Social Media Help for Rotarians & Friends
COOL DOG ROTARY
Twitter ~ More Info!
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Twitter ~ How to Create a Profile
Your Club's Twitter profile introduces the world to your club. It is the entry point for your audience on Twitter therefore it is critical to invest the time in giving both great content as well as a strong message.
Below are the components of the Cool Dog Rotary Club Twitter profile page (NOTE this is a brand new Twitter account) and how increase impact of each:
1. @username (your twitter name)
Your @username, also known as your handle, is your business’s unique identifier on Twitter. Keep it concise and memorable and representative of your club!
2. Profile photo
Choose a photo that visually represents your club. Let's face it, it is EASY to use the RI Logo and that is good but understand that currently there are hundreds of clubs that do this. Maybe a great photo of the club president or something else that works for your club. This image both on the club profile page as well as is the icon to the left of every tweet that comes from the club. Put some time and energy into this photo.
3. Bio
In 160 characters you tell the essence of the club! Explain how your club is unique and why they should follow you. Don't be standard and say things like "the best Rotary club in xyz or awesome lunch" Twitter is a place to generate some buzz. Be upbeat, be proud!!
4. Website address
This is too easy to leave off!
5. Listing of your Tweets, Tweets & Reply's and Photos & Video
This is fast access to your recent past
6. Header image
If you used something unique for the club photo, you can always Google "Rotary" then select "images" and download one of the many images with the Rotary logo and use it for your header. This is a good thing to change out to highlight things like "End Polio Now" or "Light Up Rotary", etc..
Twitter ~ Follow and Be Followed!
OK, you are up and running and sending out your first tweet
but how do you know who to follow and how do you increase
the number of followers that you have????
First who to follow ~ well who is your audience? Is it fellow Rotarians, then search for Rotarians or Rotary clubs. Is it perhaps runners in your area to join your annual marathon or maybe people interested in working with your local food bank? Well tailor who you follow to be people or groups that can link you together. Next, look around for local media, businesses and non-profits that your club supports and follow them. Of course follow your members and your guest speakers! OK then look a little more broad, check out Rotary International, End Polio Now, the CDC and the Gates Foundation for a few. This should give you a great start!
How to increase your Twitter followers ~ This is the most concise way to increase your Twitter following and it is all in a fantastic article by Dorie Clark and Daniel Vahab posted on the Forbes site. It is called, How to Dramatically Increase Your Twitter Following. Here is the article as well:
Unless you’re a celebrity like Justin Bieber or Hillary Clinton, you’re going to have to work at building an initial following on Twitter. So what’s the secret? Instead of a slow-and-steady progression, treat your Twitter account like a short-term addiction. Make it your top priority for a month or two, double down and create lots of content.
That’s because studies have shown that the more you tweet, the more followers you’re likely to have (users who have written under 1000 tweets typically have fewer than 100 followers, while those who have tweeted more than 10,000 times usually have followings of between 1000-5000 people).
That initial immersion will pay off in terms of “market research,” as well: you’ll sharpen your editorial voice, get more comfortable with the medium and its quirks (hashtags, @ replies, and more), and learn the types of content that appeal to and engage your followers.
Indeed, if you’re a small business or brand, Twitter will actually help bring in new customers. By a margin of 64 percent, users are more likely to buy from brands they follow on Twitter, according to an infographic by analytics company KISSmetrics. (It also works for individuals; Daniel recently inked a major consulting contract with someone he met on Twitter.)
To help grow your initial base of followers quickly and easily, here are some additional methods you can try.
Utilize your LinkedIn and email connections. Since you’re more likely to be followed by someone you already have a relationship with, we recommend finding your LinkedIn connections on Twitter and following them. Technically, Twitter doesn’t have a way to do this, so we’ve found a workaround.
First, visit your LinkedIn Contacts page and select “settings.” From there you’ll have the option to export your contacts into a .CSV file. The file can then be seamlessly uploaded to your email account contacts. Then from Twitter, you’ll be able to import your email contacts, which will include your LinkedIn connections, choosing which of them you want to follow.
Use a timesaving tool to schedule your tweets. Free and low-cost tools like Hootsuite allow you to schedule your tweets in advance so that you maintain a consistent flow of content, while saving time. People who post content on a regular basis tend to see more engagement and followers.
Join a Twitter chat. Every week, groups within various industries get together on Twitter to talk about a topic. By joining these chats and engaging with others, you’ll get the opportunity to meet new people in your sector, play the role of an industry insider, and learn valuable information. Some notable chats include #CustServ, #blogchat, #tchat, #HBRchat, and #mediachat.
Multitask. Many of us have spare pockets of time that we could put to use. For instance, tweet while commuting to and from work on the bus or train. Tweet while on the bike at the gym, during commercials of your favorite shows; tweet while in the waiting room for the dentist.
Respond to people who are interested in similar content. When you comment on, retweet, or favorite a Twitter post, consider following users who also engaged with the post. The users will notice that you share similar interests in content and therefore be more inclined to follow you.
Tweet inspirational quotes. Quotes tend to see higher engagement on Twitter because people enjoy reading them and sharing with others. With the free app Forismatic, for instance, you will receive a wide array of inspiring quotes that you can instantly post to Twitter. This will help you to increase engagement, as well as save time.
Follow users who follow your followers. By utilizing a free and low-cost tool like Tweepi, you can scan the list of accounts that follow your own followers on Twitter. As they are likely to share similar interests, you may consider following them as well.
Follow the accounts recommended by Twitter. In the #Discover section of your dashboard, Twitter recommends “Who to follow” for your account.
Twitter ~ What the Heck is a Hashtag?????
It is a word or combination of words with a # at the beginning, used to denote a
particular topic for discussion. A hashtag allows readers to do searches for specific
topics of conversation that are happening now or have happened in the past. It
allows the reader to see all the tweets that went through the new stream related to
that particular topic.
For example if you did a search on #lightuprotary you will get all the tweets that
contain Light Up Rotary related posts. This allowed @CoolDogRotary to find and
to retweet Chris Brand's tweet regarding Stone Mountain Rotary Club's lighting
of Stone Mountain on Rotary Day 2015! See below:
