Tweeting for networking is a mandatory to-do in today’s hyper-connected world. Here are some tips for networking on Twitter.

Don’t close the door
Jennifer Kane wrote an excellent blog post at the {Grow} blog about this topic. She writes:

In social media, you are much more than the wait staff at your brand’s content buffet – you are also the maitre d’.

It’s your job to not only serve up information for audiences to consume, but also to nurture each person that walks through your virtual door and escort them to the next destination in the sales funnel.”

Don’t close the door on conversation with quick one-tweet-fits-all type reply tweets like, “Thanks!” or “LOL”. That doesn’t leave the conversation open for a reply. The danger is that we might think we’re being polite and responsive when we’re really engaging lazily with one-sided intentions. Ask the person a question in your tweet like, “How will you apply my tips to help your business?” Or ask the person if they’d like to meet in-person to discuss business over lunch.

Don’t show favoritism… Research folks
You never know how the person that tweeted you could be of help to you and your business. Try to reply to most of your @ messages… even the ones that are people offering constructive criticism. Ignore and/or block people who are being rude. Research all the people with whom you converse by reading their profile bio and visiting the links associated with their profile.

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If you’re a rockstar with a ton of followers, it might not be easy to respond to everyone. At a certain point it might be worth it to invest in an assistant or team to help you handle your Twitter messaging.

Don’t link your Twitter feed to Facebook (or LinkedIn)
Don’t allow other social networks to post to your Twitter account or vice versa. This is a lazy tactic that will end up annoying your friends and followers.

Links Links Links
Dan Zarrella of HubSpot suggests that 60-80% of your tweets should contain links if you want them re-tweeted. He also suggests that only 0-10% of your tweets should be @ messages to other users. Now that sounds anti-networking but the truth is that you need to be pushing quality content most of the time. Engage in conversation when it’s warranted. It’s a volume game. Your production and distribution of high quality content must be the major focus.

Re-tweeting tips
If a person’s tweet is worth sharing, meant to be shared and short enough, RT their original tweet and add your short comment to the beginning. Also, re-tweet with substance. RTs like “Thanks a ton! RT …” goes back to what we discussed earlier with keeping the door open.