By now, you’ve likely heard of Twitter Spaces. If you haven’t, then you’ve at least heard of Clubhouse. Spaces is Twitter’s audio chat platform. When they announced their beta, the internet went crazy comparing it with Clubhouse and wondering which will outlast the other. Turns out, they’re both targeting completely different audience groups and are going in different directions. This week, we decided to talk about Twitter Spaces and getting the most out of the platform. And who else do we know who knows Twitter better than Madalyn?
Here’s a summary of our chat.
Guest: Madalyn Sklar
Topic: Getting started with Twitter Spaces
Format: Eight questions directed at the guest. Everyone’s welcome to share.
Because it’s all the rave right now. No, really, Twitter Spaces is far more than the flashy new thing in technology. It’s a great way for you to showcase yourself as a brand and your expertise in your field of work. Above all, it’s easy to jump on the bandwagon—there’s no barrier to entry. You don’t need fancy equipment, and regardless of your operating system, you can participate and even host live audio conversations.
A1b: The other great thing about Spaces is that it’s another medium for you to showcase your expertise and position yourself as an authority in your field. If you love to talk and audio content sounds fun to you, then go for it! #TwitterSmarterhttps://t.co/7jHHX2j92y
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
As Cindy added, Spaces is also an ideal tool for gathering feedback from your customers directly. Look at Twitter, for instance. They run official conversations on Spaces about Spaces so the product team can talk to their users in person and hear their concerns.
A1. Twitter Spaces is great place for fans/customers to give live and verbal feedback to brands. #TwitterSmarter
— Cindy Peña (@cindympena) June 3, 2021
The easiest way is to find and join Spaces that your contacts host. When you open your mobile app, if anyone in your network is currently hosting a Space, you’ll see it on the top bar of your app, indicated with a purple ring. It’ll be distinct from the blue ring of Fleets, one of Twitter’s (relatively) recent features.
A2b: Many people are also starting to include their Twitter Spaces shows in their bios. If you want to know when a specific person is going to be live, check their bio for the days and times. If the Space is scheduled in advance, sign up for a reminder. #TwitterSmarter
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
In addition, many Spaces hosts now include details of their conversations in their bios. If it’s a regular Space, you can set reminders and join them. Or if they’ve scheduled events already, you can also sign up to get notified when they start their conversation.
Another cool way to find relevant Spaces is to use Twitter’s comprehensive search bar. Use filter:spaces as your search term to filter out everything but Spaces-related tweets in your result. You can also select to view Spaces only from people you follow already.
A2d: When hosting rooms in Spaces, you can now schedule them in advance. This allows people to set a reminder to attend.
Here's the link/reminder for today's #TwitterSmarter "after" chat in Spaces. Starts at 5pm ET.https://t.co/zBNcb9jrfl
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
Once you’re confident about running your own Spaces, schedule them in advance so your audience can receive reminders as well. These reminders are dynamic, meaning that they change as time goes on. This is helpful because if you see a reminder tweet an hour before a conversation starts, you’ll know exactly when to join in. In Madalyn’s tweet, you’ll see that the reminder has expired because the Space has already ended.
To get access to multiple Spaces, make sure you follow people tweeting and talking about a variety of your interests, as Rod told us. This will increase your chances of seeing someone in a Space when you open your Twitter app.
A2. By connecting with people who have my same interests or line of work. Either in FB groups or thru hashtags on Twitter. Another way I fell into was because I was invited to another Twitter chat. That was a good gateway. #twittersmarter
— Rod Zapién (@rodzapien) June 3, 2021
The most important thing to remember when you’re hosting a Space is to stick to the topic as closely as possible. If you ramble on off-topic, you’ll risk losing listeners.
