July 19, 2011
Twitter Tips for Building Your Virtual Assistant Business
Speaking from experience, Twitter can be an incredible tool to market your Virtual Assistant business if used correctly. Here are some strategies that I found particularly effective:
-Be willing to give it time to work. Networking effectively is does not happen instantly. It’s a process of building trust and rapport and developing professional relationships- and even some friendships. For me, it took about six months of regular Tweeting to consistently generate a significant number of prospects through Twitter. Your experience may be different, but if you’re expecting this to be an instant business builder, you may be setting yourself up for disappointment.
-Carefully choose who you follow. Those who follow you or are considering doing so can easily check to see who you follow. Be true to yourself but realize that those you follow may have an impact on how others perceive you professionally. I often follow those who are either experts in my field or are people who I think might one day be interested in my services (or know someone else who would be).
-Show your stuff. No, not your body parts- that’s the last thing you should do. Establish yourself as an expert in your field. Post links to information that your target market might find helpful. ReTweet others’ Tweets that are informative or helpful in your area of expertise. Always give credit to your source- plagiarizers are not well-received on Twitter, or anywhere for that matter. No matter what you do, don’t repeatedly post only advertisements for your services. While the occasional shameless plug is usually not a problem, constantly Tweeting your own advertisements will most likely result in either losing followers or being ignored by those who do follow you.
-Stay focused. Remember the reason you’re Tweeting. Keep the majority of your tweets related to business-related issues and topics. Use your best judgement to determine what is appropriate to post and what isn’t. Make sure to honestly portray yourself in the best professional light possible.
