Five Ways to Generate eCommerce Leads on Twitter [Customer Story]

A great salesman always remembers that he has only two ears and one mouth for a reason -- you should listen twice as much as you speak. 

The same applies to driving eCommerce traffic from Twitter. You should be listening (reading) more than you are speaking (Tweeting).

Goodbye Crutches offers alternatives to crutches for those recovering on one foot after injury or surgery. To practice the above mantra in our Twitter marketing, we "listen" (search) for customers using keywords that indicate the need for our service. When we hear “I’m on crutches” we see a prospect. When we hear “I hate crutches” we see a customer.

Beyond the obvious keyword "crutches," we look for keywords that speak to the procedures our products help to overcome. For example, one recent tweet about “ankle surgery” helped lead us to a new sale:

Beyond searching for target keywords, Twitter is just like many other sales channels. Here are five ways to help your eCommerce marketing team master the art of the close on Twitter. 

Qualify the Customer

By clicking on the prospect's Twitter profile, it’s easy to eliminate those with little chance of purchasing. For us, if they live outside the US, they aren’t a customer. If they are in grade school or high school, they aren’t a customer. If all of their tweets include profanity, we don’t want them as a customer.

Personalize Your Response

Demonstrate that you have actually read and understand their tweet. By using words from the original tweet that led you to them, you prove to the reader that your tweet was specific to them. Avoid canned pitches that can seem too much like spam and cause you to lose credibility with followers.

Be Useful

People don't like feeling sold on a solution, they want to feel as though they've come to the solution on their own. We’ve found success by directing people to a blog article that directly addresses the specific need. Testimonials from past customers with a similar problem or a similar psychographic work well too. Never direct people to a product page.

Timing is Everything

Answering too quickly can seem like you are stalking but anything over a day can seem dated or the person may not remember the tweet. Since we track our social media terms in HubSpot's Social Media Prospects tool it's easy to routinely check on trends. We aim to respond to tweets at least four times a day as part of our eCommerce marketing efforts.

Show Some Empathy

While we get more retweets than we do Tweets that directly lead to sales, we believe these ReTweets still have value as they serve as referrals for our brand. Regardless of whether a visitor makes a purchase, we want them to have a positive experience with Goodbye Crutches. Acknowledging the person's need is the key to building a connection. And while they might not need us now, they may remember us in the future.

Got any other tips of the trade on Twitter? Share them in the comments.