April 28, 2009
Adding value can also come in the form of information you have personally produced. If you have an article you wrote that is posted on your website, feel free to Tweet about it. Posting links to valuable information you created is one of the key ways to use Twitter to market yourself. Use Twitter as a way to direct your followers to more information about you and your services. Include links to webinars or workshops you are hosting. You could Tweet the following message “I’m hosting a webinar next Thursday on ‘The 10 Things to Look for When Choosing a Financial Advisor.’ Find out more here: [Include Link]“. Directing your followers to a call to action is how you will ultimately obtain business from Twitter. Offer a variety of ways for people to experience your business -promote your blog, newsletter, video blog, radio show, podcast, or workshops.
Twitter can be used to promote almost anything. Mix these promotional Tweets with other non-marketing and personal messages. No one wants to be sold, but they don’t mind you promoting yourself from time-to-time. Treat people how you would want to be treated. You don’t want someone advertising their business to you non-stop. You’d lose interest pretty quickly. The same is true for your followers.
Finding valuable information can sometimes be time consuming, so consider re-Tweeting messages posted by other people. If like a Tweet someone else posted, copy and paste it and put “RT” at the beginning of the message. Include the @ sign in front of the Tweeter’s name. For example, “RT @kristenluke Just read great article on year-end tax planning strategies [Include Link].” By doing this, you are providing value to your followers without very much effort. You have made the original person who posted the Tweet happy because you are promoting his or her name to your network. You may even spark a conversation with the person who sent the original Tweet, since he or she will probably thank you for the RT. In just one Tweet you have added value and established a new relationship. Not bad for 10 seconds of work.
Build relationships
If you are providing valuable content, your followers will reply to you. You will find these replies on the @Replies and Direct Messages pages. Respond back to people who send you a message. Remember, you are on Twitter to create relationships. This is a two-way communication tool, not a one way feed where you broadcast your messages. If someone is interested in what you have to say and takes the time to respond to you, it is only polite for you to respond back.
Wait - there is an exception! You will get marketing messages from some Twitterers. Feel free to ignore these messages, but respond to everyone who is genuinely interested in what you have to say. The goodwill will go far and you never know who that person may know.
Personal Tweets
Include some personal Tweets between your business Tweets. Talk about your family, about a book you are reading, a recommendation for a restaurant you just tried, or anything of an informal nature. This is a key part of what will connect you to your prospective clients and strategic partners. If you run marathons, Tweet about training for a race next month. You will connect with other marathon runners, some of whom might fit your ideal client profile. It can’t hurt as long as you are maintaining a professional tone.
Making Twitter work for you
Building your business is based on developing solid relationships and you know there is no quick way to attract clients. Twitter is no different– it will expose you to people you never would have met otherwise, but you will not see instant results.
For Twitter to work, you must be genuine and you must put in the effort. If you are finding that Twitter is a chore and not a joy after a couple of weeks, it probably isn’t the marketing tool for you. Your followers will be able to quickly pick up on your lack of enthusiasm. If you don’t love it, try something else. But if you do love it, it can be a powerful tool to generate new clients and strategic partners.
You can follow Advisor Perspectives on Twitter here.
Kristen Luke is the Principal of Wealth Management Marketing, a firm dedicated to providing marketing advice and support for financial advisors. Kristen works with independent advisors to develop effective marketing plans and provides the back office support required to implement the strategies. You can follower her on Twitter here. For more information, visit www.WealthManagementMarketing.net.
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