I have to tell you guys something.
I never really “got” Twitter.
People raved about it, and I knew there were millions of people using it, and it seemed to be celebrities’ favorite method of communication. And Ryan Sauers just would not shut up about it. But me—I shunned it. I said I thought it was a waste of time and I didn’t see what all the fuss was about. Especially for a printing business.
And then I got a smartphone. Yes, that’s right. I JUST got a smartphone. On Labor Day. And shortly thereafter, I downloaded the Twitter app to my phone. And my world just opened up.
And now I get it. So Ryan, here is my gift to you. YOU WERE RIGHT.
You guys—Twitter is awesome! There is so much cool stuff out there. Some of my favorites that I follow on Twitter don’t really have anything to do with print, but are super cool any way. Like @dwell, which is a magazine that shows you really cool stuff about buildings. Another favorite is @designtaxi, which was voted Time’s Best 140 Twitter feeds of 2012, and is dedicated to Design, Art, Photography, Technology, and Pop Culture. If you want to have any kind of fluency with your creative customers, this would be a great one to follow.
And then there’s the business stuff. Harvard Business Review, Bloomberg, CNN. All of these will keep you up-to-the-minute on what is going on in the world of business.
And finally, there is the industry stuff. It goes without saying that you should follow your customers. But you should also be following your competitors, vendors, neighbors, friends and anyone else who might post something of value that you can use or share with your followers.
I can honestly say that I was not the kind of person that would sit at my laptop or desktop and just scroll through Twitter looking for something cool. I just didn’t have that kind of time or inclination. But once I got a smartphone, I used Twitter in much the same way I use Facebook or even Words With Friends—in little chunks. Most nights as I am watching TV after all the kids are asleep, I will have my phone with me, and in about five to 10 minutes, I will jump on Twitter, check out a few cool tweets, and re-tweet anything I think my followers might find interesting. And that, my friends, is what we call one more branding tool.
So if you’re not using Twitter, do yourself, me, and Ryan Sauers a favor, and jump on the bandwagon with us! It’s a great ride!
- Categories:
- Business Management - Marketing/Sales
Blogger, author, consultant, coach and all around evangelist for the graphic arts industry, Kelly sold digital printing for 15 years so she understands the challenges, frustrations and pitfalls of building a successful sales practice. Her mission is to help printers of all sizes sell more stuff. Kelly's areas of focus include sales and marketing coaching, enabling clients to find engagement strategies that work for them and mentoring the next generation of sales superstars.
Kelly graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in Political Science and, among other notable accomplishments, co-founded the Windy City Rollers, a professional women's roller derby league. She is also the mother of two sets of twins under the age of ten, so she fears nothing.