A3b: Another tip for being a good host is to allow other speakers and listeners to chime in with their thoughts and opinions. Don’t hog the mic! If you don’t want to interrupt the flow of the conversation, hold a Q&A at the end. #TwitterSmarter
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
It’s also crucial to share the mic with your listeners. Twitter Spaces is all about having conversations, so enable discussions to flow in both directions. If you’re having a panel discussion of sorts and don’t want audience interruptions, including a Q&A at the end so that your listeners can participate too.
For more advice about hosting your own Space, check out Madalyn’s article about May King Tsang and how she uses Twitter Spaces: Joining and Hosting Twitter Spaces: Real Advice From a Beta Tester
Jette from Social Media Today also shared a great tip. When you’re hosting a Space, be sure to set ground rules early on about how you want your Space to be. This is a great way to set people’s expectations early on so that they don’t feel disappointed if you’re interviewing someone and don’t invite audience questions in between. Tell them how you plan to run your Space so that you can focus on your conversations without disruptions.
A3: You and @cgritmon do a great job! I'd say laying out "ground rules" from the very beginning, and being a kind moderator, who can be firm when needed to keep the conversation focused is key. – Jette #TwitterSmarter
— Social Media Today (@socialmedia2day) June 3, 2021
There are a few ways to give your Space a lasting life. One is to take notes during conversations and use them to create a summary blog or quote-based tweets later on.
Some people even collect tweets that are pinned to the Nest (the top section of a Space where people can display tweets for all listeners to see) and create a Twitter Moment of those.
A4b: I’ve seen some people create Twitter Moments out of tweets that were shared during a room in Spaces. This is a great way to repurpose the conversation and have it live on long after the room ends. #TwitterSmarter
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
As recently as last week, Twitter introduced Spaces for desktop where you can listen to conversations on Twitter web. Because it’s a bigger and easily navigable screen, you can copy-paste the transcriptions from a Space and create an article based on the conversation.
A4d: Some people, like myself, record their rooms in Spaces so they can be repurposed into a podcast. That's what @BigTentSocial and I have done with our weekly #AllThingsAudio room.
https://t.co/iCMXdeGqXJ#TwitterSmarter— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
Of course, the most popular and highly-discussed option is to record your Spaces so you can convert them into podcasts later. A great example of this is the #AllThingsAudio Space that Madalyn and Suze Cooper host together, and have since converted into a podcast. Check it out here: All Things Audio with Madalyn and Suze
Twitter is currently rolling out a new feature called the Tip Jar, which allows your audience to pay you. You can use this to encourage your listeners on Spaces to donate. Learn more about the feature here: About Tip Jar
A5b: It’s important to note that the Tip Jar is currently being tested with a small group. Not everyone has it yet. If you want to monetize your Twitter presence, it’ll be smart to add it once the feature hits your account. #TwitterSmarter
Learn more ?https://t.co/pQ70W3CwRX
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
Once you get access to the feature, you can add a bunch of different payment gateways, including PayPal, Venmo, and CashApp. The Verge also covered the potential of the Tip Jar feature. Read their analysis here.
A5d: Here's more about the new Tip Jar feature. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/JMbnSprHTc
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
Another way you can monetize Twitter Spaces is by hosting sponsored Spaces, as Christine pointed out. This means that as a host, you can run live Spaces and conversations on behalf of other brands or causes and get paid for it. It’s a bit like a sponsored podcast or like emceeing for a high-profile event.
A5.
I'm sure someone somewhere is already hosting SPONSORED Spaces, much like a sponsored podcast but live.#TwitterSmarter— Christine Gritmon ❤️ #ChatAboutBrand (@cgritmon) June 3, 2021
One of the most unique features of Twitter Spaces is the ability to react during the live conversation. While speakers usually have the chance to express their thoughts in an audio conversation, listeners don’t often have a way to show their appreciation. If you’ve used Clubhouse, you’ll know this only too well—you have to request the mic and get on stage even just to thank the speakers. With Twitter Spaces, you can react with any of the following five emojis: ? ✊ ✌️ ? ?
