Twitter networking, Business, RedRite, Leeds

Networking on Twitter

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Getting noticed is a big step in getting customers for your business but the problem is getting noticed in the first place. One way that has become very popular and effective is using a #twitterhour hashtag.

The traditional methods of networking usually consist in getting together in a designated location, talking with like-minded business men/women and exchanging business information. You then leave such events and keep your fingers crossed to hear from those businesses again, which is not always a guarantee. With Twitter hours however you get to interact and chat to other business owners, exchange information and gather new followers, you can then keep on top of communicating with these new followers keeping your business fore front in their minds. There are over 300 #twitterhour hashtags currently circulating around twitter containing both local and category hashtags these can be found here – #TwitterHours

The aim of these hours are to chat with other business owners, retweet tweets and help not only your business but their businesses get noticed by a larger audience of people. You are expected to be polite, friendly and supportive in your comments, creating an effective community of businesses all supporting one another. The large the community the more chance the hashtag has of trending and getting noticed even further.

Although this does not guarantee you extra customer it does provide you with extra leads and the possibility of turning those leads in to customers, it all depends how you tweet. Be careful as to what you tweet, check that it does not cause discomfort with your followers or insults anyone. If you use any other hashtag double check its relevance also.

Follow our Twitter account to see some of these Hashtags in use and we mention all new followers.

Happy Networking.

Twitterhour

 

Hashtag guide, RedRite, Leeds

Hashtags… What not to do

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Hashtags… a useful aspect of language, but can also have disastrous effects when done wrong

What started out as an identifier for address mode in computer language back in 1970 has now become one of the most used symbols in international languages on Social Media platforms. The hash-tag (#) was once just a basic symbol very rarely used by those outside of the computer programming network but back in 2007 when Chris Messina proposed to use hash-tags to identify groups on twitter it changed the use of hash tag completely. Although it had been used in Internet Relay Chat (IRC) networks previously to label groups and topics it wasn’t until it was introduced on Twitter that it fully developed in to everyday use. Hash-tags have become especially useful for business owners on Twitter to get their business notice, using trending hashtags to make people more aware of their business and in turn lead to new customers.

However there is a downside to the hashtag phenomenon and that is picking the wrong hashtag. There are documented incidents where companies have not researched the use of a hashtag correctly and tweeted very damaging messages to their followers. For example the #McDStories, where Macdonald’s had hopes of people sharing their good stories about Macdonald’s and was connected to their #meetthefarmer campaign of tracking the story behind the supply chain of their products. The McDStories however was shut down 2 hours after release when people used it to relate stories on how they had been disappointed in the service or had become ill because of the food. This is a fail that is still seen today. Another example is the numerous Q&A hashtags that have popped up and very quickly disappeared again, from figures such as J P Morgan and Dr Mehmet OZ, who when opening themselves up to Q&As ended up with ridiculous questions unrelated to their business or related yet complete jokes.

When planning on using a hashtag for your company it is best to research first, keep an eye on international news as sometimes if disaster has struck and you hashtag that area your tweet can become an offensive remark. Like the Celeb Boutique who mistook the hashtag #Aurora trending to be regarding their new Kim K inspired Aurora dress. The truth was that the hashtag was in relation to the mass shooting in a movie theatre in Aurora, this came off as very insensitive and upsetting.

So when looking for a hashtag don’t just pick a random one hoping it will be effective, or pick one that’s trending without knowing why. Something as simple as a hashtag can cause great problems for a company no matter how big and impact how your customers see you. If you are not sure if it will be beneficial to your company then get a second opinion or just do not use it at all. If you use a scheduling software to schedule your tweets remember what it is you have picked as well so you do not automatically tweet something that has become insensitive or is no longer relevant.