Wednesday, May 26, 2010

So you signed up for Twitter...Now What??


So you just signed up for Twitter. But now what do you do? Heres some tips on how to find people to connect with and tweet with.

There are several tools out there for searching Twitter, including Twitter's homepage itself, but I seem to have had the best success with four simple tools:

1- Twitter Local: this Adobe Air application runs tweets in real time based on the criteria you supply. You can follow area codes and when someone new shows up in the stream you follow them and say hello.

2- Local hashtag: Every area has at least one hashtag in population. For example #lagunaniguel. But if it doesn't then be a self starter and get one going! Follow everyone who tweets with that hashtag.

3- Tweetdeck search: A Twitter application is essential to your sanity if you are going to follow more than 100 people (which you should). There are many out there, but I am a Tweetdeck fan. The ability to have columns open for specific search terms, like your town name, is revolutionary to your Twitter experience.

4- Twitter Lists: You dont have to make your own, just follow several other people's lists. Other people in my area have taken it upon themselves to create lists populated with local businesses and people. I follow these lists and add them as columns in Tweetdeck.

Ok so now your following locals, then what?

Now you are following all these new people in your local area...that is great, but what is next?


Well, you will hear this all over the place, but next is ENGAGEMENT.

Engagement is NOT stuffing the fact that you are a real estate agent down each person's throat and it is NOT send an auto DM (or any DM for that matter) to people that you haven't even said hello to.

Engagement is sending them a tweet to say, "Hi, I started following you today and notice we live in the same town" or something equally friendly.

Talk as yourself, not as a real estate agent at least 80% of the time. Be yourself and use your real voice. The 20% of time spent on business tweets should be doled out carefully.

It is important to remember that clients and customers are screening you and to keep that front of mind when you are posting on twitter (or anywhere else for that matter). Everyone has a different idea of what their social media "voice" should be. For me, I try to be consistent in my personality online and offline.

Good luck and happy tweeting!

And thank you for making me Your Orange County Real Estate Connection.


Best regards,

Michael Caruso, Broker ABR ABRM CRB CRS GREEN GRI
2007 President, Orange County Association of Realtors (949) 753-7900

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