The most fun thing about Twitter these days, and the most frustrating, is that no two days are the same. Constant changes to the platform and its algorithm are making it challenging for brands to stay and win new followers on Twitter. So this week on the chat, we asked content marketing strategist, Teodora Pirciu, how you can go about building a strong following on Twitter. Here’s a summary of our chat.
Guest: Teodora Pirciu
Topic: Building a strong following on Twitter
Format: Eight questions directed at the guest. Everyone’s welcome to share.
This is a subjective question, but when you boil it down, we all follow someone because we like their tweets, their bio is engaging and convincing, and/or a friend suggested it.
A1. Why I might follow you on Twitter:
❤️ I like your tweets
✨ Your Twitter bio is awesome
👉 Someone I follow suggested I should follow you.It's that simple. #TwitterSmarter
— Teodora Ema Pirciu (@EmaPirciu) April 20, 2023
From a business perspective, you might follow someone because their content is educational and relevant to what you do, as our friends from VirtuDesk pointed out.
A1: We follow someone on Twitter if their content is relevant, informative, and educational. 😊#TwitterSmarter
— VirtuDesk (@virtudeskcom) April 20, 2023
By joining conversations and being an active part of the community. This means you’ll have to be more social and conversational, but you don’t necessarily have to have an opinion about everything. Get involved in matters that matter most to your brand.
A2. Brands stand out on Twitter when they get involved in the right conversations.
👉 So, more being social and less broadcasting.
❌ It doesn't mean brands must have an opinion about everything, though.
That's what influencers are for. #TwitterSmarter
— Teodora Ema Pirciu (@EmaPirciu) April 20, 2023
Madalyn suggested looking at what others are doing and making sure you’re doing something different. Use Twitter’s extensive features in creative ways to connect with your community. Run Twitter Spaces, participate in chats, jazz up your profile, and use a variety of content formats to appeal to your target audience.
A2: Be creative! Don’t just do what everyone else is doing on Twitter. Find ways to differentiate yourself from competitors and add value in unique ways. For instance, have a profile that is visually appealing and also take advantage of features like Spaces. #TwitterSmarter
— Madalyn Sklar Digital Marketing since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) April 20, 2023
Another good way to ensure you stand out from the competition is to take a stance on something that matters to you and your industry, as George suggested. It’s not always easy, as people may interpret it as political or polarizing. However, holding your ground attracts the right kind of audience to your brand.
It is more important to be different (in a meaningful way) than to be better. #TwitterSmarter
— George Silverman | The MindSkills Guy (@GeorgeSilverman) April 20, 2023
Quality always trumps quantity. As our guest pointed out, there’s no point in having millions of followers unless you can generate some form of revenue, goodwill, or credibility from it. On the other hand, having a few hundred highly-engaged followers will probably give you more value.
A3. There's no magic number.
Many would say the more, the merrier, but that's true only as long as you can generate some revenue from this.A handful of engaged people is better than a large passive Twitter following. #TwitterSmarter
— Teodora Ema Pirciu (@EmaPirciu) April 20, 2023
As Maithilee also noted, the number of conversations you have with an audience that wants to converse with you is far more noteworthy than the number of people who followed you ages ago and haven’t looked at your profile since.
A3: I recently joined Twitter and always wondered what is a good number? But after reading your answer, I am glad that its not the numbers that counts but the conversations! #TwitterSmarter
— Maithilee B (@maith2009) April 20, 2023
The answer may depend on a variety of things. For instance, how does your audience feel about Twitter Blue? If your primary audience isn’t one to be swayed by the ups and downs of Twitter management and the Twitter Blue saga, then not having the blue tick won’t hamper your growth, as our guest explained.
I'm pretty public about not liking Elon. But I want the cool features. As a long-time Twitter power user, Blue helps me a lot. So I pay but I'm not happy to be helping him. #TwitterSmarter
— Madalyn Sklar Digital Marketing since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) April 20, 2023
That said, as Madalyn explained, she has strong opinions about Twitter management, and she’s not afraid to voice them. At the same time, as a power user of Twitter, she also appreciates the new features and the trials coming out from the company. She happily tests them out and shares her feedback. And so in Madalyn’s case, as her audience aligns with her views, Twitter Blue—and her support of it—might help grow her audience.
