Not long ago, internet marketing was a strange new arena that businesses weren’t sure how to approach. The internet hadn’t become such an integral part of our daily lives back then, and there was a lot of trial and error as companies navigated this new landscape. However, with the rise of inbound marketing, it seems like we’ve finally figured out how to approach the World Wide Web and use it to generate leads and drive sales.
Now, there’s a different new frontier for marketers to figure out: social media. Because of the popularity of social media, there is a lot of potential money out there for the taking. But the book hasn’t been written yet on the best strategies for companies to use on social media. This is partially because of the evolving nature of social media sites themselves. Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are still relatively new companies, and they’ve been working to find ways to monetize their enormous user bases.
But instead of talking about social media in general, I want to focus on one site in particular: Twitter. It’s a bit unique in the social media world, because immediacy is a huge part of the appeal of Twitter. Many young people use Twitter as their source for updates during breaking news events, as it usually provides more real-time updates than even TV news can deliver. It’s also the most limited – you have to make your point in 140 characters or less.
If you’re interested in how to use Twitter for your own business, here are three accounts you should follow:
Taco Bell
If you’ve read our blog articles before, you know that I love the Taco Bell Twitter account. It’s a perfect mix of humor, inane remarks, interaction and occasional self-promotion. Even if I weren’t involved with inbound marketing, I’d still follow Taco Bell on Twitter; it’s that entertaining. The account doesn’t post new tweets often, instead spending most of its time responding to other users. That’s where it does its best work:
Taco Bell’s Twitter account shows us that you can have a lot of fun with social media; not only is it perfectly acceptable in the social media world, it’s also pretty effective for marketing.
Dos Equis
The beer brewer is the creator of one of the world’s most popular spokesmen, The Most Interesting Man in the World, and it uses its Twitter account to bring us more interesting and compelling facts about him. For example, they tell us “one of his wingmen is an actual bird,” and “his blindside has 20/20 vision.” The Most Interesting Man is wildly popular, becoming one of those characters you automatically associate with a company (such as the Wendy’s “Where’s the Beef” lady and Cheetos’ Chester Cheetah), and Dos Equis has done the smart thing by keeping the focus on him. Even though their Tweets are amusing, they are also all about promoting the brand. Are you starting to notice a trend here? On social media, it’s best to pursue your marketing goals while still keeping it light and fun.
Charmin
Surprised to see this company on the list? I don’t blame you. Who would have thought a toilet paper maker would be so great at social media? But considering how often people use Twitter or Facebook from the toilet, maybe it’s not so weird after all…
Charmin fittingly uses a lot of potty humor on its Twitter account, taking advantage of trending hashtags and relating them back to the bathroom. For example, a recent popular hashtag was #RoommatesIn5Words, which Charmin used thusly:
It’s kind of silly and juvenile, but it’s also memorable and funny. And Charmin’s Twitter account relates back to a central idea of inbound marketing: “delight” customers. Their tweets bring a smile to follower’s faces, which makes them associate good feelings with the brand. And if you have a good relationship with a brand or company, you’re more likely to do business with them.
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