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X (Twitter) marketing for small businesses

X is optional. Here is who should bother.

X, which used to be Twitter, is fast, mostly text and mostly national. For most local businesses it is the last place to spend time. For a few it is the best one. This page helps you tell which you are.

Time:
10 minutes a day, if at all
Cost:
Free
Your Truckjust nowSold out of brisket.Back at 11 tomorrow!Your Truck2 hours agoTruck's at 5th & Mainuntil 2 today.Your TruckyesterdayStorm or not, we're opentill 8 tonight.A regular replied“On my way!”Right now

Is it worth your time?

Worth it if

  • Your news changes by the hour: where the truck is parked, what just sold out, whether you're open in the storm.
  • Your customers are reporters, sports fans, tech people or other businesses who are already there.
  • You enjoy writing short, quick updates and will actually reply to people.

Skip it for now if

  • You serve a neighborhood and your customers are on Facebook or Instagram. Put the time there.
  • You would only be copying over posts from somewhere else. An account that never replies does nothing for you.

Step one

The ten-minute setup, even if you never post

Do these in order, in one sitting if you can. After that, the only work is the weekly rhythm further down.

  1. Step 1: Claim your name

    Sign up with your business name so nobody else takes it. Add your logo, your town and your website.

  2. Step 2: Write a bio that says what and where

    One sentence: what you do, who for and which town. Use the same sentence you use everywhere else.

    Pick your one sentence →

  3. Step 3: Pin one post

    The pinned post sits at the top of your profile. If you plan to post here, pin your hours or your booking link. If you don't, pin a post saying where to find you.

  4. Step 4: Follow your town

    Local reporters, the chamber of commerce, neighboring businesses, the high school teams. Your feed becomes a local news wire, and replying to them is how locals notice you.

What to post

Short, current and useful. If it could have been posted last month, it belongs somewhere else.

  1. 01

    The right-now update

    Whatever changed in the last hour that a customer would want to know.

    “Sold out of brisket. Back at 11 tomorrow.”

  2. 02

    A reply

    Most of the value here is in replying: congratulate, answer, recommend another local business.

  3. 03

    One line and a photo

    The same real photo you would post anywhere else, with a single sentence.

  4. 04

    Customer service in public

    If someone asks or complains, answer quickly and kindly. Everyone else is watching how you handle it.

Compare the other channels →

A rhythm you can keep

10 minutes a day, if at all
When something changes
Post it, in one or two sentences
Once a day
Ten minutes replying to mentions and two local accounts
Once a month
Check the pinned post is still true

Mistakes to skip

  • Auto-posting from Facebook, which leaves a cut-off sentence and a link.
  • Getting pulled into arguments. A business account never wins one.
  • Strings of hashtags.
  • Leaving an abandoned account with old hours. If you stop, pin a post that points to where you are active.

Do this today

Search X for your business name and your town. If people are mentioning you, reply. If nobody is, claim your name, pin a post pointing to your Facebook page or website, and spend your time elsewhere.

Read next

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Make your business details match everywhere online

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· 2 min read

The other channels

Compare them all →

Membership

Stuck on what to do next? Ask people who do this every day.

Members get a private group for questions and feedback, plus members-only playbooks. $99.99 a year — about $8.33 a month.

See what's included