Integrating Twitter into your overall social media marketing strategy is a critical component. Want to get found online? Ready to drive traffic to your website or blog? Twitter is key!

Statistics prove that consumers are actively searching for answers online. In fact, a study shows 97% of all consumers search for local businesses online before making a purchase.

That statistic proves that an integrated marketing strategy, one that incorporates various social channels, isn’t just good business, it’s a must for any small business eager to build a solid online reputation.

If you are struggling to make the most of Twitter, the following six steps will help you optimize Twitter to maximize small business results!

Optimize Twitter to Maximize Results

  1. Optimize Your Bio

There are many ways to optimize your profile, but the main one we are going to focus on is your bio or the “about” section. Your bio is the first thing anyone visiting your profile will read when deciding whether or not they want to follow you.

It’s important that you take time to craft your bio, including essential details about your business, background and career highlights.

Bio Tips:

• You have 160 characters of space as opposed to the 140 you are limited to in a tweet.
• Remember: People connect with human beings, so make sure your bio is relatable and approachable.
• Share the details that make you unique. Help others feel like they know you as this will result in deeper conversations with like-minded individuals.
• The words you use in your bio are searchable keywords, so keep them specific to what potential clients are looking for when researching your business. (e.g. your hometown, niche, industry or company name)

Ray Hiltz is an example of a bio that’s straightforward and concise, clearly expressing what he does and how he helps potential clients.

  2. Use Twitter Lists

Do you feel overwhelmed by the amount of information coming at you on Twitter? Get organized with Twitter lists.

Not only are they a simple solution to controlling your Twitter stream, but also a great way to consolidate your followers. Lists let you group your followers together based on a common theme, interest or industry.

For example, you could create lists that include:

• Vendors
• Previous clients
• Industry experts
• Passions and special interests

The idea is to make your stream of Twitter content manageable. Instead of trying to remember everyone you follow, lists allow you to organize and categorize the people you follow.

This will let you quickly and easily connect with the followers you most engage with or actively engage with you. Rather than bouncing all over Twitter, trying to keep up with your favorite content or tweeters, use your lists to stay on top of your stream without it feeling overwhelming.

So the next time you log in, instead of fumbling around for someone to retweet or frantically searching for a conversation to join, just hop into one of your lists and see what’s happening right now.

To create a list:

• Go to your Lists page
• Click Create list
• Enter the name of your list, a short description, and whether or not it will be public (anyone can subscribe to the list) or private (only accessible to you)
• Click Save list

  3. Follow people with similar interests

Find people to follow and connect within Twitter directories such as Twellow and WeFollow. Both sites can introduce you to Twitter users that have similar interests.

Not feeling comfortable with Twitter yet? That’s ok! Follow other users and observe their tweets.  Get a feel for what and how often they tweet.

You will also want to pay attention to how they interact with their followers. What’s working for them and what feels right for you? Now take that knowledge and dive in. Begin to create your own voice, rhythm and content flow.

You may also try following the people they are following, but make sure you read their descriptions and visit their blogs to ensure a right fit.

Staying focused on your niche or location will make it easy for you to build a community centered on similar interests.

  4. Get into the conversation

Now that you know where to find people, how to follow them and how to best position your Twitter bio, it’s time to get active.

Your first step it to look at what the people you are following are up to. What are they sharing?  Take a moment and reply if it interests you.

For example, one of your followers is discussing an industry event they’ll be attending. They are talking about the speakers, location and friends they will meet face to face.

If you share in their enthusiasm, tell them! Creating a common connection will encourage future conversation.

Another great way to start a conversation is to reply with your thoughts or feedback.

[clickToTweet tweet=” Want to build better relationships? Get involved in the Twitter conversation! via @rebekahradice” quote=” Want to build better relationships? Get involved in the Twitter conversation! Ask a question or share advice.”]

Now that you’re actively involved in the conversation, it’s time to manage it.

The best way to manage conversations is through a third party management tool. Whether it’s Hootsuite, Tweetdeck or my go-to — Sprout Social, find a few minutes each day to check in.

Go to your Inbox, Twitter lists, and mentions to monitor and respond in real time.

  5. Share content and update your status daily

One of the biggest struggles for busy small business owners is content creation and curation. The question is always where to find it, what to talk about and how to best manage it.

So, let’s pull back the curtain and demystify how social media managers find content on a daily basis and give you a few ideas on where you might have content hiding.

Dependent on your target audience, you can share anything from behind-the-scenes photos of your team to a graphic featuring your tip of the week. Many people forget that you can share photos on Twitter as well as Facebook.

What content should you share on Twitter?

• Links back to your latest blog post.
• Details about an upcoming event you are promoting or a local charity that you support.
• Repurposed evergreen content including weekly tips, quotes or how-to’s.
• Repurposed traditional marketing materials such as flyers or newsletters into short quotables.
• Email marketing
• Company stories
• Testimonials and client success stories
• Past presentations

Ileane Smith is someone who has a passion for repurposing content. She’s a blogger who actively uses video to share helpful tips and tutorials.

Pinterest Tutorial: How to Move, Copy and Delete Pins on Your Boards http://t.co/18K2bL0mQN #pinteresttips

— Ileane Smith (@Ileane) January 17, 2015

Think through all of your content. What have you created over the years that can be refreshed and reused?

  6. Integrate Twitter with Your Blog

Last, but not least: don’t forget to integrate Twitter into your website and blog. If you’re using Wordrpess, you can easily do this through social plugins, widgets or embedded tweets like the one above.

This allows readers to connect with you on Twitter and easily follow you with the click of a button. Embedding tweets also brings an interactive component to your blog.

Plus, Twitter is an opportunity to share each new blog post. Every time you hit publish, make sure you schedule your post to tweet multiple times.

Don’t let all of that great content you’re creating go to waste. Keep it in front of your Twitter followers on a consistent basis!

Final Thoughts

Twitter has been a mainstay of my social media marketing for good reason. The connections, opportunities and interaction are priceless.

How are you using it to marketing your small business? Take the necessary steps today to turn Twitter into your own social media powerhouse!

And if we’re not connected on Twitter, let’s get tweeting today!

[button_2 align=”center” href=”https://twitter.com/RebekahRadice” new_window=”Y”]Tweet Me![/button_2]

Originally written by Rebekah Radice for Maximize Social Business.