When you set up your Twitter account, one of the most important things for you to pay attention to is the “BIO” section. You are limited to 160 total characters in your BIO, including punctuation and spaces. This is approximately 20 words, so every word must count and must help people to know what your business is, what it can do for them, and how they can find you when they want your products or services. You will want to give this some thought and include at least four things in your Bio:
1) The full name of your Business, especially if it is different from the Twitter ‘handle’ (“Username”) or the “Name” you used when you opened your Twitter account. This would certainly be the case if the name of your Business is longer than the 20 characters that they allow for the “Name” field, or if you are a sole proprieter and you used your own name for the “Name” field. IF you already have your complete Business name in the “Name” field, you do not have to repeat it in the BIO, but you can if you have enough room.
2) Your Business Address, so your customers can locate you. You also have the “Location” field to complete, but that is usually only for the City and State that your business is in. If you have a single store, you can list your full business address here. If you have several stores, you can list ‘Multiple Locations’ or state the areas or cities where the stores are located.
3) A brief description of your business and what you offer or how you make your customers lives better. You could also mention a best-selling product here if a lot of people will be looking for it. This brings us to the last thing that you need to put in the BIO and that is:
4) One or more Keywords or Keyword phrases for your business. Keywords, quite simply, are how a customer can find your business when they need your service or products. If you have a ‘Handyman’ business in Puyallup, WA, then “Puyallup Handyman” is probably your primary Keyword phrase, i.e., what most people would search for when they needed your services. Keywords are a very critical topic and one that I will address in more detail in a future post. Businesses that are primarily offline businesses often overlook very important Keywords that have the capability of significantly increasing the bottom line of that business when used properly as part of the business’ online Marketing efforts.