Before we go any further here’s the disclaimer:
Twitter is a great way to find and communicate with a large number of people who are interested in similar topics. I spend a large part of my day fielding questions about Referral Key on Twitter” @ReferralKey
The Reality
I’ve recently run into a number of small business owners who unknowingly (Or instructed by a “Social Media Expert”) are connecting with all of their customers/colleagues by finding them and then following them on Twitter. The reality is that your competitors can view your Twitter account and connect with the same people.
Quick Example
Joe’s Pizza and Dave’s Pizza are two competing pizza places. Joe encourages all of his customers to connect via Twitter, uploads his email list, and gets people to sign-up in-store. Six months later Dave gets on Twitter, finds Joe’s page, follows every single one of Joes customers, and begins building a relationship with them too. Not only did Dave do nothing to get a qualified list of prospects, but Dave’s success will come at the direct expense of Joe.
Expect this to become a much greater concern as more people join Twitter and the advantages of early adoption begin to give way to competition and clutter… uh… um … MySpace.
Isn’t it all about sharing?
Sure, I suggest you print out all of your existing customers’ information and mail it to all of your competitors because it’s the exact same thing. Excuse me… I’m mistaken, if your competitors rake your customer list via Twitter they won’t have to pay postage.
Closed Business Networks Versus Open Business Networks
Twitter is the optimal choice for certain situations and the thrill of connecting with hundreds of people in an afternoon is much more exciting than following-up after a Chamber meeting but beware, a closed business network like BNI, Chamber, Facebook, or Referral Key offers intimacy.
Your existing associates and clients are your biggest asset so be smart about business networking.
So Here’s The Question
In what situation does networking with existing clients/customers through Twitter (As opposed to the dozens of other more private mediums) outweigh the fact that you are offering your greatest asset up to anyone who wants it?
[...] Connecting with existing customers and associates means you are making your connection list public to your competitors for the taking; See Think Twice About Business Networking With Your Existing Customers and Associates On Twitter. [...]
I am not sure I’m with you on this one. Yes, the competitors can (and will) check and poach each others Twitter connections. But there are so many easier and faster ways of searching for targeted people to follow. Here’s an example - go to one of the Twitter directories (I personally prefer Twellow) and search using your keywords. In your example of two pizzerias (sp?), I’d narrow the search down to local using TwellowHood first. You’ll end up following many of the same people your competitors do, but without time-consuming picking-through of competitors profiles.
Second point I’d like to bring up is this - following someone on Twitter doesn’t guarantee them following you back. And if they don’t follow you back, you’ll be basically the proverbial tree in the forest - they aren’t going to hear you anyway. Nor can you DM them or build any kind of relationship.
Which brings me round to the next point - the relationship. I’m going to use your pizza example again. I mostly make my own pizza. But on the evenings I feel lazy, I order from my favorite place up the road (shout out to Gourmet Factory in Raleigh - http://www.gourmetfactory.com/). Almost daily I get coupons, flyers and other ads (print, direct mail and online) from about 5-7 pizza joints, including some other non-chain local ones. In the last four years I bought about 12 pizzas from the Factory (I don’t eat out much) and none from the other guys.
On the other hand, I see several good points about staying connected with past and present clients on Twitter, most having to do with listening for:
1. Any complaints they might have about my services (or my competitors services)
2. Any opportunities I can glimpse from their conversations
3. Giving them another way to connect with me
4. One more way to remind them of my services
5. Great comments I get about my services (which I can promptly Favorite and then use as testimonials)
6. Sending resources (links or referrals) that my clients might like or find useful.
I think the same logic can apply to adding associates, JV partners, etc to Twitter.
Besides, if your existing customers or partners don’t see much value in what you offer, they will go to your competitor regardless of whether the competitor follows them on Twitter or doesn’t.
Finally, what would you do when your relations with one of your Twitter prospects moves to the next level and they become your clients? Would you unfollow them?
Yelena,
I appreciate the feedback. It seems that you are suggesting that small business owners won’t be too concerned with tapping into each other’s networks because they can more easily get leads elsewhere; I do not agree.
Having access to your entire network is a huge advantage for a competitor, one that cannot be bought.