Once upon a time, Twitter was an innocent and casual place to hang out. Everyone was positive and was nearly over-interested in what everyone had to say. However, now that the initial “buzz has worn off and people are realizing how difficult it can be to manage thousands of follows and followers, the interaction has been reduced to tightly knit groups of key players and in turn leaves many people without the friends they once had. Sure, everyone has a base of friends, followers, and fans that they can rely on to spur conversation and reply to their requests, but overall it has become increasingly difficult to stand out in the crowd. Since getting noticed is one of the crucial aspects of getting more “legit” followers and building a following that converts into blog readers, buyers, and fans, finding ways to get noticed is extremely important.
The simple methods, like RT’ing, offering contests, quoting, and recommending friends for #followfriday no longer have the power they once did. Although those staples are still great ways to increase your influence, if you really want to get noticed on Twitter you’ll have to find other ways to create buzz and show up on the radar.
One such way to do this is to start or take a leadership role in local Twitter Mashups and Tweetups. Use a site like Twitter Grader (http://twittergrader.com) to find local Twitterers in your area to contact and ask for their help in creating a group and notifying others. When you do this, the following events will take place:
1. You will be looked to as a creator, leader, and as a key player in the market. Even if you don’t know what you are doing, you are taking on the responsibility that most don’t feel comfortable with. This gives you a great position of leverage within your local market, which can spread to other markets.
2. You will have the opportunity to create a local brand that can expand based on your effort. Start a website for your Tweetup group and post pics, notes, and blogs about the people involved. They’ll be happy to get noticed online and in turn will help you get noticed too. Over time, you’ll have the opportunity to gain traction as you travel or start groups for others.
If Tweetups are not your thing, then why not host an online mentorship group for people new to Twitter? Most of the Twitter pro’s already have their schedules booked and their feeds filled, so showing new people the ropes can help you share your knowledge and establish a very dedicated base of fans.
Lastly, if you really want to become a Twitter Rockstar, you will need to get noticed by the big dogs. Yeah, I know…bidding on popularity sounds juvenile, but I consider it a marketing effort suited to a specific audience. Spend time being responsive on the blogs and websites of the big dogs on Twitter and work to let them know you are there. If you are the most consistent fan in their feed, they can’t help but to notice your dedication. Once you’ve proven that you are an action taker, they’ll start to notice your work as well, especially if you turn your fans into fans of theirs. The same rules work for blogging and other content promotion methods.
Getting noticed on Twitter really isn’t that difficult if you create the time and dedicate the energy to doing so. If Twitter isn’t your main effort, then trying to become one of the gurus might be tough. However, if you simply implement a few key strategies and continue to offer great content, then you should have no trouble breaking away from the pack. Just like everywhere else, Twitter rewards creativity, originality, and honesty. Make that your creed and eventually you will become a leader in your niche.
An article courtesy of this site.
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