Twitter, like Facebook, is not an intuitively sales-oriented platform. Perhaps that is why businesses are so fascinated with figuring out how to use it for web marketing and to increase their profits … it’s just a challenge! Today we go over some very inventive examples of how to use Twitter as a marketing tool, beyond simple branding.
Twitter - Addictive
1. Coupon delivery
When it comes to coupons, people only want to know what they’re getting. They don’t need to be convinced of the worth of your product … they just want to know how cheap it is! Twitter’s 140 character limit is perfect for this sort of thing. Post a short description of your offer and a condensed link to your downloadable coupons. Don’t forget to tell people that you’ll be tweeting with discounts via your other web marketing methods.
2. Taking orders
While most Twitter marketing, and indeed most of social media marketing in general, is targeted at big firms, this is one that even the little guys can do. Tell your customers that they can now tweet their order direct to your store – it can be received on a mobile web device or a monitor can be set up near the checkout area. People don’t have to call to make a pickup or delivery request, then.
3. Contests
The best known example of this tactic is Moonfruit, a UK-based web design firm, that gave away Macbook Pros to people that tweeted with the hashtag #moonfruit. They have done amazingly well out of the contest, though it did cost them the price of 11 Macbook Pros and 10 iPod Touches…
4. Replace email with Twitter
This takes your private work conversations into the public arena … and while many feel uncomfortable about this, it has been quite a sales driver for some companies. Appos shoes pioneered this concept, and it seems that people love the openness.