In a recent blog, we talked about our favourite social media tools. These tools are great for running your business’s day-to-day social media activity and planning in advance, but the nature of social media means that sometimes it’s really important to be there, online, in the moment.
Unlike developments such as Facebook Live, live-tweeting has been around for ages, showing just how it’s always been important to use social to be as up-to-date as possible. Live-tweeting is a fantastic way to comment on what’s going on in your industry, get your business seen by more people, and increase engagement.
The right hashtag can work wonders, so we’re going to take a look at 4 great ways your business can get in on the live-tweeting action!
Live on the scene
These days, it’s not uncommon for big news to be broken on Twitter even before the news cameras hit the scene. The key to this kind of live-tweeting is to think a little bit like a reporter. What’s going on around you that might be interesting to your audience? Finding something that you’re able to capture and share with others is a particularly great way of showing your business’s personality and sharing information with others.
We follow some fantastically entertaining Twitter accounts that often live-tweet the things around them. They might not be breaking news stories, but they’re very entertaining. For example, Innocent smoothies often give updates on the weather…
While our Twitter fave I Choose Birmingham love to Tweet about all things happening in Brum – usually the more cynical (i.e. funny), the better!
In the seats
Live-tweeting an event or conference that you’re attending within your industry is a really great way to make connections with other business and relevant contacts such as journalists or even customers. Usually an event will have its own hashtag where all the tweets relating to it will be collated. Using the hashtag, monitoring it, and retweeting tweets that use it is a fantastic way of finding other people who are at the event, as well as a good way of them finding you! In addition to this, live-tweeting an event helps add value to people who weren’t there and who will go to your profile to find out more about what was said.
A few top tips for successfully live tweeting an event include:
- Mix it up! – share images, quotes, and commentary to show your business’s diverse and interesting take on what’s going on
- Keep it high quality – don’t post about everything. Select the best pictures and most interesting quotes, but make sure to keep that natural, un-edited, live
- Use the right hashtag! – It’s no use using #Oscars if everyone else is using #Oscars2017
Behind the scenes
Live-tweeting behind the scenes of an event is very similar to live-tweeting as an event attendee, except you get to share a few special extras. For example, you could tweet ‘sneak peeks’ of the event set up to get people excited, or even post videos or quotes from performers/speakers after they’re finished, asking them their thoughts.
In front of screens
Perhaps the most unorthodox on our list for a business – live-tweeting television shows! We know that business hours don’t usually coincide with prime-time television shows, but just because your business’s doors are closed, doesn’t mean that your customers should forget about you!
Live-tweeting your thoughts on relevant tv shows puts you at the forefront of your customer’s minds and is a great way to show your passion and personality. For example, if you’re a bakery, you might want to tune in and tweet during the final of Great British Bake Off, or if you’re a recruitment agency, some witty commentary on The Apprentice will show your expertise in a light-hearted, accessible way.
