Twitter is a wonderful way to connect with customers. However, there are a number of mistakes users make that can actually cause you to lose followers. Whether it’s ignoring other users or over-Tweeting, you may turn off your followers. Thankfully, there are things you can do to improve your social networking methods. Here are just a few tips on how to become a master at Twitter etiquette.

Be Courteous and Professional
Just because you’re online, doesn’t mean you can act unprofessionally or forget your manners. When someone re-Tweets one of your posts, take the time to thank them. When making Tweets, keep the Tweets on topic and avoid using Twitter as an outlet to voice your opinions on something you’re angry about. Twitter is a place to connect with customers and offer them something useful – not a place to vent your feelings about a shipping company.

Don’t Over-Tweet
One big mistake people make is to over-Tweet. You do not want to overfill the feed of your followers. Instead, Tweet when it makes sense to do so. For example, you might Tweet once a day about an important news topic that revolves around your market and post weekly about one of your products. Whatever you do, do not over-Tweet about products.

Use Hashtags Appropriately
Hashtags are a great way to draw attention to your posts. However, you want to make sure that the hashtags you use are actually appropriate for your Tweet. For example, if your Tweet reads, “Dog owners who carry pet insurance have healthier pets.” you might use the hashtags, #dogs and #pets. You would not want to use hashtags on current hot topics, such as #politics or #Obama.

Keep Your Target Audience in Mind
When making Tweets you want to keep your target audience in mind not only when choosing the topic of your Tweet, but also when choosing the wording. For example, if you’re writing for business professionals, you don’t want to use acronyms that might be used by teenagers.

Stay on the Ball
Your Tweets need to be timely. If you wait too long to Tweet about a subject, you might find that no one cares anymore. You also want to make timely responses when people contact you or when you’re having a conversation with another user.

Twitter can help make or break your business. That’s why it’s important that you use proper Twitter etiquette. You want to make Tweets that draw in customers, not send them packing. Be good to your business and practice responsible Tweeting.

About the Author: Kit Soard is a marketing expert who loves teaching business owners how to properly use social media sites like Twitter properly. When she’s not working, she enjoys working on her personal websites and loves adding smileys from myemoticons to her Tweets.