Social media tweeps were atwitter in December when micro-blogging giant Twitter rolled out hot new features. Slimmed down and buffed up, new Twitter introduces business-minded expansions, including network-building tools, media embeds and—at long last—the Twitter brand page. Ready to make the twitterverse work for you?
Connect with new tweeps
The aptly-named Connect tab organizes your Twitter conversations, tracking your interactions and mentions. This page also features Twitter’s upgraded “Who to Follow” box, which recommends contacts who share your interests, industry and connections. Each suggestion identifies your shared connections to help you to keep your lists organized and spam-free. Networking is the name of the game and Twitter wants to make it easy.
Discover the Twitterverse
Putting the “blog” in “microblogging,” the innovative Discover page offers users instant access to the Internet’s hottest stories. Browse web-wide tweets by category in one central hub. Discover does more than gather trending topics and hashtags; it tailors those trends, stories and webpages to your individual network and location.
Tweet-volution
Tweets now pack more punch, automatically displaying stats on retweets, replies and favourites. The handy buffer button—the app that allows the post-dating of tweets—perches right beside the retweet button. Finally, Twitter knows tweeple need their media fix: image and video content can now be viewed within each individual tweet.
Embeddable tweets
Seeking accolades for your product pages? Want reliable sources to include for your latest article or blog post? Twitter’s new embed function anchors tweets to your webpage—complete with live links and media—quicker than you can say “copy-paste.” Embedded tweets enjoy custom styling, with position, size and text wrap options. The best part? Embedded tweets include live follow, retweet and favourite buttons, allowing your traffic to follow you on Twitter without even leaving your website!
Brand-new brand pages
Following in the footsteps of Facebook and Google+, Twitter’s sizzling new layout invites businesses to build their official home in the twitterverse. Brand pages are public, meaning they show up in search rankings and can be visited even by non-twitterers.
Showcase your success and cement positive first impressions by pinning your favourite, top-value tweet to the top of your feed. This tweet automatically shows up first on computers and smartphones alike. (Did I mention Twitter’s brand pages are mobile-optimized?) In addition to customizable backgrounds, brand pages boast a custom header, which can pull double-duty as a product link, news page or promotion.
Brand pages can embed media on their page and within their tweets, and research already suggests that video-heavy sites are attracting major traffic. Need inspiration? Check out Twitter’s 21 original brand pages, including Coca-Cola, HP, and McDonalds.
Tweet your heart out
It’s time for businesses to make their mark in the twittersphere. Fine-tune your brand page, grow your network and add your voice. And remember: Twitter is all about conversation. If you build it, they will come; to seal the deal, make sure you’ve got something to say. Happy tweeting!
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