In the decade since it was founded, Twitter has grown from an ambiguous messaging service into one of the most ubiquitous communication tools in the world and arguably, a major player in pop culture. It is a social utility, a news source, and with the right strategies, a powerful tool for promoting your business.

And with more than 300 million active users, successful entrepreneurs are wise to take a strategic approach. A misstep on social media of any kind can snowball quickly, and a well-planned campaign can be the catalyst that helps skyrocket your business. Here is your roadmap for using Twitter to promote your business:

Build relationships instead of trying to close deals.

Twitter is not your virtual sales department, and if you treat is as such, followers will be hard to come by and keep; this is because there are few things that turn potential customers off more than the hard sell. Instead, use Twitter to establish a rapport with your audience, increase brand awareness, and ultimately drive traffic to your website.

Start a conversation.

When using Twitter to promote your business, creating and maintaining an active blog is a crucial step in the process. So, if your website is lacking this key traffic-generator, start one now before going any further.

Blog articles are the starting point for the conversation between you and your customers. Each post should provide content that is relevant to your business or brand, offers value to the reader, and engages your target audience by giving them some sense of your brand.

When you have fresh content on your blog, broadcast it on Twitter to lead your followers (and hopefully, theirs!) to the article. The goal is to build a Twitter following, turn followers into regular blog readers, then convert readers into newsletter subscribers, webinar attendees, and ideally, loyal customers.

(Read more on how to drive traffic to your blog from Twitter – and turn readers into clients)

Be yourself, not your business.

People aren’t willing to interact with logos or faceless entities for very long, so it’s important that they know there’s an actual human being behind your tweets. Build a Twitter campaign with you or someone on your team as the “face” of the account. You will find that people are more likely to connect with other people, rather than brands.

Want more details on how (and WHY) to build a personal Twitter account? Read this article that answers the question: Should I tweet as myself or as my business?

Post frequently.

Posting quality content on a consistent basis helps maintain a strong connection with your audience. Because each tweet has a ridiculously short shelf life, it is important to post throughout the day.

Don’t have time to spend jumping on and off Twitter each day? Not a problem. There are a number of scheduling tools available to help keep content flowing morning, noon, and night.

And if you still do not have the time to create content daily, you may want to consider outsourcing this function to a social media agency. We provide value to entrepreneurs and thought leaders by doing the heavy lifting: Creating and posting quality content in their voices, aligned with their brands. Learn more about our Content Development Services Here.

Interact!

Or “Engage!” as Captain Picard was fond of saying (my apologies to the non-Trekkies for the reference). Providing consistent content is one component of a strong Twitter campaign, but don’t make the mistake of ignoring your followers. Thank those who take the time to retweet your posts, find relevant content from others to share with your community, and find ways to spark conversations with your target audience. And as you gain experience, consider planning a Twitter event with giveaways to generate even more excitement about your brand.

Need ideas to get the ball rolling? Try this list for inspiration: Great Content Ideas for Twitter.