So why is it useful?

A retweet lets you pick up interesting info from around the web and, if you make use of the comment function, add your own views and opinions. It’s a great way to insert yourself into online discussions and get your company associated with important conversations in the industry or build a reputation for insight and thought leadership.

It’s also a convenient way to keep regular posting schedule if you have nothing new ready to go. However, before you go smashing the retweet button on everything you find mildly interesting, it’s worth keeping twitter’s own suggestion for businesses. You need to consider whether each article has relevance to your business; does it help you and your customers?

What should I retweet?

A mix of upbeat, interesting or fun news, trivia and jokes alongside stuff that builds your brand and sense of authority in your field. The exact mix marketing pros recommend is usually somewhere between 80:20 (other:you) up to a 50:50 split. It depends in part on whether you can spin your business articles as infomercials rather than straight ads. Whatever you do, as long as you aren’t spamming your feed solely with ads for yourself, you can experiment and see what turns out best for you!

Could you be more specific?

First up, positive customer feedback is prime retweet material. It let’s potential customers now that your current ones love your work while the reviewer is likely to love the exposure from a public shoutout.

Remember we mentioned an infomercial style? Articles related to your services – a bike shop might RT maintenance tips for instance – that let you talk about your business without talking about your business are fab.

Also, retweet yourself. Hands up: who knew you could do that? If a tweet of yours gets significant engagement consider retweeting it back out a few days later. The previous engagement stays on it so is more likely to attract even more attention the second time around.

As with everything – make sure not to overdo it. Flooding your feed with other people’s content runs the risk of annoying both your followers and those whose content you’re siphoning.