Use Social Media to Promote your Application

Want to top the Leaderboard for the $100,000 Small Business App Showdown? Do you need help activating your customers and community?  Want to promote that awesome application you built to find more customers?  We can help you! Through a combination of tricks and tips from the Intuit Developer team PLUS links to subject matter experts, we’ll help get you there.

How to connect with customers via social media

1. Create your business (or app) profile on popular social media services like  Twitter, Facebook, Instagram.
2. Tweet messages, share articles, “like” posts on: Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
3. Cross-post your posts — but, follow the rule of 7 (every 7th post can be a sales pitch; the other 6 should add value to the conversation outside of trying to promote your product).
4. Ask questions — run polls and surveys (SurveyMonkey is an easy free tool to try).
5. Engage in the conversation — what are people in your industry talking about? Insert yourself in the conversation. Use an already popular hashtag that also applies to your product or niche.
6. Answer questions on user forums — be a subject matter expert.
7. Blog about what you’re doing, what others are doing, and how you stand out in the community.
8. Use bit.ly to shorten links for your tweets and posts.

Here are some examples to help get you going as a social butterfly:

1. Sample Tweet: Are you a #smb? We have an app that <insert description for your app>. Follow us for more info! @IntuitApps (be sure to tag @IntuitApps in your tweet)
2. Sample Facebook Post: We’re part of the Intuit Developer family! Check out our page on the QuickBooks App Store! <insert your own apps.intuit.com URL here> (be sure to tag “Intuit Developer” in your post)

How to use Twitter to top the Leaderboard for the $100,000 Small Business App Showdown:

Be sure you include the hashtags #SmallBizAppShowdown #Contest when you tweet from your app’s Twitter Handle for it to count towards the Leaderboard ratings. Tell your customers to do the same when you ask them to tweet about you (and include your app’s Twitter handle):

• Example: Check us out on the @IntuitDev #SmallBizAppShowdown #Contest Gallery! http://intuit.me/ContestGallery
• Example: Excited to be a contender in the @IntuitDev #SmallBizAppShowdown #Contest http://intuit.me/ContestGallery
• Example: We help you run your #smb <because …>. Check us out on the @IntuitDev #SmallBizAppShowdown #Contest http://intuit.me/ContestGallery
• Example: Love using our #smb app? Write us a review & help us top the #SmallBizAppShowdown #Contest leaderboard! http://intuit.me/ContestGallery

What are the subject matter experts saying?

• How to use Social Media to market your business
• 11 Effective Ways to use Social Media to promote your content
• 8 Best Practices to promote your business on Social Media