Social media as a marketing tool isn’t a recent development. Companies are being barraged with reasons to use social media as part of their strategy. There are many different social media networks, making it equally as important to know which ones to leverage. A general rule of thumb is that you should be active in some way on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. In this article we will focus on why you should be using Twitter specifically.

Twitter has more reach than LinkedIn and Facebook.

Facebook may have more users, and LinkedIn may have great search features, but when it comes to overall reach Twitter is #1. In order to see a company’s post you have to be a fan of it on Facebook or LinkedIn. This means that someone has to search through different companies for you and then like your page. This isn’t the case on Twitter. All posts are public and can be seen everyone without users having to follow you. You can even create high exposure, targeted tweets by using certain hashtags.

Twitter is instant.

Twitter is the instant messaging system of social media, while Facebook and LinkedIn are the equivalent of email. Communication in Twitter occurs rapidly, and things move faster than on other networks. You may have to wait a day or two to get a response on other networks, but most replies come in a day or LESS on Twitter. This makes it great for on the fly networking, lead generation, and public relations. Not to mention that many newsworthy developments in the world are publicized on Twitter before mainstream media catches wind of them. I’m not saying you should forego Facebook and LinkedIn, just that you should ensure that Twitter is part of your online strategy.

Twitter’s public nature makes it easy to identify and interact with leads.

This point ties into Twitter having more reach. Twitter makes it easier for consumers to connect with businesses, and vice versa. Its search features make it straightforward to track down prospects. Most profiles on Twitter are public which helps to increase visibility. Twitter also helps businesses identify what conversations to focus on by organizing them with hashtags. Both of these features simplify the process of interacting with leads in a personable and professional manner.

A strong SEO strategy is an integral part of any online business. It builds traffic, leads, and sales. And who doesn't like more sales? That being said, we've scoured the web for some of the best SEO related infographics for your viewing pleasure. Zooming in is recommended. Enjoy!

H/T to upcity.com , kpi100.com , mashable.com , dimbal.com , and searchengineland.com .

Finding a perfect client can be difficult. Nothing is ever perfect after all. However, you can establish criteria for an ‘ideal’ candidate so you can decide on which projects to take. So how do you do that? Read on!

The client knows their budget.

It’s important to have a client who knows exactly what they can and can’t pay for. A headache among designers is getting fully paid for all their services. No one likes having to hunt down people for money. It can end up hurting your business’ cash flow if you have too high of accounts receivable.  That can lead to even larger problems down the road. That’s why it’s very important for your client to clearly establish a budget that you can stay within, and consult with them about if there are problems.

The client has a clear timeline established.

Every client should ideally know when they need to receive their deliverables by. A clear deadline needs to be established in any business endeavor so things don’t get dragged on forever. Before starting a project, be sure to ask them when they need everything done by, and plan accordingly. Minimize any possible miscommunications at the beginning so that they can’t hurt you at the end with unwanted surprises.

The client can clearly communicate what they want.

Embarking on a project with someone who doesn’t know what they want can be a huge headache. You complete one aspect of the design and they shoot back that that’s not what was wanted at all. In order to sidestep these hurdles it’s important to focus on working with clients who know what they want, and can explain it. It helps to make a questionnaire and use other consultation meetings prior to the beginning of work so you can nail down exactly what needs to be done. Being pro-active on both sides will help a lot in the long run.

Social media to many businesses is a numbers game. The focus is always on ROI even though that can be difficult to measure. So they use easy metrics like followers, retweets, shares, clickthroughs etc. What they fail to realize is it’s called SOCIAL media for a reason. Social media was, and always will be about people. And the best way to appeal to people is to make them feel valued. This will drastically boost engagement and online presence. And it will give you a nice warm, fuzzy feeling with all the thank you’s you receive. Which is nice. So how do you make people feel valued? Read on!

Share other people’s content or thank them for sharing.

People love feeling like what they have to say matters. The easiest way to do this on social media is to share their content, or thank them for sharing. These actions can feel like rewards for users. Not only that, but it keeps your company top of mind. These people are just networking with you for now, but can quickly become qualified leads and sales down the road. Even if they don’t, you have improved your brand reputation and that can lead to positive word of mouth.

Always respond to mentions and messages.

Part of making people feel valued ties into not ignoring them. Respond to every single mention, message, retweet, or share. And do it in a timely manner. People have very short term memory on social media, so it’s important to thank them or respond quickly. Again, this will help you to stay top of mind. Stop thinking of your business profiles as simply that, and treat them as if they are actual personas. That way when you interact with other users you can give them the sense that they are talking to a person versus a faceless company. Be personable in all your responses to user interactions!

Never ignore a chance to connect.

This goes beyond simply networking. If you see someone post a question that you can answer -- answer it. It doesn’t matter if they may or may not be someone you can easily turn into a sale. The only thing that matters is that they have a problem that your business has the opportunity of solving. Brand reputation and awareness are some of the most important things on social media. Going the extra mile and helping when you don’t HAVE to is a great way of improving in these areas. Remember, the point of social media is making people feel valued.

Social media needs to be on every marketer’s radar. It also needs to be done the right way. It’s one of the easiest ways to boost your brand presence, as long as you properly manage it. There are many ‘how to’ articles on social media, but it’s also worth noting what NOT to do. Instead of mentioning the obvious pitfalls, this article will focus on some overlooked ones that can also derail your marketing program.

Not being active when your target segment is.

This really depends on what sort of business you are. If you operate only in the local market, by all means post entirely during standard business hours. If you are an internet business though, paying attention to your target segment’s hours of activity is trickier. Possible leads and sales can come at any time of the day. That’s why it’s important to take advantage of social media platforms like HootSuite or TweetDeck that allow you to schedule tweets ahead of time. Make sure your business has a steady stream of tweets throughout the day so that it is always in front of the right eyes, regardless of where they are in the world.

Not taking advantage of free analytics to track engagement.

A lot of people think the most important metrics on social media are follower counts. While these are important, they don’t give an accurate picture of what kind of engagement you are getting. There are many free tools out there that can track important metrics like engagement, influence, and clickthrough rates. For example, Klout measures your social media influence and what you are most influential in. Services like bit.ly not only shorten your URLS, but also track when and where people are clicking through on your links. Using services like these in conjunction with the standard metrics social media networks give you will help to paint a much more accurate picture. You don’t need a fancy analytics solution right off the bat to help give you insight!

Abusing hashtags.

#Don’t #Use #Hashtags #For #Every #Word. Hashtags used to only be used for Twitter, but they have since expanded to services like Facebook and Instagram. Instagram is notorious for people abusing hashtags like #nofilter etc. Don’t treat your business accounts like a teenage girl’s. Only use hashtags for appropriate phrases that reach out to your target segment. For example, #webdesign if you are in the web design business. Don’t use too many hashtags even if they are relevant in every post. That can turn people away from engaging with your posts. Finally, please avoid using hashtags in networks that can’t leverage them. There are many people on LinkedIn who post things that use hashtags even though they don’t serve any discernable business purpose. Use them when they’re appropriate and crucial to reaching your audience.