Why Pet Industry Brands Need A Twitter Profile

Are you a Twitter Pro or a Twitter Avoider? It seems like most people and brands fall into one of those two categories.

And, we get it. If you aren’t careful on how you curate your Twitter feed, it can feel like the wrong place to be.

But, you can curate your feed, and if you are in the pet industry we believe you should be there.

Why?

First, because the American Pet Products Association (APPA) shared during Global Pet Expo this year that Twitter is on the rise as an online source for pet parents – it was part of their highly sought after National Pet Owners Survey.

Second, because when it comes to events, Twitter is a place that many people follow to get the latest info – both AT the event and from the comfort of their homes while dealing with fomo.

Events have hashtags. People have conversations on those hashtags. You want to be a part of those conversations.

That means pet brands should be on Twitter.

Three Benefits For Pet Brands To Be On Twitter

First, let’s be sure we’re all on the same page. When we say “brands,” we mean anyone who creates content or sells a service or sells a product (or twelve). If you are reading this you probably fall into one of those categories and that means you are a brand in the pet industry.

And that means, you should have a Twitter profile for more reasons than just to use the social media platform at events – and you should definitely use Twitter at events.

1. It’s YOUR Brand

We believe you should own your brand everywhere you can. People tend to run and grab a URL before realizing they should be grabbing social handles, too. Chances are, if you don’t have the Twitter handle for your business, then someone else will get it and you lose control of that part of your brand.

Try not to let that happen.

2. You Want “Share of Voice”

When there are conversations happening publicly that you can chime in on, you should. When we attended Global Pet Expo, we Tweeted interesting facts we learned, cool new products we saw, and we replied to what others were sharing. We also shared why we think pet brands should have a Twitter account. Maybe it sounds familiar?

3. You Want Your Customers/Clients/Audience to Be Able to Find You

Maybe you’ve heard that people like to find what they are looking for where they are looking? That’s true for your audience that is on Twitter.

Regardless of whether someone is following along on the hashtag of an event, If they search “cat toys” or “dog bones” or “cat/dog dental health” or…you get the point… if they search that on Twitter, you want to be able to be found. You want them to find your content or product or service. The only way for you to be found is to have a profile set up.

It does not take too much time to set up a Twitter profile. It can take anywhere from 5 minutes to 30 minutes, depending on how fancy you want to get. No matter how much time it takes, we believe it’s worth it.

You Do Not Need To Always Be Active on Twitter

We know you’ve heard this one. We continue to hear it from industry professionals, and well, we just don’t agree.

We don’t subscribe to the belief that you should only be online in the places that you can be (or want to be) active. We don’t buy it, and your customers aren’t either.

We do believe that you can have a profile on any social media platform and treat it like a landing page. Take a little time to set it up and direct anyone who finds you there on where they can go to engage with you, but don’t just ignore a platform because you don’t intend on using it regularly.

If we believed we just didn’t need it, it would remove all excuses we have to buy that one awesome pair of shoes just because they happen to go with that one outfit we own. Not all shoes are meant to be worn every day, and not all platforms are meant to be used every day, but when that day comes you want to be ready!

So, create a Twitter profile. Decide how and when you want to use it, but be there.

Let your people find you because you took a little time to show them who you are and where to go to engage.

You in?

About the Author: Chloe DiVita is an original BlogPaws Executive Team member. She’s been in the pet industry since 2009 and loves leading the PetBiz Collaborative, a membership group for small pet businesses, with Jessica Shipman. She also LOVES speaking and if you put her in front of a camera she’ll talk until you tell her to stop. It comes in handy as Executive Producer for TEDxCambridge and Co-Founder of The Mike Drop Method public speaking training.