How to Use Twitter for Social Selling?

When it comes to social selling, Twitter is one of the most highly overlooked sales tools. Users are so busy keeping up with fashion trends and what celebrities wore to the Met Gala, that we miss the moment to leverage the pool of opportunities present within this exciting space. Sales reps don’t realize its potential to enrich the sales funnel.

This all boils down to one thing: does your sales team know how to leverage Twitter for selling?

If the answer is a clear NO, or if you are still wondering what the answer is as to how to leverage Twitter, here’s a little help from the social selling experts at Thought Horizon.

1. Appear As An Authentic Twitter User

Whether you are a new Twitter user or new to the company that expects you to sell on the platform, it all comes down to this: if you want to look like a Twitter user who doesn’t want to use it as a lead engine, you need to use Twitter genuinely and authentically.

Create a buyer-centric profile on Twitter, and understand that Twitter is a little different from LinkedIn. You can’t choose lengthy summaries, and you do have to convey messages concisely. 

Anyone who has been on the network for a while is savvy enough to spot someone who just aims to push the content and interacts occasionally. You are identified as “inactive,” despite the activity and BAM –  opportunities are lost.

2. Post Consistently

Make sure to participate on Twitter at least once per day. Go above and beyond to discover relevant information that entices you and retweet, favourite, and converse with people.

Be sure to post regularly using industry hashtags and mention industry thought leaders. This will help you gain followers and relevance. Moreover, you’ll end up being on the followers’ radar, and they’ll be more likely to continue following you. Share industry articles and say something fascinating. Have an opinion, and ask for engagements primarily through mentions of others’ handles.  

3. Don’t Make It All About Yourself

Just because you need to establish yourself as an expert does not mean that you can’t take others’ advice. Find the people you can interact with and put them on “Lists.” Lists are a fantastic way to segment the people who matter to you and your brand from the crowd. If you follow a large community, sort out the people to identify as thought leaders according to the changing landscape. Hunting prospects? Simply jump to the corresponding list and check to see what’s up with them. Similarly, you can divide the followers into employees, partners, researchers and advisors, thought leaders, and a whole lot more. Find the people who post intriguing content regularly. Keep tabs open to identify what content they push and what they are saying.

And of course, don’t forget to interact with them.

4. Keep the Engagement Going 

Once you land among fellow Twitter users’ follower lists or add one to yours, don’t consider your job done. Interact with the members of your list regularly. Make a goal to like or retweet 10-15 things a day and set aside time to work on Twitter. Just last week I did this, and my phone rang. It was a prospect I hadn’t talked to in months. He said, “I saw you posted something that popped up on my phone, and I decided to call.” Phone and email alerts on Twitter could get you to your next client.

5. Whenever Possible, Include Rich Media

Don’t forget to add rich media to your posts when possible. A picture paints a thousand words in the mind of users. And that can be easily proven in the case of social selling via Twitter. Studies show that posts with rich media get up to 313% more engagement than the ones without them. They also enable you to pave the way for higher chances of conversions.

6. Don’t Neglect Nights and Weekends

You may love lazy weekends and nights on Twitter – so do your prospects. And that means better chances of impressing some potential buyers your competitors are probably missing out on. Backing up that theory, Buffer’s research proves that the tweets sent at 9:00 PM in the US earn more retweets and favorites. Further, Twitter engagement for brands is actually 17% higher on weekends.

7. Find and Follow Your Market

Finding people to follow can be overwhelming. Identify the keywords that are important to your business., track them, and have a digest of said keywords emailed to you. Track the conversations mentioning those keywords and discover the opportunity to sail in. Recognize the industry leaders, influencers, and potential prospects and follow them. Not only will this activity help you build a strong network, but it will also enable you to track keywords to capture the buzz or trends in your niche. 

8. Listen for Triggers

According to this study, 74% of the buyers select the sales reps that were first to add value and insight to their query. Apparently, if you are not quick to respond, you might as well not respond at all.

Social listening on Twitter enables you to engage and keep in the front of your followers’ minds. It also demonstrates your interest in your buyers and their problems. Additionally, listening to prospects give you a competitive head start.

You can opt for an automated tool like Tweetdeck and Hootsuite to set up multiple streams on one window to make your tasks easier. 

The Bottom Line

Social selling via Twitter is as tricky as it is with other platforms. Buyers are not there for being sold to, and they are smart enough to identify any sales pitch coming their way. But it’s not impossible – all you need to do is take some special care not to annoy them and take it with caution. The rewards shall roll in.

Want more expert guidance? Well, the pros at Thought Horizon are just a click away! Reach out to us, and we are happy to assist you.