As a mortgage broker this probably isn’t the first article you’ve read urging you to embrace social media.
But no matter how polished the prose, they often come from a marketing ‘guru’ with a massive lack of understanding about how you actually go about your business.
Dealing with brokers on a daily basis, it is clear that satisfying clients, lenders, your network and the regulator is enough to keep you busy from 9 to 5 – and beyond.
You don’t have hours a day to tackle Twitter, plus it is often hard to see how it will actually benefit your business.
Despite this, social media can still help those in the mortgage market to boost their business by using social media efficiently.
Here are my five top tips for getting started on Twitter:
1) Build your network
Follow people in your industry, be it other brokers (including competitors – it is a great way to keep track of what they are doing), lenders, the press and other key commentators that will keep you up to date. When you follow people they often follow you back, but not always. The best way to build your followers is to tweet interesting stuff that people want to read and share.
2) Develop relationships
It is important to focus on what you tweet but it is also vital that you read other people’s tweets and respond to them – that’s how to get the best value out of Twitter.
Be nice to people, and they will return the favour. If you read a post from an industry peer that you enjoy, retweet it to your followers, and that person will see that you have shared it. They are more likely to reciprocate next time you post something interesting. Network online in the same way you would in the real world.
3) Save time with an app
I send at least five tweets a day, but that does not mean being glued to Twitter 24/7. You can use your time smartly with an application like Hootsuite that allows you to stagger the publication of your tweets.
This means you can sit down for half an hour or so – perhaps on a Sunday night – and type out a range of tweets to be sent out over the next week. Some might include a particular message that you want to get out about your business that week, such as the launch of a new service.
Of course, it’s vital that you send plenty of ad hoc tweets as well, as the best networking and business opportunities come from these.
4) Learn Twitter etiquette
There are certain Twitter rules that it can pay to be aware of, but don’t worry, they are not complicated. The main ones are to be polite and to remember that the world is potentially watching your tweets. If you want to send something privately, send a direct message to that person, or just email or call them!
5) Put your real name on your profile
Many people have a Twitter profile in their company’s name, but it’s important to have your real name on there too, especially if it’s a firm with many staff. After all you want to be easy to contact if someone has a question or more importantly a business opportunity!
That should help get you started, and remember that it takes time to see tangible results.
