Twitter Networking Hour

One of Twitter’s most powerful tools is the hashtag. From a simple hashtag, many people have created Twitter chats. The chats can be about a certain topic or hobby but they can also be about a certain area of the country, and the area-based ones are known as Twitter hours.  These Twitter hours are a fantastic way for your business to network locally without even needing to leave the house.

‘A simple hello could lead to a million things’.

We are very lucky in Coventry to have an excellent Twitter hour #covhour which runs every Thursday from 8 pm to 9 pm. On average, this networking hour can have between 50-75 business people chatting, so offers a great opportunity to network whilst sat on your sofa with a cuppa in your hand.

‘Networking is more about ‘farming’ than ‘hunting’. It’s about cultivating relationships.’ Dr Ivan Misner, BNI.

Remember though, networking isn’t about selling your products it’s about building relationships, so in the future people will recommend you and/or your services.

There are thousands of hashtag hours to get involved with ranging from area-based Twitter hours to UK-wide generic hours and also industry-specific hours.

Top tips for taking part in a Twitter networking hour:

• Make sure that the hour you get involved with is still active. You can check this by looking at the Twitter account and seeing if they have tweeted recently.
• Always remember to use the hashtag in your tweets and replies during that hour to make sure that your tweets are included in the conversation.
• Use that hashtag to search the chat for those that you would like to follow, retweet and chat with.
• Set up reminders on your phone each week for the hours you wish to join in with as timing is everything and you need to participate at the required time to benefit.
• Remember it isn’t about selling it’s about starting a conversation and building a relationship.

We’d love to hear your Twitter chat experiences and top tips. Tweet us at @POCakeMarketing.