Can Twitter help you develop your business?

How do you use Twitter and other aspects of the social web to build your business? It's a question that lots of people are asking.

The internet is awash with social networks, forums, blogging platforms, online communities and so many other tools and services that it's difficult to know where to start - and even harder to know where to stop.

Twitter has gone overground

Twitter has been described as the fastest-growing communications platform ever.

For the uninitiated, Twitter is a handy way to communicate with friends and colleagues using short, bite-sized updates of 140 characters. As Twitter has reached its tipping point, more and more people are using it in new and interesting ways. It's increasingly being used for business networking, with lots of tales emerging about how new business relationships have been made entirely online.

If you're still slightly confused, here's a short introduction:

Twitter in Plain English from leelefever on Vimeo.

But how could an energy assessor or Home Inspector use Twitter to build their business? Outright spamming is frowned upon, so I think it helps to view Twitter in the wider context of the web: keeping up to date with industry developments; sharing opinions, news and interesting links; positioning yourself as an expert in your field; and exchanging ideas with like-minded colleagues. (Let's not forget the oh-so-funny one-liners. Or maybe we should.)

Liz Male (who you should definitely follow) has some excellent tips for new Twitter users to get involved in the conversation. There's plenty of discussion around the wider topic of energy efficiency, and lots to share and learn.

We're on Twitter as @nesltd. If you're an NHER or SAVA member that uses Twitter, let us know via @reply or DM and we'll add you to our lists of energy efficiency and property professionals - another way to get exposure.

Do people still write blogs?

They certainly do. You're reading one right now! If you're serious about positioning yourself online, then you should at least consider starting one.

A blog shouldn’t always be an exercise in self-promotion, but a collection of your considered thoughts on issues and subjects that are important to you.

Some example posts to get you started:

• Write a list of ways EPCs make the world a better place (of course, you are really telling people how your particular service makes your clients' world a better place)
• Interview a really interesting/controversial person in your industry.
• Summarise someone else’s blog post (even this one) and tell the author why they are wrong.
• Ask a difficult-to-answer question and invite responses from your readers. Write a follow-up post that explores one or more of the answers.
• Write a case study about a recent job you’ve done, the challenges you faced, and how you overcame them.

What blog posts and articles do you enjoy reading? That should give you pointers for what you should write about.

Write passionately but concisely. Use images, lists and shorter paragraphs to avoid your visitors having to plough through one very long block of text. And don't worry too much about design or search engines or immediate fame.

Don't forget the real world!

The temptation is to suggest that all this online activity replaces offline networking and business development. It doesn’t – it merely supports it.

Using the internet you can meet a wide variety of people, some of whom you may even end up meeting at industry events. That's where the good stuff happens.

So have fun, and good luck. Don't forget to leave your tips, tactics and personal experiences in the comments section below.

Recommended reading

You can find more articles about marketing your business by viewing our marketing bookmarks on Delicious.

If you're at all interested in the idea of using online (and offline) services to position yourself as an expert leader in your field, and the wider responsibilities and benefits that come with that, I'd highly recommend Seth Godin's book Tribes. It's an easy yet engaging read and is quite thought-provoking.