I admit it. I’m a Twitter gal and I absolutely love what Twitter can do for small business owners. It produces massive visibility, it’s a top-notch lead generation tool and a powerful networking platform.

Unfortunately, Twitter continues to mystify many small business owners who aren’t quite sure what all the fuss is about.

The good news is that Twitter doesn’t have many rules. It’s by in large all about using common sense, being polite and exercising good judgment.

But, that being said, here are five ways to ensure that your Twitter experience is a tragic disaster:

1. Toot your own horn too much.

Obviously, you are passionate about your small business and want to let the world know about its strengths and virtues. However, Twitter is not an advertising platform. It’s a social community. When you constantly shout sales pitch to your followers, they’re going to unfollow you. Instantly. Instead, try to immerse yourself in the Twitter community and join the conversation.

2. Use the default Twitter profile.

If you’re using Twitter as a marketing tool for your small business, then you need to avoid the default Twitter profile. That cute, little default cloud background is certainly not doing your small business any favors. Take a few minutes and put together a customized Twitter profile and brand your small business by utilizing all of that valuable advertising space. (And no excuses, you can even do this for free at MyTweetSpace.)

3. Tweet once a week.

Your followers have hundreds, if not thousands of Tweets flowing through their Twitter stream on a daily basis. If you think that your weekly Tweet is going to get noticed, you need to reset your thinking. Twitter works best when your followers see your Tweets flow through their stream again and again. Repeated exposure is the only way to get noticed on Twitter.

4. Don’t interact with your followers.

There are all sorts of nifty Twitter automation tools that can help manage your time on Twitter. And I’m a big believer in sending out a few automated Tweets. But, if you want Twitter to work, you actually need to personally log into your account and send out Tweets. Answer questions, retweet your followers, make conversation. Your followers want to see a real person in front of your small business. They’re not looking for a bunch of automated, impersonal Tweets.

5. Give up too soon.

This is one of the most common problems of Twitter. In fact, Twitter has one of the highest “drop-out” rates of any social networking platform. And, it’s a shame. Small business owners everywhere, start on Twitter only to drop out a week later. Twitter isn’t an instant fix for your business. It’s a relationship tool and relationships take time to develop. So, give Twitter the time that it deserves and it will reward you.

Whether you’re a Twitter newbie or a seasoned Twitter professional put these five tips into play and make your Twitter experience one that truly benefits and grows your small business.

So, you’ve jumped on the Twitter bandwagon and have embraced the experience wholeheartedly.

You’re doing everything that you should be doing, Tweeting out industry tips, quotes and strategies, connecting with targeted followers and spreading the word about your small business.

But, there’s one problem. You’re spending hours a day on Twitter. You don’t have time to write your blog posts, you aren’t sending out press releases and worst of all, you haven’t spent the time that you should on your small business.

So, what’s a Twitter-lover to do?

Here are three quick and easy ways to manage your time on Twitter:

1.      Consolidate.

Your Twitter home page isn’t configured for time-management. It’s cumbersome and requires you to click back and forth between screens in order to access your Twitter stream, replies, and messages.

Instead, use a software application such as Tweetdeck to organize and categorize your Tweets all in one place. The best part is that it’s a free application that no Tweeter should be without.

2.      Automate.

There’s no reason why you need to log into your Twitter account several times a day, just to send out industry quotes and tips. There’s software that can do the job for you. My personal favorite is Socialoomph and it allows you to preload Tweets and schedule to send them out at a later date.

I’ve actually gone so far as to load dozens upon dozens of small business marketing quotes into Socialoomph and drip them out to my followers over time. That way, my followers see me and my small business pop into their Twitter stream several times a day (and most don’t even realize that the process is completely automated). It’s the perfect way to generate massive visibility around your brand.

3. Communicate.

Of course Twitter is a social network and it won’t work if you depend solely on automation. Therefore, get involved in the conversation and ask and answer questions, retweet interesting posts and interact with your followers. You should strive for a few minutes of personal involvement on Twitter about three times a day.

Even though Twitter is a fantastic marketing platform, it is only one of many marketing tools that you should be utilizing to spread the word about your small business.

Therefore, put these three tips into play to ensure that you’re not wasting valuable time and energy Twittering away your day.

There are still plenty of small business owners who don’t quite understand the whole Twitter phenomena. Sure, they understand the basics behind Twitter like how to open up an account and how to send off a Tweet.

But, what they don’t grasp is the sheer power behind this social network. Once you understand how to utilize Twitter, it becomes a dynamic marketing tool that brings you loads of leads and eventually makes you oodles of sales.

And just as author Robert Fulghum compares life to kindergarten, we can also compare Twitter to kindergarten.

