Twitter – it’s all the rage. It can be an incredibly useful marketing tool in the right hands, but more often than not it’s a complete disaster. Why aren’t your Twitter efforts being rewarded with waves of eager buyers looking to give you their money? It could be that your Twitter page is turning them off. Let me describe why I’m not impressed with your Twitter background – and what you can do about it.
You Haven’t Customized Your Background at All
The first reason I’m not impressed by your Twitter page is that there isn’t anything to be impressed by. If your background looks something like light blue clouds, you’re sending me the message that you aren’t really a professional online personality worth doing business with. This also counts for any of the free alternate backgrounds Twitter provides.
Your Custom Background Isn’t Good Enough
So maybe you have customized your Twitter background, but I’m still not impressed. The main reasons would be that it’s too detailed, or not detailed enough. Don’t worry, I know I’m picky! But so are your potential customers. If your background is too gaudy, you may deter potential followers. If it’s too boring, you might as well keep your blue sky background because you’re sending the same image.
Your Background is the Wrong Size
You might have the greatest looking background in the world, but if it’s the wrong size, it’s going to look really funny. Twitter recently changed it’s page layout as well, so you may want to double check your page if you haven’t in a while. The problem here is that the (currently) 920px content area will always stay centered in your browser window. If someone’s using a smaller monitor, your fancy background could get all covered up.
This leads to a problem if you’ve used your background as a marketing tool listing all the benefits of doing business with you.
So How DO We Impress You?
If you want to impress me (and the occasional potential client) with your Twitter page, don’t worry – it’s not impossible. In fact, it may only require a few relatively simple tweaks.
First, if you haven’t customized your background, that should be your top priority. It’s no secret that building a recognizeable brand for your blog or website will do wonders for your business. You can read more about Building a Rock Solid Brand, a Remarkable Personal Brand, and How Not to Build a Brand all over the web. If your Twitter page doesn’t accurately reflect your brand, then you’re losing credibility. Make it recognizeable and make it match the rest of your online profiles.
Make sure you keep the design professional. Let it reflect the industry that you’re in and the customers you’re trying to impress. If you’re a financial investment guru, don’t spend your resources designing a flowery design from the 70’s. Know that your customers are looking for a brand that looks knowledgeable in the financial industry. They may not like childish themes. But on the other hand, if you’re a graphic design artist, that might be perfect for you! Just make sure it matches the audience you’re trying to impress.
Finally, make sure your design fits the Twitter page size properly. A quick note first – you can’t anticipate every size of monitor and screen resolution out there. Your background is going to get partially cut off most of the time. Don’t stress over it, the same thing happens to every expert Twitter marketer out there. The best thing you can do is keep it simple. Don’t try listing every aspect of your blog or online business. Make it recognizeable and make sure they know where they can go for more information. If you have to use text in your background, keep it short and test it with a variety of monitor resolutions to get a fit that will work for “most” people. Remember that matching your brand is your first priority, writing your long sales copy can be done on your website or Facebook page!
Now you’re ready to really impress me with your Twitter background. Believe me when I say it’s worth it to design one that is both effective and simple. Your customers will be more likely to follow you and do business with you if they recognize your authority. And sometimes all you need is a consistent color scheme to do that.