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I posted an article awhile ago about how Twitter could be used as a successful marketing tool for small businesses. Several clients have asked me to write a follow up post about the steps they need to take to get started on Twitter. So even though there are many great resources already available on this subject, I’ve decided to re-invent the wheel a bit and come up with my own “How to get Started on Twitter” post upon request.

For those of you who are visual learners like me, this video provides a great overview of some of the initial steps involved with setting up an account. Then, below it, I’ve added some links and additional steps to take beyond this starting point from a business perspective:

Steps for creating a business account on Twitter:

1. Sign up for a free Twitter account with your business name as your user name.

2. Develop a bio (160 characters) for your profile that inspires people to follow your Tweets.

3. Make sure you include your website or blog link in the space provided on your profile.

3. Upload an avatar (icon) with your company’s logo on it, and then set up a custom background with your company’s logo/branding and additional information. You can use a free service like Picnik to create your background, or have a designer assist you. (Costs for this will typically range anywhere from $25-$100.)

4. Install/use a free application called, “TweetDeck” to maximize your use of Twitter.

That’s it. Now you are ready to start tweeting and gaining some followers.

Here’s some basic tips on tweeting for a business:

1. Do not use Twitter to just broadcast your company’s promotions. Definitely do some promotional tweets (special offers, new product announcements, links to your website or blog posts, etc.) sparingly in between other tweets such as: comments on other tweets; answers to questions; retweets (forwards) of others’ tweets; useful links; inspirational quotes or interesting trivia; or posing questions.

2. Do not use text messaging abbreviations on business Tweets if you can avoid it, because although it saves space, it looks unprofessional.

3. Use URL shorteners so that the links you tweet don’t take up your whole 140 characters.

4. Monitor your account regularly, respond to messages promptly, and provide the same level of customer service for Twitter followers as you would your regular customers who email you.

Finally, here are some basic tips on some ways to generate a good following (and not just a large number of followers that have nothing to do with your business like automated tools do):

1. The concept of generating followers is simple: Tweet and follow people regularly. A large percentage of the people you follow will typically follow you back. So start tweeting and following to generate followers.

2. You can start generating a following by adding people you personally know are on Twitter and who you know will follow you back so you at least have a couple of people following you right away. Then start finding people you don’t know to follow you.

3. Keep your follower to following ratio as close to 1:1 possible because you will look like a spammer if your ratio is way off. Start out slowly and build your following. As your numbers increase, you can increase the number of people you follow each day and then your numbers will grow much more quickly.

4. One way to find people who might be interested in following you is to do a “search” in Tweetdeck for a topic or location relevant to your business and follow the people who come up in your search.

5. Follow news stations or newspapers in your area. If you’re lucky, you may strike up a relationship with a local reporter and who will help promote your business. If not, you will at least be able to pass on local news to your followers position your business involved in your community.

6. Check out the profiles of the people following your company (or even your competitors) and see who follows them and then follow them as well.

7. Submit your user name to LocalTweeps to get listed in your area and to look for people in your area. Or try WeFollow to get listed for certain tags/categories or look for people in your target market of desired followers.

8. Respond personally to as many new followers as you can, thank people who mention you or retweet your tweets, and recommend good people to follow to others and you’ll quickly become a valued member of the Twitter community.

Related posts:

1. Is Marketing Success with Twitter for Real?