With the designation "Twitter", that is to say, "twitter" in literal French, the social media service founded in 2006 has chosen a name that says a lot about its use. Indeed, just like a bird chirping over long distances, Twitter's short messages (whose size is limited to 280 characters) are intended to be noticed by as many people as possible but not only.
Unlike the classic example of Facebook, Twitter is not about socializing or sharing content with friends. Indeed, the focus is rather on the rapid dissemination of information; a message aims to be read by as many people as possible in the shortest possible time. The important thing is not to be read by specific people, but to reach many people who will follow or share your Twitter contribution (so-called tweets).
A tweet is a message posted on the Twitter platform, or possibly status change information. Since many of these short messages are about the person who posts them, Twitter is also called a microblogging service. With tweets, your messages may very well be global in scope.
Overview of Twitter Features
Twitter's features go well beyond the mere 280 signs of a tweet. Understanding how Twitter works is essential to estimate the potential that its use can represent for your business.
The tweet
The main means of communication on Twitter is the tweet, a message of a few lines. Tweets are notified for your followers and your own profile. However, they remain public by default, and can, therefore, be read by unregistered people. However, you can limit the visibility of your contributions so that they are shown only to authorized followers.
Users can use Twitter to write tweets on the one hand, and thus build a group of followers (hence the meaning of the word microblogging to define the platform). On the other hand, they themselves can follow other accounts, and read or take part in discussions. Twitter also offers the possibility to contact people directly or privately. These direct messages are however rarely used.
A tweet is limited to 280 Unicode characters (previously 140 characters ); each additional sign is automatically truncated. From the beginning, this feature of the service was discussed. In 2016, Twitter decides to relax its rules: the photos, videos attached, tweets mentioned or usernames mentioned will no longer be counted in the calculation of signs. With the exception of Web links, whose characters are always counted in their entirety, the Twitter user now has 280 characters fully available for the body of his message. Anyone who uses Twitter knows how much it is not a detail.
The newsfeed
If a Twitter user finds an interesting account, he can add it to his profile. Tweets for which a user subscribes are then displayed in the news feed of the home page. New information can arrive at any time. By receiving these tweets on your page, you can read them and optionally choose to answer them.
Reaction possibilities: answer, retweet and like
You can react to a tweet via Twitter in four different ways. These reaction possibilities are represented by symbols under the tweets. You can respond publicly to a tweet (speech bubble), the retweeter (two circular arrows) or the liker (heart). Finally, the last option (small envelope) makes it possible to make private contact with the author of the message. Public responses can lead to lively conversations. The "Like" rating (similar to "Like" on Facebook) shows the success of a tweet to readers and the number of people they could reach.
If you want to share a tweet with your followers, you can retweet it. Since the changes of 2016, it is also possible to retweet your own publications. The retweet function is at the heart of the success of the platform because interesting messages can be relayed on the net at the speed of lightning.
The Hashtag phenomenon
The hashtag phenomenon also requires long explanation, because, besides the retweet, it is a key element of the microblogging service. The hashtag can be considered as a keyword introduction. With the # symbol (not to be confused with the pound sign), the content or subject of a tweet is briefly highlighted.
Benefits of social media marketing on Twitter
Twitter has fundamentally changed the way companies communicate with their audiences - it's now faster and more direct. Every small business can now attract international attention and reach potential customers without spending a lot of money.
On its website, Twitter provides detailed information on the use of its service by businesses. In addition, Twitter offers a "Marketing" section and a blog for small businesses. Four aspects make social media particularly interesting for businesses. It is thus possible to:
- Follow in real-time the evolution and current trends,
- Increase your brand awareness,
- Offer a direct service to the customer,
- Create links with potential customers or influencers.
Twitter, therefore, applies to allow a particularly close proximity between companies and customers. In addition, it makes it easy to follow the moods and desires of customers. The platform is ideal for small businesses that lack online marketing experience. You can also embed Twitter feed on your business website to display your tweets to website visitors. This one is a fantastic way to engage website visitors. This will help to be careful though, Twitter never forgets ... a tweet must be well thought out despite its brevity. A platform is still a place where it is possible to learn from its small errors, thanks to the constant flow of new tweets that can quickly forget the previous formation. Twitter is a good way to gain first-hand experience in social media marketing.
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