Here are five simple reasons why Twitter is “child’s play” (as long as you play by the rules):

1.      Play fair. Believe it or not there actually are “rules” to follow on Twitter. Some of the rules are official (no spamming, no defaming, no aggressive behavior), and some are set by the community itself. And, the rules from the Twitter community couldn’t be simpler: listen and interact.

2.      Don’t hit people. There’s nothing worse than getting hit square on the head by a Twitter spammer. (And, as soon as you’re part of the Twitter community, you’ll meet plenty of them!) So, never, ever aggressively sell yourself or your products. Not only will no one like you or play with you, you’re likely to get kicked right off of Twitter.

3.      Share everything. Twitter is a place to share tips, hints and strategies about your industry. So, go ahead and share a link to your latest blog post, share a link to a great podcast and forward a favorite industry quote.

4.      Say you’re sorry if you hurt someone’s feelings. If you accidentally offend someone or make someone sad, go ahead and say you’re sorry. Always remember that your followers are real people with real feelings…if you think of them that way, you are destined to succeed!

5.      Live a balanced life. Sure, once you “get” Twitter, you’ll be giddy with how powerful it can be. In fact, you may even be tempted to spend hours a day connecting with your Tweeple. But, make sure that Twitter is just one of the marketing tools in your marketing toolbox. Balance your marketing and balance your life.

So, the next time you’re on Twitter, look at it through the eyes of a child, you may see that it’s not so difficult after all.

Many small business owners hop onto Twitter and aren’t quite sure how to find people to follow.  So, they simply start following anyone and everyone. Of course, they’re hoping that 50% of these people will follow them back and that their Twitter following will grow beyond their wildest dreams.

One of the most important aspects of Twitter is building a “targeted” Twitter following.  Keep in mind that it’s more important to have 500 targeted Twitter followers (related to your industry) than 5,000 general followers (unrelated to your industry).

The best way to begin to build a targeted following list is to follow Tweeters in your own industry. If 50% of your target market follows you back, then, and only then, have you struck gold.

Here Are 6 Ways For Finding Tweeters To Follow:

1) Follow Those You Respect and Admire. This is always a great place to start. Begin following anyone whom you respect, admire or simply want to establish a Twitter relationship with.

2) Follow @MrTweet. He will send you personalized recommendations of people for you to follow.

3) Follow Your Competitors. Remember, you want to keep an eye on your competitors, therefore, follow any competitors within your own industry.

4) Use The Search Tool In An Outside Application. If you sign up for a free account with SocialOomph, you will have access to their search tool. Once you enter the search term that relates to your industry, SocialOomph will present you with hundreds (if not thousands) of targeted people to follow.

4) Perform a Twitter Search. Twitter has its own “search tool” that you can access at: http://search.twitter.com You can type in keywords to locate Tweeters in your industry or locality.

5) Perform an Advanced Twitter Search. If you are interested in performing an advanced search, you can go to: http://search.twitter.com/advanced This allows you to highly customize your search based on your keyword specifications.

So, instead of following any Tweeter that you can find, refine your efforts and follow those who are related to your particular industry. This will ensure that you won’t be Tweeting in vain.

Obviously, you want your target market to have plenty of opportunities to find your Twitter account and follow you.
Here are a few ways to promote your Twitter profile:

Your Email Signature. It’s becoming common practice to include your Twitter handle in your email signature. You probably already place your blog or website URL in your email signature, so why not add your Twitter handle as well?

Your Website. Obviously, you want to have a Twitter icon on your website so that people who visit your website have a chance to follow you on Twitter.

Your Blog. Your blog is a great place to promote your Twitter account because you are already reaching an online audience. You should take a two-step approach.  First, place a Twitter icon in your blog’s sidebar and second, promote your Twitter handle in your posts every so often.

Your Ezine. If you have an email newsletter, you can write about Twitter and link to your profile or put it at the bottom of your template, so that each email has a link to your account.

Presentations. If you do any public or online speaking why not include your Twitter account on the last slide of your presentation?

Your Business Card. I highly recommend including your Twitter handle on your business card.

Your Articles. Whenever you write an article for a magazine, news website or guest post on a blog, include your Twitter handle in your byline.

Promotional Products. If you’re really serious about promoting Twitter, you can certainly take it to the next level:

- Twitter T-shirts: http://www.twitter-tshirts.com

- Twitter mugs: http://www.zazzle.com/twitter+mugs

- Twitter bumper stickers: http://www.zazzle.com/twitter+bumperstickers

So, if you want to bring in loads of new Twitter followers, make sure to promote your Twitter profile in as many places as possible.