This document provides an overview of how to use Twitter effectively for business purposes. It discusses building a Twitter network by following people, engaging with your network by sharing useful content, and measuring the impact on key metrics like website visitors and conversions. The presentation emphasizes that Twitter can drive real traffic when used properly as part of an inbound marketing strategy focused on creating and sharing valuable content.

1. How to Use Twitter for Business
AMA Webcast - July 23, 2009
Rick Burnes
HubSpot Marketing Manager
Twitter: @rickburnes

2. Agenda
I. About HubSpot & Inbound
Marketing
II. Why Businesses Should Use
Twitter
III. Building a Twitter Network
IV. Sharing Content & Driving Traffic
V. Twitter Measurement & ROI
2

3. Who’s HubSpot?
• Founded in July 2006 from research at MIT
• Cambridge, MA
• 1400+ customers, 85+ employees
3

4. What HubSpot Software Does
4

5. Traditional Marketing (Outbound)
5

6. Marketing Today (Inbound)
6

7. How Do the Best New Companies Market?
1950 - 2000 2000 - 2050
7

8. What Is Inbound Marketing?
Process Website Visitors Tools
Get Found Get Found
• Publish • Content Mgmt
• Promote • Blogging
• Optimize • Social Media
• SEO
Leads • Analytics
Convert Convert
• Test • Offers / CTAs
• Landing Pages
• Target
• Email
• Nurture • Lead Intelligence
• Lead Mgmt
• Analytics
Customers
8

9. One Way to Feed the Funnel
Blogging SEO Twitter Email Pay-Per-Click
Website Visitors
Leads
Customers
9

10. Agenda
I. About HubSpot & Inbound
Marketing
II. Why Businesses Should Use
Twitter
III. Building a Twitter Network
IV. Sharing Content & Driving Traffic
V. Twitter Measurement & ROI
10

11. What IS Twitter?
Like … … Except
Only 140 characters
It’s viewable in lots of
places
A giant chatroom You choose the people you
follow
Instant Messaging It’s public and archived on
the web

12. What Are the Uses?
Marketing
Customer
Listening
Service
12

13. Is Twitter Like Cotton Candy?
Flickr: anitacanita
• Colorful
• Sticky
• No nutritional or business value
13

14. No! It’s Like Whole Wheat Bread.
Flickr: sierravalleygirl
• Healthy
• Used widely
• A basic part of any diet or marketing mix
14

15. A Twitter PR Anecdote
Need to urgently speak with a business that is very
actively leveraging social media strategies; for ZDNet
I spoke about our use of social media for biz on 2 panels -
http://tinyurl.com/4v4cgh AND http://tinyurl.com/6943l9
408 555-1234?
I will call you right now
Elapsed Time:
50 Minutes

16. Twitter Drives Real Traffic
HubSpot Blog Referrals (Q1 & Q2 2009)
>9% Twitter; 22.9% Google
16

17. How to Succeed With Twitter
Measure & Build a
Analyze Network
Share
Content

18. Agenda
I. About HubSpot & Inbound
Marketing
II. Why Businesses Should Use
Twitter
III. Building a Twitter Network
IV. Sharing Content & Driving Traffic
V. Twitter Measurement & ROI
18

19. Start by Building a Network
How do you build an engaged network?
19

20. You Already Have the Skills
You Just Do It Offline
• Meeting people
• Building
relationships
• Asking questions
• Answering questions
• Building trust
• Building a reputation
20

21. Company Profile? Personal Profile?

22. Let Your Brand Shine

23. Put a Bio in Your Profile
Avg Followers

24. Put a Link in Your Profile
Avg Followers

25. Follow People
Updates from the people you follow appear on your homepage.

26. Follow to Get Followers

27. Follow People Who Follow You

28. How to Find People to Follow
twitter.grader.com/search

29. See Who Thought-Leaders Follow
twitter.com/dmscott

30. Create a Company Page
twitter.zappos.com/employees

31. Follow Your Brand in Conversations

32. Engage With Your Network
32

33. Engagement Dominates
33

34. What Are Twitter Applications?
One telephone number, One Twitter handle,
many ways to call. many ways to tweet.
34

35. Agenda
I. About HubSpot & Inbound
Marketing
II. Why Businesses Should Use
Twitter
III. Building a Twitter Network
IV. Sharing Content & Driving Traffic
V. Twitter Measurement & ROI
35

36. Share Content With Your Network
Content Rule #1: It must be useful/interesting/fun

37. What to Publish?
• Blog
• Podcast
• Videos
• Photos
• Presentations
• eBooks
• News Releases
37

38. A Word of Caution
• Don’t Tweet too much
about your product.
NOBODY CARES.
• Create content that’s
useful and interesting to
your target personas.

39. Conversation & Distribution
Conversation
AND
Distribution
39

40. Good Content Spreads
If you provide interesting content,
your network will retweet it.
40

41. What Gets Shared?
Rarely Frequently
Shared Shared
• Product info • New data
• Free trials • Funny videos
• Software documentation • Top-notch blog posts
41

42. Use Favorites to Save Highlights
twitter.com/HubSpot/favourites

43. Agenda
I. About HubSpot & Inbound
Marketing
II. Why Businesses Should Use
Twitter
III. Building a Twitter Network
IV. Sharing Content & Driving Traffic
V. Twitter Measurement & ROI
43

44. Follower Count
• A measure of your raw distribution power

45. @replies
• A measure of community engagement & branding
• On your profile or via search.twitter.com

46. Twitter Grader
• Inputs include followers, influence, follower influence
and patterns of use

47. Measure the Impact on Your Funnel
Website Visitors
Customers
47

48. How to Track Your Funnel
Track visitors. Track leads. Track customers.
48

49. Track Conversions
Traffic to HubSpot.com
Selected Channels
Visitors Leads Conversion Customers Net Conversion
Twitter 3,289 554 17% 12 0.4%
Facebook 504 75 15% 6 1.2%
Stumbleupon 511 28 5% 1 0.2%
49

50. Final Thoughts …
50

51. Build Leverage
51

52. Too Many Pieces to Put Together!
d.j.k. on flickr
52

53. HubSpot Puts the Pieces Together
53

54. Thank You!
Sign up for a free trial of HubSpot:
www.hubspot.com/trial/
Connect with me:
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/rickburnes
Twitter: www.twitter.com/rickburnes
Email: rburnes@hubspot.com
Available to answer questions anytime:
www.inboundmarketing.com/forum