The Ultimate Guide to Twitter Marketing

The Ultimate Guide to Twitter Marketing

Reader Comments (198)

  1. Information/link overload. Looking at this now makes me feel like an ignorant twitter user (I am), but I will bookmark this and use it as a reference. Thanks for compiling this list for us!

    ~ Stephen

  2. Thank you so much for including my blog post inside there Gabrielle,

    Amazing list btw, its going to take me a while to go through some which I found interesting, i will make sure that I bookmark this for future references.

    I can imagine how much time you took to compile this. Awesome work!

    Aaron

    • Thanks Aaron for writing such an awesome post! Glad to let readers know about it. It certainly took awhile. Learned a lot during the process. 🙂 Thanks for your comment.

  3. A snapshot of my thought process for this article:

    “Hmm… ‘ultimate guide’ huh? Well, it’s probably just headline hype. Still, worth a click. Sure.”

    *click*

    *scroll* … *scroll, scroll, scroll*

    “Whoa. ‘Ultimate guide’ indeed.”

    Great job!

  4. Awesome list of resources for Twitter! Thanks for adding my link about how users can increase their following and Klout along with such great company! 🙂

  5. Thanks Gabrielle. I really appreciate you including me in your post!

    The 2 most popular Twitter articles on my site continue to be

    “How To Get Started On Twitter”
    http://www.b2bmarketinginsider.com/social-media/why-tweet-how-to-tweet-and-who-to-follow-on-twitter

    and the “Top 10 Twitter Tips from the B2B Twitterer of The Year”
    http://www.b2bmarketinginsider.com/social-media/10-tips-for-twitter-success-from-a-b2b-twitterer-of-the-year

    I hope those are also helpful to your audience as they are to mine.

    Best,
    Michael
    @brennermichael

    • Those are very helpful! Congrats on getting the B2B Twitterer for the boss tweet. That’s awesome! 🙂 Thanks for including these, Michael.

  6. Gabrielle ,

    My best twitter tip is discovering awesome valuable content(like this) and hitting the re-tweet button:)

    Also, I got a tremendous amount of value out of the post “A Review of Triberr and the Spin Sucks Analytics”

    Do you have a automation tool you can recommend like triberr?

    I have mixed feeling about the whole push-button type stuff and wonder if Google will eventually hand down the classic Google slap beat-down for people using tools like this.

    • Hi Jesse – I learned about Triberr from Spin Sucks, but haven’t tried it yet. I’ve been using Tweet Adder, Buffer App, Sprout Social and Hootsuite as an experiment to see which one is most intuitive to use. I have to say that I find using the combination of all of them works well because I’ve learned to use them each in different ways. They all offer a trial period or free version if you want to try them out and see how they work for you. I have a Twitter Timesavers free download at my blog you can check out that has more information about 3rd party tools.

      Although I’m not sure about Google slapping automation tools for social media networks, I don’t think they would if the content you’re putting into the web is unique. I’ve heard of Google slapping for duplicate content blog posts. If you use the 3rd party tools and schedule your own words to go out onto Twitter and beyond, I believe there shouldn’t be any problem. Twitter has approved only a certain number of automation tools used with their API so I don’t foresee Google penalizing for using them. If you need more help or information, let me know. I can certainly find out more info for you.

      • Gabrielle,

        Thanks for the detailed reply…

        And I look forward to checking out your suggestions.

        BTW… Your blog has some seriously re-tweet worthy content on it…

        Keep cranking out the “Third Tribe” Style content

  7. Ouch, this was first time Copyblogger failed to deliver its promise.
    You promised this article would be an ultimate guide to twitter marketing. However, this was only a list of links. I don’t want to have thorough All in One Twitter pack – I want useful tips right away.

    Kepp up your good work anyway!

    • If this is “…only a list of links”, then I’m Batman. And Robin.

      Gabrielle moved away from instant coffee here and got into a good french press. Takes longer, but worth it.

    • Teemu, if you have time to go through even 20% of the posts listed, you’ll gain instant tips you can use for your business right away and get results. Most of the post writers have written books on Twitter or other social media networks, are speakers on the topics and are in the Social Media Success Summit for the years it’s been around and this year. There’s so many tips in their individual blog posts, I believe you’ll find them helpful for your business.

      @Robert – I like French coffee. Been drinking heavy duty Columbian here lately 😉

  8. Gabrielle, thanks so much for this list. I was just about to go out to fill up my Buffer with some awesome Twitter Tips, but hey, I guess it I only need one site today to do that! 😉

    What I love about the compilation is the list of resources is your way of going from “Newbie” stuff to gradually more advanced tips, this is very thoughtfully done. I will be sure to work my way though it from the start as I will definitely be able to learn from each and every step here.

