How Small-Town (Local) Businesses can Benefit from Twitter
March 7, 2010
How Small-Town (Local) Businesses can Benefit from TwitterThis is a guest post by Greg Elwell of Zephyr Marketing LLC located in Benicia, CA. Greg blogs on topics involving personal branding and how local businesses can use social media to become more visible, credible and remarkable. He’s @gregelwell and @ZephyrMarketing on Twitter.
___________________________________________________________________________
Twitter is a big deal. The Global Language Monitor declared “Twitter” the most popular English word of 2009. With 75 million users as of January 2010, the 140 character micro-blogging and communications platform has proven its popularity among the followers of big brands like @zappos, personal brands like @APlusK (Ashton Kutcher), and media stalwarts the likes of @CNN.
If you’re a local business in a small town none of the above matters too much. But if you could use Twitter to engage with the 100 to 200 or more Twitter users in and around your marketplace in a way that translates into business value, well that just might get you tweeting.
You may, for example be able to generate greater awareness and find ways to better serve your customers which in turn can lead to increased business by effectively using Twitter.
That’s exactly what a modest, Houston, TX based independent coffee shop called Coffee Groundz did. After trying print ads, radio spots and other forms of traditional advertising (and finding nothing seemed to work), J.R. Cohen, managing partner of the coffee shop started using Twitter in an informal way to interact with friends and customers.
One tweet led to another and it wasn’t terribly long before the word spread and the local @coffeegroundz business was “taking their orders (via Twitter), posting tweets about the local music scene and giving tips on how to make better coffee at home,” according to a Twitter success story published by MarketingProfs.
As of this writing, the @coffegroundz Twitter account has over 9,700 followers and J.R. reported business had increased 20 to 30 percent since using Twitter. The Coffee Groundz case study story is also available online in a free guide provided by Twitter: The Twitter 101 Guide for Business. Also check out the Teusner Wines case study along with others that will give you more insights and ideas on how you can benefit from Twitter.
Taking the example of the Coffee Groundz successful use of Twitter to benefit their business, there are several key ways you too can use Twitter to benefit your local, small-town business:
1. Get connected with local people. When Cohen first started using Twitter he connected with friends and current customers. This shouldn’t be hard for you to do. There are free online tools like TweepSearch (http://tweepsearch.com) or TwitSeeker (http://twitseeker.com) you can use that will search bio’s and location profile settings of users in your city and state. Click to follow them and there’s a good chance they’ll follow you back. Also, be sure to fill out your Twitter profile completely and enter your city and state in the location field – this will aid in helping you be found and followed by others in your vicinity.
Do a Google search on “find local twitter users” and you’ll find a ton of ideas and tools to help you build your local following. Here’s one from the Mashable site called, “Local Tweets: 9 Ways to Find Twitter Users in Your Town.”
Tell everyone who does business with you you’re on Twitter and ask them to follow you. Put your Twitter handle (@username) on give-away items, on your business cards and other collateral – just as you do your address and phone number. Put a link to your Twitter page in your email signature. Add a “Follow me on Twitter” link to your website or blog that will take folks to your Twitter page.
Also, log in to your Twitter account, go to the “Profile” tab and be sure to add the URL to your website or blog. Now, when Twitter users check out your Twitter page they may click the “Web” link to visit your site and check out what you have going on. Consider having a custom landing page on your website or blog that links from the Web URL on your Twitter profile page. Then, when people click on your Twitter Web link they are taken to your landing page and presented with more info about you and what you may offer them through your Twitter activity.
2. Engage with your followers. Please note, I didn’t say, “Start spreading the word about your business deals!” This is the biggest mistake I see twitterers’ doing: A constant barrage of tweets broadcasting information about their business – and little or nothing else. Start tweeting like you’d chat with others at a cocktail party or networking event. You can’t overly promote yourself – that’s viewed as being rude and self-serving. Instead, share a mix of personal stuff with interesting and helpful information your followers would find interesting and useful.
Cohen, for example, shared insights on the local music scene and tips on how to make a great cup of coffee at home. Your local followers must get to know, like and trust you before they’ll be receptive to your business info. Remember, Twitter is a “social networking” tool. It’s not a broadcast advertising platform.
Part of engagement is to first listen. Recently, I heard the Maestro of the Vallejo Symphony, David Ramadanoff say, “The first job of the director is to listen.” And here we thought it was all about waving that wand all around! Get on Twitter, spend some time there, and scan the tweets as a conductor would his sheet of music. Listen to what’s being played out in the Twitter stream and then jump in to engage someone in friendly conversation.
And, as you do listen and engage, like J.R. Cohen at the Coffee Groundz, you’ll discover more ways to meet the needs of your customers than you can possibly imagine. As an example, one of the things Cohen started doing was to take orders via Twitter’s Direct Message feature for people who were running late, or were sitting outside the shop with their dog. “I’ll even bring my customer’s dog a bowl of water,” remarked Cohen.
3. Use reverse-marketing techniques. By this I mean when you do tweet information about your business, some promotion, special deal, discount, 2-for, or exclusive offer, make it seem like it’s not a direct, in your face marketing pitch. Instead, make it fun, make a game out of it, do it in a soft-sell way.
Check out the Twitter for Business 101 Guide. Under “best practices” it says, “Think about Twitter as a place to build relationships…Instead of approaching Twitter as a place to broadcast information about your company, think of it as a place to build relationships.”
