If you have a small business you need to be on Twitter. With over 300 million users, I can GUARANTEE your customer base is in there somewhere.

Launching your business on Twitter is easy.

The entire user interface is designed to be intuitive to use, so don’t panic! I’ll give you the advice I gave my “can I turn this CD over” mother – which is – just click on every single menu and setting and find out what it does.

It’s the only way to master any bit of software, that and just using it.

So-called “techie people” aren’t born with an innate knowledge of Twitter, they just use it a lot. (Sorry, I feel I’m offloading a rant that I usually give to my parents when they call up to fix their phones with child tech support).

However, there are some things you can do to get a head start on Twitter and position yourself before you start sending those amazing tweets.

What do I need to get started on Twitter?

Getting started on Twitter is pretty easy. You just need a few graphics a bit of text and away you go.

Step 1 – Create a banner

Use your graphic design software or a free online provider like Canva to create a banner. This sits as a header behind your profile photo or logo. Canva Pro gives you access to a massive library of premium images that you can use to create your banner. Just check out this link for a free trial of Canva Pro.

You need a header that is  1500px by 500px.

Add any background images or some text if you want. This could be a brand slogan or just your company name but remember there will also be a small circle to the right-hand side for those using Twitter on their desktop, so leave a bit of space for that.

Just remember, for desktop users, this banner at the top is prime real estate to showcase your business and your brand.

I created a few from scratch below to give you some ideas. Canva has some excellent templates, but if they’re not to your liking try Venngage or PicMonkey too.

Step 2 – Create a Twitter logo or headshot

This should be either a high-quality headshot or logo.

If it’s a headshot, make sure your face fills at least 70% of the circle. Most people use Twitter on a phone and they won’t be able to see you if you’re zoomed out.

Tip: If you are a company and don’t have a person in your profile, please do include images real people in your tweets. We want to know who we’re tweeting with.

Step 3 – Write a stand out profile

You’ve got 160 characters, so try writing it out in word first and checking your word count.

Include your value proposition (what solution you solve and why you do it).

Remember to add keywords that describe your product or service so people can find you.

Also, add in any branded hashtags you’re using, and emojis if they fit your brand. 

Showcase your personality or company identity. Just please don’t say ‘leading,’ or ‘one of the UK’s top etc.

If you need some inspiration, check out the profiles of these guys: Madalyn Sklar, Andrew Davies, Mashable, Shopify, DoubleTree, Wendys, Starbucks Not on the High Street and Headspace.

Screenshots of DoubleTree by Hilton and Starbucks Coffee's Twitter Account

Step 4 – Create some branded templates

If you’re promoting content or videos, then having some templates up your sleeve is a good idea.

You can add branding to your content with frames or logo watermarks to help you stand out and make your tweets instantly recognizable. If it’s a video, don’t forget to add some captions, using Rev.com.

If you are sharing images then make sure it is correctly sized. There’s nothing that frustrates me more than incorrectly sized images on a platform. Canva premium allows you to create one image, and click re-size to any other format. Easy peasy.

You could add your website here or your LinkedIn profile.

Step 6 – Add your location

This is useful to help people find you in Twitter Search and for Twitter to establish what content is relevant to you.

Step 7 – Find people and topics to follow

When you set up your account, you may have been asked if you want to link your contacts, if you said yes, Twitter will see if your contacts are on Twitter.

My suggestion is to search by your keyword hashtags first and find related accounts. Once you find relevant accounts Twitter will start offering your suggestions.

Also follow Twitter Business to stay up to date with how the platform is developing and get ideas for promoting your business.

Top Tips for Managing your Twitter Business Account

  • Check your competitor’s accounts and see who they are following and who is following them. You may get some useful accounts to follow that way
  • Check out the Explore section and select Topics that you are interested in
  • If you want to follow celebrities, comedians and news platforms, keep that on your personal account. Otherwise, Twitter is going to send your promoted content and ads and suggestions not related to your customers.
  • As you start to follow people, Twitter will start bringing up suggestions in “Who to follow.” Monitor this regularly and find new accounts to follow and potential prospects!
  • Visit the Twitter Explore page to find even more relevant topics to follow and people to engage with.

Hopefully, this has helped give you the confidence to launch your business on Twitter.

Check out these other posts on how to grow your business on Twitter and Twitter Tweet ideas for your small business.