5 Twitter Treasures That Only Insane Marketers Should Overlook!

I guess you would agree with me that Twitter is loaded with branding and marketing treasures. Some of them are crystal clear while others need more digging. Today, I will be discussing 5 Twitter treasures and how to leverage them intelligently. Let’s get started…

1. Twitter Chats

If there is one laser-focused engagement magnet on Twitter, it would be Twitter chats.

As the name implies, Twitter chats are group chats that take place on Twitter in form of tweets, retweets and replies – all of which are designated with the same hashtag. Some of the most popular Twitter chats are: #InnoChat, #BrandChat, #BlogChat to name just a few.

Think about the visibility rewards of actively participating in a Twitter chat relevant to your brand. What if you moderated a popular Twitter chat? Wouldn’t that give your Twitter influence a huge boost? You bet!

Well, I have a Garious success story to share in that regard: I am honored to moderate #InnoChat as a Garious representative today (June 16th – noon EST).

The chat topic is The Impact of Information Overload on Innovation. I hope you can make it, but even if you can’t, you can still do a Twitter search on #InnoChat hashtag or even better check it out at InnoChat.com.

You see, what makes Twitter chats so powerful is that, thanks to hashtags, they are archived and readily available for later access. However, becoming a successful “Twitter chatter” is a skill that you gain by experience. Check out this article from some starter’s tips:Proven Tips To Boost Your Twitter Influence Using Twitter Chats.

2. @Replys @Mentions @Retweets – Are You Using Them Intelligently?

Here’s the deal: People like to be “Mentioned” and Twitter is handing you several ways to make them happy. In the order of effectiveness and importance, you need to focus on @Replies.. then @Mentions and finally, Retweets.

@Replies are the most effective as they give the impression that you’ve been paying attention to what others are saying and cared enough to take the time to reply to them. People receive email notifications about replies and I am sure that most of them (even the ultra-busy ones) will be checking @Replies before @Mentions and @Retweets.

@Mentions are also very powerful and Garious has another success story to share here as well. I recently published a Garious post titled: The Burning Question I Wish To Ask Michael A. Stelzner On The “Launch” of SME…. Then, I Tweeted about it and included Mike’s Twitter name (@Mike_Stelzner) in my tweet. To my pleasant surprise, he followed me on Twitter soon after. I had already followed him a while ago, but it was the @Mention that grabbed his attention.

@Retweets also show interest in other people and they do appreciate it, but you have to do it in moderation. The number of your retweets should not exceed one third of your overall tweets..

To get the best of both worlds, you can combine replying with retweeting by summarizing the original tweet and replying to it. Not an easy thing to do with the 140-character limitation, but you will get the hang of it with practice. Here’s an example from a #BrandChat tweet (The part highlighted in yellow is Garious reply):

3. Twitter Lists

Twitter lists are fascinating in so many ways. Here are some of the benefits you can enjoy by using them:

• Categorize your followers and/or non-followers in an organized fashion
• Filter tweets and focus on the most important conversation streams
• Spy on your competition using private lists
• Create SEO-friendly Twitter presence: Search engines love Twitter lists
• Gain attention of the people you add to your lists

So, far I barely touched the surface! If you want to dig deeper in the how-to of Twitter lists, I invite you to read the following articles:

• 7 Easy Steps To Turn Your Twitter Account Into A SEO Magnet
• How To Use Twitter Lists for Branding and Competitive Intelligence

4. Broaden Your Twitter Reach

Try to follow few select people every now and then, making sure to check their Twitter profiles and their websites/blogs. Taking some time (it can be as small as 15 minutes) to gather information on your “people-to-follow” will guide through the best way to break the ice and start a conversation.

Here’s a great tip that sums up all of the above: create a small Twitter list of some key people you wish to know better. Then, start interacting with them by replying to their tweets and mentioning them in your tweets. In a few weeks, you will earn their trust and take your newly born friendships to the next level.

5. Leverage Twitter Peak Hours

Did you know that Tweets have peak hours? These are the best times to tweet for maximum visibility and engagement. However, they vary depending on your time zone.

What if you are unavailable when it’s time for some hot action? Simple: let drop dead simple social scheduling do the work . In other words, use Garious scheduling tool to preschedule your tweets for as many days as you wish.

Unlike conventional scheduling tools, that may take you twice as long as manual posting, Garious is designed to be the ultimate set it and forget it tool. Think of all the great things you can do when you save 50% of the time you spend on social media. I love that thought!

Wrapping Things Up…

In conclusion, I must admit that I’m in love with Twitter 2.0 for zillion reasons that I could write books about! (Did you know that Twitter now supports auto-url-shortening? Just paste the original URL in your tweet and let Twitter do the rest. Cool!)

Still, I do have mixed emotions about this 140-charcater revolution! On the one hand, I am so happy with this avalanche of enhancements… on the other hand, I am not seeing them as a sign that my Twitter addiction will get any better!

If Amy Winehouse ever made a song titled “Twitter Rehab”, I will be the first to check-in. Would you care to join?