Market like Sprinkles Cupcakes (@sprinkles). Every day they send out a tweet something like this: “Super rich! The first 25 people to whisper ‘ganache’ at each Sprinkles receive a free triple chocolate cupcake!” (Granted, they’re not really doing step 2, engaging with their followers in conversation, but they’re connecting with them in a way that is fun and meaningful.) The big idea here is to be creative, experiment, have fun with it and keep the focus on benefiting your followers – not you!
“My advice to businesses (using Twitter) is to just be yourself. That will take you farther than you could ever imagine.” – J.R. Cohen, Coffee Groundz
4. Attend or organize a Tweetup. Tweetups are a gathering of people in a local community using Twitter. The common ground is a desire to network offline with others who believe in the power of Twitter to build community and as a social media marketing tool.
Cohen started hosting tweetups at the Coffee Groundz too. His biggest event was the Obama inauguration organized just 24 hours before the event. According to the MarketingProfs case study: “More than 250 people showed up to drink coffee, nosh on sandwiches and watch history being made.”
Be on the lookout for a Tweetup coming to your town soon! You can use a free service like MeetUp to find or start a MeetUp/TweetUp event near you. And, here’s information on “HOW TO: Organize a Successful Tweetup” on Mashable.
So, there are 4 keys to get you and your local business better engaged with using Twitter. Used thoughtfully, Twitter can help build relationships, generate awareness and become a big deal for local businesses, even in a small town.
Please click here to leave your comments. (And then scroll down to the comments section on the bottom of the page)
Small Business: 7 Signs it Might be Time to ask for Help
February 21, 2010
Small Business: 7 Signs it Might be Time to ask for Help-
Whatever you’ve been doing isn’t working. Newspaper ads, yellow pages, direct mail, magazines, and networking. You’re doing it all, yet you still don’t have all the business you want or need and your pipeline is empty. Maybe it’s time to get some outside help.
Photo Credit BigStockPhoto.com
- You want to take responsibility for the growth of your company. You know you’re capable of anything when you have the tools and the resources. Sure, you can most likely grow your small business you just don’t know where to begin. Hiring a marketing specialist to guide you will help you take responsibility for the growth of your company.
- You need accountability. You’ve read a few marketing books, attended seminars, and maybe even had some coaching in the past. You know the basics of marketing you just haven’t committed the time and energy into creating a cohesive system to make it work. You know you need help: someone who can give you direction and hold you accountable. Having someone to gently nudge you, someone to answer to will force you to do the things you know need to be done to take your business to the next level.
- You want objective feedback. Your friends and colleagues have been great for stroking your ego. But you know all your ideas aren’t that great. If they were, you’d be a millionaire. You need someone who is going to be objective. Someone who will constructively lead you in the right direction and offer a fresh perspective to your ideas. This objectivity will nudge you out of your rut and point out the areas you can improve upon; in all aspects of your business.
- You don’t have time to do all the marketing research and reading on your own. You are an expert in your industry. You can’t possibly be a marketing expert too; you don’t have time to master the things you need to take your business to the next level. You value your time and know it’s better spent on other aspects of your business where you can reap a higher return.
- You don’t have a marketing plan. You’ve been doing your marketing kind of haphazardly. Doing a little here and there with no cohesive plan or strategy in place. It’s not working. You know that in order to make it work there has to be some consistency and process behind it. A marketing coach can help you develop a system for your marketing – and stick to it.
- You don’t have $10,000 – $50,000 to hire a consultant. Yes, it would be nice to hire someone to do it all for you, but you don’t have that kind of money lying around. You can hire a coach for considerably less and still get a lot of the benefits you get with a consultant. Besides, you’re the DIY type anyway.
Please click here to leave your comments. (And then scroll down to the comments section on the bottom of the page)
Take Advantage of Every Opportunity to Practice Effective Marketing
February 15, 2010
Take Advantage of Every Opportunity to Practice Effective MarketingSo you have an opportunity to showcase your business for FREE. Maybe it’s a tabletop display at a networking event or a new member table at a Chamber of Commerce mixer. What are you going to do with it? The biggest mistake you can make is to do nothing. 
But you think it’s a big hassle and you won’t sell anything anyway. Well, I have great news for you – you’re probably not going to sell a single thing; your job is not to sell- your job is merely to collect information. Now doesn’t that take the pressure off?
Although it would be nice to sell something every time we come in contact with people – that’s just not reality; and since most of us live in reality, we have to resort to Marketing. Instead of thinking a display table or booth is a big hassle and you won’t sell anything anyway, think of it as an opportunity to collect information – to build your email list. Building an email list full of people who have said, “yes, I want to receive more information from you, because the information you are offering is interesting, educational, and fun to read” is crucial to an effective marketing strategy.
Build your list by collecting cards. You can do this by giving away a free report, a free consultation, or even have a drawing for a Starbucks gift card. You can make a little inexpensive sign and put a fishbowl on your table inviting people to drop their cards for a chance to win and to be signed up for your newsletter, monthly tips emails, special offers ,etc. Offer a demo of your products or services, or simply ask the people you meet if they would like to receive your very educational and informative newsletter.
Whatever you do, don’t waste an opportunity to showcase your business, collect information and build your “know, like and trust factor”. Please click here to leave your comments.
