Twitter apps – Free and paid Twitter apps can help you efficiently manage your Twitter account. Tweet Adder and Twollo are apps that can find targeted users who tweet keywords that you set. You should also try Tweetdeck or HootSuite, which enable you to schedule and automate tweets, and even sync them to your other social networking sites.

Include a Twitter widget to your site – Those “Follow me on Twitter” widgets are there to help you not only get more followers, but to also build rapport with your customers and prospects. By following you, these users will be updated about your promotions, product launches, events, etc. Most of these widgets are free, so don’t hesitate to integrate one into your website.

Use hashtags (#) – A hashtag is the same as adding tags or categories to blogs. Just put the hash symbol (#) before a word or phrase, which would then make it clickable and searchable in the “Twitterverse.” However, don’t go over the top using hashtags because Twitter protocol discourages using too many hashtags. Use them sparingly; up to three only in a single tweet.

Tweet and socialise – This may seem obvious, but there are many users who abandon their account as soon as they register. Remember that the most effective technique to reap followers is to keep your account active. This means, you need to keep sharing interesting and useful tweets to your network. Plus, respond to DMs (direct messages) and mentions appropriately; retweet if you like a specific tweet. While promoting products and services on Twitter is perfectly fine, don’t overdo it, as you may deter potential followers/customers. The recipe is participate more and promote less!

Are you ready to have more Twitter followers and website visitors? Just apply these guidelines above to help you with your Twitter marketing and overall Internet marketing goals.

If you would like further advice and guidance, then contact WSI Chester on 01928 787026.

Ultimately we are each responsible for the privacy of our own data, as the following conversation from Facebook so [...]]]> At WSI, we spend a lot of time talking to clients about the effective use of Social Media, the importance of putting Acceptable Use policies and procedures in place within their businesses and how to use privacy settings.

Ultimately we are each responsible for the privacy of our own data, as the following conversation from Facebook so clearly illustrates. Thanks to Brandwatch.com for posting it earlier this month on their blog.

Have you checked your privacy settings and who you are ‘friends’ with recently?

Ultimately, even though increasing organic traffic is important, for a blog to succeed and last long, it is more important to write clear, compelling content for human readers.

Here are some do’s and don’ts for effective business blogging:

Do’s

In fact, using a Facebook profile for anything other than an individual person is a direct violation of Facebook’s terms of service, and can result in it being deleted without warning from the system.

Unfortunately many businesses in the [...]]]> As most people are now aware,  Facebook profiles are meant for individuals, and Pages for organisations, brands, businesses etc.

In fact, using a Facebook profile for anything other than an individual person is a direct violation of Facebook’s terms of service, and can result in it being deleted without warning from the system.

Unfortunately many businesses in the past have ignored this, setting up profiles rather than pages. And until recently, Facebook did not provide a mechanism to convert from one to the other and move a network of followers.

However help is now at hand as Facebook has opened up a migration path (see Facebook Help) which will transfer the profile pictures and add all profile friends and subscribers as people who like your page.

No other content is transferred, so any other important content within the FB profile e.g. messages, photo albums should be downloaded from the profile before the migration process is started, and then manually added in to the page.

If you are one of those businesses still using a profile on Facebook, then now’s the time to plan the move to a FB Page. The benefits of using a Page are huge as it offers a wide range of features and facilities to help you promote your brand.

A Facebook Page is an important internet marketing asset for many businesses. Give Andy at WSI Chester a call on 01928 787026 to learn more about how Facebook could help your business.

When originally launched in the summer, Google quickly asked businesses not to implement personal profiles for their brands, but to wait for branded pages.

The new Google+ brand pages look similar to regular Google+ personal Profiles. Users [...]]]> Google+ has finally launched brand pages, which finally allow brands and businesses generally to join the rapidly growing Google social network.

When originally launched in the summer, Google quickly asked businesses not to implement personal profiles for their brands, but to wait for branded pages.

The new Google+ brand pages look similar to regular Google+ personal Profiles. Users can connect to brands by adding them to their circles, which in turn increases the brand’s count of followers.