How to Use Twitter When Marketing on the Internet

rnOne of the more costly components of marketing on the internet is traffic generation. PPC is a very effective and fast way to drive targeted traffic to your site but it can cost a good amount of money. SEO is a great means to generate 'organic' traffic but often times to do this right you need to pay a professional to set up your site. When most people start marketing online they are normally contending with limited financial resources. It is a well known fact that to get a successful start online you need traffic. So how can the typical start up entrepreneur generate traffic while minimizing their business costs? Let's start with the free social networking sites found online and quickly narrow it down to one of the top social networking sites today; Twitter. This mini blogging site can be a perfect source of free traffic for any business if it is used correctly. Let's look at 5 simple ways you can maximize the use of Twitter for your business purposes and all without spending a dime. Look for Openings When 'bantering' back and forth with other 'tweople' on this site participate in conversations that interest you or those in which you have something of value to offer. Look for opportunities if available to share information about your business if it is related to the conversation. Don't Be Pushy Don't ever hijack conversations with your unwelcome 'sales pitches.' Even when warranted share your business information 'casually' and always have a reference link available to share with others. Additionally be sure to share useful information about your industry that DOES NOT directly link back to your business. Also offer this information when most appropriate and not as an apparent 'lead in' to a pitch from you. Don't ever 'push' your way into a conversation and start marketing what ever it is you are promoting. It won't work and will not be appreciated however it will be remembered! Complete Your Profile Share some of your personal interests and have a picture if you are comfortable enough with that to post in your profile. Let people know you are real. Transparency is the key when participating at any social site. Think about it, it is a social site therefore if you appear 'cloaked in mystery' or 'stand-offish' little chance many will want to associate with you. Now if you are however currently involved in the witness protection program or some type of espionage finding an appropriate avatar may work over the short term... Personally if I have people who respond to me or direct message me and their personal info is 'protected' or ambiguous I discard them without thought. I like to know who it is I'm talking with. Don't Hide in DM Direst messages on Twitter are good for those times in which the conversation is 'truly' private. For the most part you do want to have others see your posts even if they are not directed at them. Comments do not have to be directed at someone in order to attract them to your posts resulting in them following you. This is how you attract new followers and this is EXACTLY what you want to do. Post Good Content You want to supply useful or interesting content for the other participants but remember to be human. An insightful, well timed and perhaps humorous comment, if you are prone to those, will help to reinforce your 'human' side. Often times this will make more of an impact then the 'structured' content that is normally the result of research. You are at a social site so socialize! Marketing on the internet can be very lucrative but for the typical start up entrepreneur a close eye must be kept on business costs. One of the most critical components involved in this stage of a business's life is traffic generation. Being able to attract targeted traffic to your business site economically would significantly boost the chances of a successful start towards getting into profit quickly. As we mentioned above tapping into some of the free social networking sites can help supply you with plenty of free traffic. In particular we spoke of 5 ways to make effective use of Twitter, one of the top social networking sites online today. By using Twitter in the manner mentioned above there is no reason your business could not experience profits early on with little or no investment in traffic generation.