How To Use Twitter As a Referral Tool for Your Website

Twitter, while not one of the BEST referral sites for a blog, still has value as broadcasting and engagement tool.

Twitter is one of the only places that a brand can actually MEASURE reach and engagement. Using tools like hashtracking and tweetreach, a brand can measure an influencers delivery of reach on a specific hashtag.  This gives them a number (a big number) to bring back to the corporate table.

Your “reach” is the number of followers you have, x the number of times you have tweeted, + the number of followers each person who retweeted, or engaged with you has.

So, to build twitter to benefit your blog, here are a few tips:

1. Size matters on twitter. BUT, real followers are more valuable than spam followers (DO not BUY FOLLOWERS)  This means that the BIGGER the number of real followers you have, the more beneficial you are to a campaign that is being tracked via hashtag.
2. To build your followers there are a few things you can do:
   1. Engage.  Schedule or tweet various “engagement” tweets every day. Tweets that are funny, charming, offer tips and advice, and answer or inspire questions in your followers
   2. Follow!  Usually 50% of the people you follow, will follow you back. Twitter DOES have some blocks on the number of people you can follow based on your followers count, so if you reach your max, visit a site like untweeps to unfollow inactive accounts.
   3. Triberr – it is actually a GREAT way to build followers.  As your tribe mates tweet you out, your handle will be tagged in the tweet. This will give you exposure to other accounts and provide more opportunity for people to follow and engage
3. Scheduling platforms are your friend! Using twitter on twitter.com is a nightmare! Main options are hootsuite or tweetdeck, choose the one you like the best, and get familiar.  You will not be “dinged” by twitter for using a scheduling platform (unlike facebook)  Each time you publish a post, SCHEDULE it to broadcast to twitter a min of 12 times in a month.  Do this for EVERY post to get exposure.
4. Twitter Bio: It is easy to create a twitter header in Canva, and having a custom header looks pretty!  Be sure your profile pic is of a human (you preferably) and not a logo.  People want to engage with FACES on twitter accounts and it makes you more “real” . Update your bio to say BLOGGER, or INFLUENCER and have the URL of your website noted.  As with ANY branding content we write for ourselves, write it in your tone of voice, capturing your brand.
5. Hashtags:  Brands will measure hashtags for campaigns and get a read out of the “top placing” engagers. IF you have a brand you are eager to work with, follow any campaign hashtags they may be using (or attend their twitter parties) and organically engage!  Support enough that you show up on their Top list of engagers, and the odds are good they will further explore your account!   (again, if you reach is SMALL, you need to focus on a high VOLUME of tweets, AND retweets from others to increase your total REACH)
6. DO not broadcast from OTHER social accounts to twitter! It doesn’t make sense as your communication style is DIFFERENT on each account.  Keep your tweets unique and relevant to the platform.
7. Twitter Parties:  Learn more about twitter parties here!
8. Use your scheduling platforms to support lists and hashtag engagement.  I use tweet deck. In tweet deck I have columns for my LISTS (including brands, influencers etc) and columns for hashtags I am supporting.  This way I can see the daily thread of broadcasting from the accounts I WANT to support, and not miss and opportunity to engage because of volume.  I do not have a twitter home feed running on any columns, only lists, tags and Mentions (to me) This allows me to focus my time on twitter and use it without distraction.