    Oh and of course BIG thanks for including the 3 steps to a more productive life as a blogger using Buffer here, glad the post was useful and of help for others Gabrielle.

    So first off, let me Buffer this post :).

  9. Great job, Gabrielle! This is an awesome comprehensive collection. Thanks for including my “7 Ways to Thank Someone for a Retweet” (& 5 Tactics to Avoid) article!

  10. Gabrielle: Great list of resources!! Something to bookmark and easily reference 🙂

    For me, my two tips are:

    1.) Favorite those tweets that are sent to you as testimonials – you know, any time someone says something good about you, your product or service. This way, whenever somebody access your favorites, it’s like a running list of testimonials.

    2.) Create private lists for Clients. I have a list of all of the clients at my company. They’re the first and last list I access so that I can stay on top of client issues, stay top of mind, and well, just be connected all around. It makes me more connected and more referable.

  11. Holy cow! Nice set of resources Gabrielle! I am in Jon Morrow’s guest blogging course with you and I have never been so proud of a classmate!

      • Hey Gabrielle!

        I’m in Jon’s course, too, and remember you talking about this post on a call: Well done!

        I saw in a comment below that you spent over 24 hours preparing it (Jon would be so proud!), and it shows.

        Thank you SO much for doing all the hard work so that we could glean the benefits.

  12. Hi Gabrielle,

    Now thats what I call a MONSTER LIST! I did notice though that there’s nothing in there on how to write a twitter bio (at least not in the headlines of the posts). I come across such useless twitter bios (and some truly awesome ones too) and thought I’d do a post on them. Its up here on Freelance Folder: http://freelancefolder.com/how-to-write-a-great-twitter-bio-to-get-targeted-followers/

    An awesome, enlightening bio is usually what gets me to click on the Follow button, followed by the quality, frequency and relevancy of the tweets.

    Thanks again for this resource list 🙂

    Cheers!
    Salma

    • Thanks, Salma, for sharing your post on Twitter bios. Just checked it out and that’s a great resource for writing one! I agree that a Twitter bio is definitely a must have for businesses that want to market on Twitter. Thanks again for sharing!

  13. Thank you so much for this excellent round-up of marketing through Twitter. It is information overload, but a very worthy one. It will take a week or two until I process all this

    I love the way how you went through each step and provided useful references.

    RT-ed, Like-d and bookmarked this post altogether.

  14. Wow, “ultimate guide” is an understatement! I was just setting about to post articles about getting started in social media for the new business I’m about to launch. Assuming it is acceptable to you, I will post the link to this at the top of the list. Thanks so much for such a useful and thorough post!

  15. Wow, thought I’d have a “quick read” before I leave work for the day – this will have to be bookmarked for when I have more than 5 minutes! Having checked through all the links, but love what is potentially available! Thanks for sharing your knowledge and I look forward in putting this into practice!

  16. The timing on this couldn’t be any better. I’m working on a twitter marketing guide for some local businesses. I literally just started on this today!

    As always, I love your stuff.

    • That’s great you’re writing a guide for local businesses and you’ll find a lot of the info in the posts above translates well to local Twitter marketing. It’ll be interesting to see how social media will expand local business reach in the next few years along with local SEO and the addition of social media being used in search algorithms. I’m such a nerd when it comes to that stuff! Love it. Your guide will help a lot of businesses, I’m sure.

  17. Hi Gabrielle,

    Sensational twitter guide here.

    Powerful tweeting is intelligent, effective tweeting. Knowing how to use the tool properly helps you connect with your target audience.

    Thanks for sharing.

    RB

  18. Man Gabrielle, Jon Morrow helped you not only keep this straight and narrow but also far and wide!!!

    This, is definitely an example of term “Ultimate” being used accurately. I have a feeling that this post will be loved for a long, long, time here. I’ve already stashed away for reference in the near future.

    What I also love about this are all the different voices. With a book or program, you usually get one person’s perspective but here which may or may be right for you and your market. Not here and there’s great benefit in all these people’s experience with Twitter to be had.

    Thank you Gabrielle for taking the time to find all of these gems and give your quick synopsis of them. Greatly appreciated!!!

  19. Yeow! When am I supposed to get any work done?

    But seriously, this is an impressive collection of information that will take a lot of time to digest. Thanks for putting this together for us.

    I have a kind of love/hate relationship with Twitter and it goes hot and cold on me. Maybe I can use this to help make it lean more to the love/hot side of things for a while.

