Twitter Tips for Builders: Tweet Away!

Twitter has dropped the proverbial A-Bomb on the social media world. For those that haven’t seen a Twitter page or haven’t ‘tweeted,’ here’s the scoop: Twitter is an online message board of sorts. Users type in 140-character bursts called ‘Tweets’ to their followers. The idea is to start a conversation.
In short, builders in particular have a great tool in-hand to reach buyers like they never have before.
When you sign up for a Twitter account no one is initially "following" you. So while you can send messages to your heart’s desire, no one will read it because no one is subscribing to your 'tweet stream" yet (web savvy readers—think of it as a 140-character RSS feed). It’s up to the builder to get the company’s Twitter name out there to the world (So, in a way, it’s a blend of paper, digital, and viral marketing).
Once builders locate other Tweeters, you can follow them. Most buyers interested in a home will likely follow you back. And it’s quid-pro-quo: the builder gets to see any tweets they post to their account and your followers view your tweets when you post. Builders can add followers by employing tools that let you single out tweets from Twitter users you want to follow closely or otherwise segment into groups (Tweetdeck is the most popular at present).
Ultimately, Twitter’s greatest strength for builders is the fact that you can send targeted messages to buyers who want to know the micro-specifics about the community’s playground, nearby schools, running trails, and other amenities that you simply can’t get to with traditional media methods.
But like MySpace, Facebook and other social media sites, Twitter is routinely misused. Many ‘Tweeters’ take the 140-character limits to the max and spout off unintelligible messages in a language that appears to be enthralled with abbreviations. Other users comment on the weather, what they had for breakfast and so on and generate little to the conversation. But builders shouldn’t take the power of Twitter for granted—It is as useful a tool as you make it.
Recently, Lennar posted a great example of Twitter’s potential:
@LennarJobs: New Home Sales #job opportunities in Tampa and Orlando. Experienced candidates send resumes to floridaresumes@lennar.com
Anecdotally, it’s true that some builders are guilty of doing little else than posting home sales and discounts. Remember, it’s a two-way street designed to get a conversation going. If all you do is broadcast your message without contributing to other conversations, you’re going to offend more followers than you attract. Buyers looking for homes have big filters on and routinely ignore tired messages. You’re mistaken if you think that Twitter can be used to do business in the same old way.

Remember:
-Use Twitter as a part of an integrated marketing plan
-It’s a service. A very noisy service. The idea is to connect with your customers
-For a business, the best way to have a large following on Twitter is to be a brand people care about in other mediums. I can think of no better industry than home building.
-You need to get an understanding of how the service works, and then you participate in a meaningful way. If your goal is to have your marketing done in-house, it's smart to have an experienced web expert on-hand
-The best way for builders to have a large following on Twitter is to be a brand people care about in other mediums. Use Twitter to tie it all together!

Public Relations Experts Chime in on Twitter Use
From Amy Lewis, Renown Marketing (actual Twitter post here): renownmktg@nbajzek tips: 1. don't be all business - have a personality, share personally 2. engage in conversation instead of pushing your agenda
From Lyndsey Forster, Kleber & Associates: Lynzforcestir@nbajzek Stick w/ ppl in your area by searching. Don’t go willy nilly & follow everyone just to have a big audience!
Good point there—it’s not a popularity contest!

More Tips
-Help sales teams upload photos of new or exiting home stocks to Flickr and other photo-sharing sties
-Record a video of every willing homeowner at closing telling people why they love your homes and post these videos on your home page as well as YouTube (YouTube gives you an ‘embed’ code that allows you to easily feature the video on your site)
-Keep Tweeting! Communicate with buyers, employees and the press (Ed. Note: you can find me on Twitter: @nbajzek).