Small business owners joining the X Twitter growing fast — but a hacked account or bad post can cost you. Learn the risks and how cyber insurance helps. The growth of X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, has been exponential over the past decade as businesses use it to interact with customers, share relevant news about their firms and industries, and post deals and promotions in real time. The transparency of the platform has attracted business leaders of every size to create an account and start engaging their client base and interested consumers directly. Seeing the success of CEOs building loyal followings should spark small business owners into joining the conversation and building a personal brand that can translate into real growth for their companies.
While business owners wear many hats, none are too busy to send out a quick post and scan their timeline for content their following might find useful. Business owners who treat social media as an afterthought are increasingly finding they can’t afford not to have a presence there. That said, showing up online also means showing up as a target — a hacked or hijacked business account can spread misinformation, damage a brand’s reputation overnight, or even be used to defraud customers and vendors. That’s exactly why cyber liability insurance has become such a standard part of a small business insurance package, right alongside general liability insurance and a solid Business Owners Policy.
“People want leaders who are real,” is a sentiment echoed by management professors and social media strategists alike. “They want to know what you think. Can you think of a more cost-effective way of getting to your customers and employees?” For a business owner in New York, a well-run account can be one of the cheapest, most effective marketing tools available — cheaper than a billboard, faster than a press release, and far more personal than either.
Think before you post on X
Many small business owners have to resist the temptation to engage with every mention or comment, or to share opinions about their industry that aren’t fully vetted. Interacting in negative conversations or sharing false or misleading information can hurt a small business owner’s reputation, which can, in turn, shrink the pool of customers interested in a company’s products or services. This is especially true for client-facing professionals — marketing consultants, IT consultants, and restaurant owners alike all live or die by their public reputation, and a single bad post can undo years of goodwill. That’s part of why professional liability / errors and omissions insurance is worth a conversation for any service-based business with a public profile.
“I don’t want to be a press release,” is a philosophy shared by more than one Fortune 500 CEO with a large personal following. “You have to take some chances. You have to put yourself out there.” That authenticity is the entire appeal of the platform — but “putting yourself out there” also means accepting some exposure, which is exactly what the right coverage is designed to absorb.
Learn to be an X pro
Small business owners can’t expect a following to grow overnight. It takes time, and by learning to post more effectively, small business owners can build a following they can be proud of. A few fundamentals hold up regardless of which platform is trending this year:
- Follow the right people who have good insights on industry news and trends.
- Be yourself — followers can see right through business owners who sound scripted or fake.
- Respond to people and engage in real conversations so followers know their questions and complaints aren’t going unnoticed.
- Know your risk exposure — a business account is a business asset, and it deserves the same protection as your storefront, your vehicles, or your equipment.
Building a following on X.com is a smart, low-cost way for small business owners to grow their brand — but growth online comes with new categories of risk that didn’t exist a generation ago. Whether it’s a compromised account, a customer dispute that spills into public view, or a costly liability claim tied to something posted online, having the right coverage in place means one bad tweet doesn’t turn into one bad year. Weinsurexyz works with small business owners across New York to build coverage packages — from workers’ compensation to umbrella insurance — that let them post with confidence. Learn more about our team, browse our insurance blog for more small business tips, or get a free quote today.
The growth of Twitter has been exponential in recent years as businesses are able to interact with customers, share relevant news about their firms and industries and post deals offered by the company. The transparency of Twitter has attracted many business leaders to create an account and begin engaging their client base and interested consumers. Seeing the success of CEOs on Twitter should spark small business owners into joining the Twitterverse and building a personal following that can lead to higher levels of success for their firms.
While small business owners wear many hats, none are too busy that they can’t send out 140 character messages and scan their timeline for relevant content that their following may find interesting. According to The Wall Street Journal, many business owners can’t afford not to be on Twitter. While Twitter can certainly be an effective tool for small business owners, it’s important to have cyberliability insurance in the event an account is hacked.
“People want CEOs who are real,” Bill George, a management professor at Harvard Business School and avid tweeter, told the newspaper. “They want to know what you think. Can you think of a more cost-effective way of getting to your customers and employees?”
Think before you tweet
Many small business owners have to resist temptation to become engaged with everyone who @ mentions them or provide insights about their industry that aren’t exactly proven. Interacting in negative conversations and sharing false information can hurt the reputation of a small business owner, which could, in turn, decrease the number of interested customers in his or her company’s products and/or services, the newspaper stated.
“I don’t want to be a press release,” Mark Bertolini, CEO of healthcare company Aetna, who boasts roughly 3,000 followers. “You have to take some chances. You have to put yourself out there.”
Learn to be a Twitter pro
Small business owners can’t expect their Twitter following to grow overnight. It will take some time, and by learning how to tweet more effectively, small business owners can have a number of followers they can be proud of. An article for Dop Design provided some insights on how to become a good “tweeter.”
•Follow the right people who have good insights on industry news.
•Be yourself – followers are able to see right through business owners who are fake.
•Respond to people and engage in conversations to let followers know their questions and complaints are not going unnoticed.