    • Ha ha, Bill. Get work done? Who does that anymore? Yeah right, just kidding. Glad to hear you’ll use some of the techniques listed and hope Twitter lights your fire (Doors)! Maybe it’ll burn at “eternal flame” – Bangles.

  20. Wow. When you said the ultimate guide, you were right Gabrielle!

    Seriously, this must have taken quite a bit of time to aggregate all of these articles.

    Really appreciate it.

    I’ve been on Twitter for quite awhile now and it’s slow going.

    http://www.twitter.com/webtennis/

    I’m really not sure just how often I should be tweeting. Seems like being consistent is more important than quantity.

    In your opinion Gabrielle, which article from your guide should I start with to help me better connect over at Twitter?

    Thanks in advance for any advice.

    Brent

  21. I expect excellent posts every day from Copyblogger. That means that anyone writing for the site really needs to offer value and write a really excellent article.

    All I can say about this post is that I think it’s one of the best I have ever read on Copyblogger.

  22. Hey Brent – yeah it took about a week. I think I spent at least 24 hours on it, not all in one day though. 😉 If you want to better connect on Twitter, I’d suggest reading Chris Brogan’s articles and Jennifer Van Grove’s interview with the 40 businesses using Twitter. Also read Guy’s article about the Twitter types and be like a Mensch and Maven. It’s more about giving to connect.

    If you see someone needing help, give it to them. Just like if someone tapped you on the shoulder at the store and asked you where to find a good barber or photo processing place, you’d help them. Read some of the mindset articles also to help you out.

    There’s no set amount on how much to tweet during the day. I usually try to do at least 4 tweets a day talking to people and getting to know them with at least 2 retweets. Some businesses do more and some do less. Hope that helps. If you need more help, let me know.

  23. Wow! Fantastic resource. Just shared the link with public radio development and marketing staff as well as everyone in my office. Thanks SO much!

    • Thanks, Cindy, for sharing the post with your office! Would love to hear from you how it goes with their marketing on Twitter. Glad you enjoyed it.

  24. A welcome list to share with people, I know so many people who start a conversation, ” I understand Social Media, but Twitter….” and go on to add various expletives … so now I can share this link.

  25. Wow, great information. It will take me awhile to get through everything for sure. But do really think I can get people interested in my insurance business with Twitter. Let’s face it, being an insurance broker isn’t the most positive thing right now!

  26. WOW! Great list here Gabrielle!

    Too too many to even think about glossing over the list…..and tons of URLs to go and find out more, eh!

    And thanks SO much from us Canucks, eh!

    🙂

    Jim

  27. Great compilation of twitter tips and resources. I have forwarded this post to my staff and mandated they review it 🙂

  28. Wow! What an amazing compilation of twitter related articles. What I have trouble with is finding the time to stay on top of lists like this. Thank you for putting it together. Definitely one I will bookmark and retweet. Congrats! @nawlins

  29. Holy crap! This will take me days – maybe weeks – to get through (all the links). I just clicked on a couple of the links,and I’m already jazzed. Thanks for this!

    • Thanks, Danny, for commenting! Received the Shuffle, by the way, and still making my way through your awesome marketing course. Ha, you got tired. You know what too, you were the inspiration for the Twitter post in the first place b/c of your comment on a call with Jon. Hey, if you get the chance, check out my Twitter Timesavers download on my blog. I’ve put some timesaving stuff for Twitter in there.

  30. Thank you so much for pulling this up! I agree with the others up there that at first glance, it seems to be just a lazy collection of links just so you can have something posted. But as I scrolled along, I realized that you have just created Twitter bible.

    I want to maximize the promotional benefits of using Twitter to a search-engine optimize a business. Having a good Twitter presence yields a lot of good results because not only will you be visible to your customers, it’s also a good and easy way to be discovered by your future clients. Really very useful for the SEO of your website, product or service. Not to mention Twitter is very down to earth so you’ll be able to have direct communication with those people.

    • Oh my, Marie, I worked on this post longer than any other in my entire life! I can tell you it was far from just sticking links up there. Thanks for your comment. Twitter bible, ha ha!

      Yes, I agree with how Twitter is going to improve the SEO for a website. It seems kind of haphazard right now with no rhyme or reason, but I believe that will change over the coming months if not already for how Twitter comments, links, profiles and more come up in search engine results. If you have any information on the subject, I’d love for you to share it.

  31. An awesome article, explaining not only the basics, but also very useful tips . Thank you very much for sharing and I’ll pass it on.

  32. The ultimate Twitter for marketing list. So much to learn, so well set out. Hyperlinks certainly take you to other interesting people such as @MarianSchembari who also offers so much. Thank you for sharing.

