Twitter for Small Business – Conference Advice

In the past two weeks I’ve given two talks on why and how of social networking for small businesses. It seems most entrepreneurs get the idea of LinkedIn, Facebook and niche networks. It turns out the biggest stumble is Twitter.

Maybe it’s because it sounds funny… or because its interface and setup process is so simple… or because it demands extreme brevity when all other marketing channels encourage verbosity…

Whatever the reason, many small businesses still don’t “get” Twitter and have no plans to use it as part of their marketing plan.

In the mean time, the first 140 Character Conference took place in NY in mid-June. In the interest of full disclosure – I wasn’t there either in body or in spirit (following it on Twitter in real time).  But I just saw another wonderful post from Becky McCray of SmallBizSurvival with highlights of the conference.

Here are my favorite one-liners that sum it up for small businesses as recorded by Becky:

On making money with Twitter

• Passed links have enormous value. Links are currency. – Fred Wilson (@fredwilson) – VC and principal of Union Square Ventures.
• What’s the ROI on Twitter? Well, what’s the ROI on ignoring customers? – Jeffrey Hayzlett (@JeffreyHayzlett) – Chief Marketing Officer, Kodak
• We are measuring small business success by big business standards. The right 15 followers may be much better than 1500 for a small business. – Aliza Sherman (@alizasherman)

On possibly not bothering with AdWords (or is it just my wishful thinking?)

• Twitter and Facebook combined are set to eclipse Google for traffic referrals to some sites. – Fred Wilson (@fredwilson) – VC and principal of Union Square Ventures.

On what to look for on Twitter

• Listen for the point of need. People are talking about their needs on Twitter more than other sites. – Marcel LeBrun (@lebrun) – CEO, Radian6
• You read everything they say, you earn the right to gain some of their time/deeper engagement. You build real relationships. – Jeremy Epstein (@jer979) – Marketing Navigator, Never Stop Marketing

On what to talk about on Twitter

• It’s actually a powerful way of marketing; just being yourself, living your product. – Liz Strauss (@lizstrauss)
• After more than 400 record reviews, I can say that there is enough room in 140 characters not only to elaborate but also for good writing. – Christopher R. Weingarten (@1000TimesYes) – Music Writer, RollingStone.com and Village Voice
• Authors fail on Twitter with too much self promotion and not enough community. Too many events announcements. (this is true for many entrepreneurs, not just authors) – Kaylie Jones (@KaylieJones) – Novelist.
• Don’t always be selling. – Brian Morrissey (@bmorrissey) – Digital Editor at Adweek

On whom to follow

• Filter and Optimize who you follow. He looks for quality, no overtweeters, and a high signal to noise ratio. – Jeremy Epstein (@jer979) – Marketing Navigator, Never Stop Marketing

And to wrap it up

I’ve never met a small business owner who I don’t think should be on Twitter. – Marcy Shinder (@marcyshinder)

Technorati Tags: Twitter, social networking, small business, 140conf

Related posts:

1. Why Realtors Need Twitter
2. 18 Twitter Tools for Marketing
3. 6 Ways to Use Twitter