A6b: Another great feature is that you can turn on captions, making Spaces accessible for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. This is important to ensure your content can be consumed by anyone who wants to tune in. #TwitterSmarter
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
Another brilliant feature is live captions. This helps people who have trouble hearing or understanding a language by listening, so they can visually see what’s being said as well.
With its recent launch for web, Twitter Spaces is truly overcoming the barriers to entry for most people. If you’re using the mobile app, make sure that you’ve updated your app to the latest versions so that you have the best experience.
A6c: While Twitter initially started for iOS only, it is now available for Android and just last week can be accessed on desktop.
Also, Spaces works best on mobile when you download the most recent app update. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/ZeFZfIuw3x
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
Javier reminded us about another big benefit of Twitter Spaces—the ability to pin/feature tweets on the top of a space during the conversation. Referred to as the Nest, this area and the tweets featured act as a reference point for people during the conversation. This is a great way to give additional context to people who join the room in a middle of a conversation. It’s also ideal to showcase proof of your points and expertise when you’re speaking in a space.
A6: I like the way you can feature a tweet during a chat. It's cool because you can make reference to a chart or statistic. It adds value to the discussion. #twittersmarter
— Javier Sanabria (@SanabriaJav) June 3, 2021
As with all social media experiments and campaigns, observe your analytics closely. After joining and/or hosting a few Spaces, see if there’s been a change in your followers or engagement. Regularly check analytics.twitter.com to understand your performance over a period of time.
A7b: Be sure to review your Twitter analytics regularly to see the results of your time spent in Spaces. I've noticed over the past several months a big increase in my impressions, profile visits, and followers.
You can access them here:https://t.co/8WRP5jPRDG#TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/MvwORNdT5f
— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
Madalyn also has an article about how Gabbi, a Twitter Spaces host, uses the feature and has got impressive results. Check it out here.
A7c: Check out my case study article featuring @IAMSHE6. She’s been hosting rooms in Spaces with impressive results including an increase in new followers and skyrocketing profile visits. #TwitterSmarter
https://t.co/e6CpU6Ybv9— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
Rachel from Express Writers told us about another metric to keep an eye on: your purchase rates and email newsletter subscribers. This is a great little metric because an increase in subscribers indicates that people have followed through from Twitter to your website to see what you do. It’s a good start to nurturing your audience into customers.
A7: Take some time to watch what happens after you go live on Spaces. Are you getting more followers and engagement? Are people joining your list or buying an offering? #TwitterSmarter
— Express Writers | Your Content Writing Partner (@ExpWriters) June 3, 2021
Madalyn recommended May Kin Tsang and shared an article they did together about getting the most out of Twitter Spaces. Check it out.
A8a: My friend @MayKingTea has been doing an amazing job with the Twitter Spaces she’s hosting. In fact, I even have a case study about her experience on my blog!
https://t.co/uqmBSdU2Eh #TwitterSmarter— Madalyn Sklar ? Digital Marketing Since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) June 3, 2021
Jennifer’s favorites include Madalyn, Joselin Mane, and Samantha Kelly.
A8: @MadalynSklar @JoselinMane @Tweetinggoddess are a few folks that make me stop what I'm doing to see what they're doing every time I see them hosting Twitter Spaces. #TwitterSmarter
— ? Jennifer Navarrete (@epodcaster) June 3, 2021
Some other recommendations include Anna Scheller, Manish Pandey, and Esther Ocampo, among others.
Well, folks, that’s all from me this week. Thanks a lot for reading, and for more insights from our chat about Spaces with Madalyn, browse through this Twitter thread. If you liked this summary, then come join us in the live chat–you’ll like it even more. We’re at #TwitterSmarter every Thursday at 1pm ET. Catch you then!
About me, Narmadhaa:
I write all the things—technical and marketing copy to fill the pocket; haiku and short stories to fill the soul. A social media enthusiast, I’m a member of the #TwitterSmarter chat crew, and always happy to take on writing gigs.
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