  33. Holy Aggregation of Twitter Posts!! this is excellent! thanks for including the Spin Sucks post, and I’m tagging this for future reference. someone should compile it into a book! 🙂

  34. Thank you! I’m so ignorant when it comes to twitter. Unfortunately I’m also lazy. Spending hours trolling around to find relevant posts sounded like way more work than I’m prepared to do. This is a huge help in both departments. Thanks again!

  35. This post is like an encyclopedia for aspiring Twitter ninjas. Awesome to bookmark and use over and over. I’m going to post it on our organization’s board for others to use.

  36. Wow Gabrielle! This is awesomely comprehensive and for a newbie like me it’s still manageable. I’m bookmarking AND printing it. This saves me tons of time and Tylenol from frustrating headaches. Good Job!

    • Hey girl! Hearing you say it’s manageable for you lets me know you’re definitely gonna run with it when we get your site up and ready to go. 🙂

  37. Great compendium of informative sites. I look at Twitter in two general ways:

    1. For individuals Twitter has become an absolute resource for breaking news (like receiving and sharing details on the March 11 Great Tohoku Quake and its aftermath from my home and office in Tokyo), staying in touch with industry trends, and more. Most of the stuff I read nowadays I found on Twitter, versus the myriad of RSS feeds and blogs I’d peruse on daily basis.

    2. For companies in the 21st century – if you aren’t on Twitter because you are afraid of getting involved in the online discussion, you have far more to fear than that, because unbeknownst to you, you already are part of the conversation. A vacuum exists – even if you choose against having a Twitter presence, the conversation will go on without you, and that is a far greater risk than being part of the conversation from the get-go.

    • Yeah, I agree. I heard about the bad run of storms in my area on Twitter before I heard about it anywhere else. You know for #2, Robyn Twomey’s article talks about the unsaid conversation that happens in the background, even at conferences and events. It’s an interesting read. I agree with you that companies, especially local ones, have to adopt social media into their marketing plans.

      • I hear you Gabrielle, and while I agree that local companies must be involved in the discussion, there are even greater implications for larger companies. Local companies can make great use of social media for day-to-day promotional activities. And while I don’t mean to suggest that’s the limit for local companies, the fact is that global players have much more at stake. Tokyo Electric, for one, learned this the hard way in the aftermath of the March 11 quake in Japan. They were not on Twitter and appeared to have little care for both the power of social media, and the pervasiveness of citizen journalism. One twitter-goer created a false Tokyo Electric account in their name and then proceeded to chide the company about its poor management of the crisis through this fake (yet branded Tokyo Electric) Twitter account.

        • That’s terrible that happened to Tokyo Electric, Jesse. I can definitely see how global businesses need to stake their claim on social media not only to promote their brand but to ensure their message is accurate. I’ve heard a similar story with someone tweeting as a celebrity and they eventually caught the person who started the account. I believe she had serious consequences from it. Perhaps Twitter will come up with some kind of authentication that will verify accounts before they go live.

  38. Who knew there were so many Twitter resources? No matter how many guides you read, the best way to learn is by doing. Each industry and audience is a little different and no rules are set in stone, remember that!

    • Nick, you are so right. If no one puts this in action, they don’t know the benefits they’re missing. Just like with anything, it takes time, patience and actually doing it.

  39. Thanks Gabrielle! I have been working on building my Coaching business using Facebook as I am proficient with it. I have attempted to do something with Twitter but basically muddled along through it because it’s like another world to me from facebook. It is very confusing to me what everything is and why people do some of the things they do. I refuse to pay the high prices most want for Twitter Marketing courses and now thanks to you I don’t have to. It appears everything I need is right here in one package of reading. I am going to follow your steps and advice and see where it leads. I have already learned a lot just giving the article an overview. It will obviously work better than what I have done up to now. Thanks again!

    • Hey Brad – check out my Twitter Timesavers download at my site too and you’ll find info on 3rd party tools to use with your Twitter campaign. I also included Twitter marketing in your site package, in case you forgot, so got ya double covered. 😉 Definitely work through these posts when you have time though until we get the website up and running.

  40. What a fabulous post. I am learning more and more about ways to implement Twitter (and Facebook) more effectively but honestly have not come across something more useful than a program that automates this process for me. It is called Sociroll – http://zfer.us/7gQBH

  41. Wow! This is indeed the Ultimate Twitter guide. I bookmarked it so I can refer back to it again. I use Twitter for business and pleasure, but I am sure there are many areas where I need to improve the approach to my Twitter marketing.

    Thanks for putting all of this information together for us.

