Engaging SMBs via Twitter

It's official, since it made Oprah: Twitter is hot. With meteoric growth and near-constant media coverage, Twitter is the next big thing. Or is it? Only 5% of Americans have used Twitter, there are questions around user retention, and skepticism abounds about the value of 140-character Tweets as a serious business tool – as evidenced by the low adoption of Twitter by SMBs that we found in our most recent survey.

All that said, Twitter does represent a new and exciting communication channel to engage with SMBs. Several SMB marketers are testing Twitter – this chart highlights who is targeting SMBs via Twitter, how they are using it, and how active their programs are.

Here are the four major uses of Twitter for SMB marketers:

Build community. With Twitter, you can really develop a relationship with your customers. Tweet links to interesting articles or research. Start a Q&A session and monitor what they say about your brand. Once you build a following, you can include occasional marketing messages. Example: HP's LogoWorks posts advice, links to articles and offers.

Provide customer support. Twitter is a great way to respond quickly to customer requests and complaints and provide information or feedback on a regular basis. Example: Ask WellsFargo provides a friendly face to answer questions and complaints.

Offer special deals. Twitter's brevity – and, for now, its novelty – makes it the perfect medium to promote special deals. Example: DellOutlet posts refurbished computer offers and other deals.

Build awareness. Twitter makes it easy to build your brand, for example by promoting press releases and blog postings. Example: AT&T's ATTNews updates followers with company news.

There are a host of issues to consider in creating an effective Twitter campaign, such as which of the above approaches to take, whether to have one or multiple Twitter programs, how much "personality" your Tweets should have, and whether the your Tweets should come from an individual or the company. Learn how BBI can help you achieve your SMB marketing goals by developing an effective Twitter program.