Hashtags are great for rallying people around specific topics, or events you’re organizing or attending. Many brands these days use hashtags to create and nurture communities rather than to reach and convert new audiences, as our guest noted. Hashtags are also great when you want to participate in an ongoing trend and share your own opinions.
A5. Lately, I've seen hashtags more as a tool to build even a temporary community around a topic or brand than to capture new audiences.
You can also use hashtags when you want to jump on a trend. #TwitterSmarter
— Teodora Ema Pirciu (@EmaPirciu) April 20, 2023
As Wendy suggested, you can use hashtags to live-tweet at conferences and communicate with fellow audiences in real time.
A5: I’m a big fan of hashtags for conferences. Capture the happenings and communicate in real-time. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/0KttRRywGP
— Wendy Terwelp (@wendyterwelp) April 20, 2023
Evergreen content, when repeated periodically, can bring in a lot of new audiences. Dedicate a large portion of your Twitter content to matters you know best about, and people will eventually catch on.
A6. Repetitive content is great for bringing the right type of Twitter followers.
Sure, cat photos and video tweets help, too but try talking about a topic you know well about 70% of the time instead of tweeting randomly about hot topics. #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/4eMCORnFUD
— Teodora Ema Pirciu (@EmaPirciu) April 20, 2023
As Pavel said, content that’s relevant, educational, trending, funny, and competitive are all great ways to attract new audiences.
A6: It depends. However, I noticed that these types of content bring in new followers:
-Relevant
-Educational
-Contests
-Funny
-Trending#TwitterSmarter— Pavel Stepanov (@pavelStepanov77) April 20, 2023
Consider starting your own chats and Spaces when you know you can realistically manage the workload associated with running them regularly. So many people like the idea of it, but underestimate the effort and time it takes to run chats and Spaces consistently. Before you get started, make sure you have the resources to sustain long term.
A7. Brands should start their Twitter chats or Spaces when they have the bandwidth and budget for such projects.
🚨 You need to show up ALL the time.
If you have a one-person social media team juggling multiple channels, just don't. #TwitterSmarter
— Teodora Ema Pirciu (@EmaPirciu) April 20, 2023
As Meg mentioned, however, it’s never too late to start your own chat or Space. If you have the capacity for it – and relevant content ideas – you can start and succeed at any time.
A7) Never too late. It can start from you/the brand being a part of other chats and then slowly building your own. When you have content to share on a regular basis, chats can help you build the community to interact with. #TwitterSmarter
— Meg (@WanderlustGirl_) April 20, 2023
Know your target audience. That’s the key to success on Twitter. Memes aren’t any different. Customize your memes based on your audience’s age and demographic. The last thing you want is for your audience to have to ask their children who the guy in the picture is.
A8. I learned recently from Akhil at @Impressa_LV that your audience's age must dictate the type of meme you use. Otherwise, people won't understand the message.
You don't want parents to ask their teenage kids for help whenever they see your tweets. #TwitterSmarter
— Teodora Ema Pirciu (@EmaPirciu) April 20, 2023
Be wary, though, when it comes to using memes, you have to understand the culture and the context of what you’re sharing, as Kaz reminded us. Don’t share a meme because every other brand’s sharing it. Find memes that resonate with your brand and personality and you’ll have a stronger impact.
A8: here's the thing. If you don't understand the culture behind the meme, it may not be the meme for you.
You may not understand the context. But memes can also help make fun of you and your industry, humanizing the brand some. #TwitterSmarter
— Kaz (@EternalKaz_) April 20, 2023
Well folks, that’s all from me this week. Thanks for reading through and for more great insights from our chat with Teodora, have a look at this Twitter thread. If you like this summary, you’ll love the real-time chat. Join us next Thursday at 1 pm ET for #TwitterSmarter. We also have an after-chat on Twitter Spaces at 5 pm ET. See you there!
About me, Narmadhaa:
I write all the things—marketing stuff to pay the bills; haiku and short stories so I feel wholesome. A social media enthusiast, I hang out with the #TwitterSmarter chat crew, and am always happy to take on writing gigs.
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