  42. Forgot to share this, but for anyone who believes it’ll take you awhile to read, try using a text to speech program to listen to the posts. I use Free Natural Reader by Natural Soft (http://www.naturalreaders.com/download.htm). You can even put them on your iPod or other mp3 device. 🙂

    That way you can listen during the day while you’re working, exercising or driving.

    Hope that helps.

  43. This is the worst thing you could for someone who doesn’t know anything about a topic – throw a ton of website and books at them. I love it when you write quality content. But this really does a disservice to anybody that is ignorant or confused about Twitter.

  44. This is a very impressive list of goodies and certainly one we shall be returning to in the future – thanks for pulling it together and making it easier for us newbies!

  45. Not to be a repeat but wow, what a huge list of resources. Thanks for putting this all together and everyone else for the additions to the list.

  46. I couldn’t have found this at a better time! Our twitter marketing needs desperate help. Thanks so much for the great list of helpful articles. I’m diving in now…

  47. what a powerful collection of informative topics! I don’t have to keep searching for helpful social media articles! All I need to do now is bookmark this in my browser! Thank you so much for sharing!

  48. Awesome assortment of Twitter information Gabrielle!

    It almost seems overwhelming at first to those who are just beginning their Twitter social media campaigns, but these are all necessities. It is amazing how young Twitter is and yet there is a true “science” that has grown from it.

    My largest Twitter tip would be to implement content that makes the reader interact with the Tweet. Whether this be by asking a thought provoking question or statement. Asking the reader to put themselves in a mental situation draws a larger reader interaction.

    Gabrielle, you have listed a wonderful set of do’s for Twitter posting, but do you have any advice on certain Twitter don’ts?

    • Hi David – that’s an excellent tip and one to keep at the forefront of your Twitter campaigns. Making Twitter an interactive experience with your audience is what Brian Solis talks about a lot (and works).

      For the don’ts, check out the posts listed under the subheadline: Avoid being an annoying twit 🙂 — all of them have great advice and quick tips to follow

      • Thanks so much for the response Gabrielle!

        The connection a company or celebrity can reach with their followers is so amazing nowadays. And more specifically, using that interactive experience as you mentioned.

        Before, you could only dream of the day you had the chance to get in contact with your favorite celebrity. Now it is accessible at the click of a button. It’s a very powerful tool.

  49. Great list of resources Gabrielle, thank you! This is some of the most detailed information w/links to sources I’ve seen on the Twitter subject.

    Much appreciated!

  50. Gabrielle … Great resource you put together for us. In fact, I had to take a break after I read about half of it last month … Now I’m back to continue my journey of learning and implementing new ideas. Thanks again!

    • You’re welcome, Steve. Glad to hear you’re reading and putting it to use in your business. Share your success with us when you’re ready. 🙂

  51. Thanks so much for sharing all this info. God bless you for your willingness to help people!

  52. Wow! Never seen such an exhaustive list of resources for any topic in the whole internet! This is way more than “ultimate”! Guess I’m going to have to do a long bookmarking job. Thanks a lot for putting all this wealth of twitter info together!

  53. Thanks a lot for the rich resources of twitter. I am looking for twitter articles for my new book on micro blogging, your post gives me a lot of help.

  54. One of my favorite uses of Twitter is to use private lists to monitor the competition. That way I don’t have to follow them, but I can still keep track of what they’re doing and what type of experience their followers are getting. I do this with HootSuite as well.

    I also create lists for conferences I’ve attended, creating one list of the speakers who presented, and another for attendees who want to keep in touch.

    FInally, I developed a checklist for those who want to create great Twitter headlines, in the style of the great copy editors of newspapers here:

    http://socialmediaonlineclasses.com/the-blog/checklist-for-writing-great-twitter-posts/

    Thanks Gabrielle!

  55. I will keep this guide in my bookmarks, I have been tweeting for a year and a half, and I am getting followed by 3 times fold the people I follow, however, I feel I am not really engaging with my twitter audience… I will try to use these tips and take my twitter account to next level

  56. Thanks for the excellent information and links. I continue to learn about building a following in Twitter. Sure I have followers but most of them are there because they want to peddle something to me. I don’t blame them as I am trying to achieve the same thing. Sometimes I get the feeling that everyone is tweeting and no one is reading.

  57. The adage used to be “It’s not what you know but who you know.”. Aptly replaced by the comment in Guy Kawasaki’s post: “It’s not who you know. It’s who appears to know you.”

  58. Wow what a long list! I will be busy the rest of this evening.

    Thanks for taking the time to compile such an elaborate collection of Twitter guides.

  59. Gabrielle, great resource on Twitter, this is a very comprehensive list. I will be using this a resource and sharing this with my networks. Great job!

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