TikTok and Clubhouse may be the social media platforms with the most buzz, but Twitter remains a stalwart in the social media sphere. According to Statista, Twitter had 69.3 million active users from the United States in January 2021. Without the buzz, Twitter managed to maintain over two-thirds the active users of TikTok, which revealed in 2020 that it had 100 million monthly active users.
Despite threats from other platforms, 15-year-old Twitter continues to be relevant and an important part of every brand’s marketing strategy. Even though Twitter has lost some of its luster, maintaining a strong Twitter presence remains a crucial part of a comprehensive marketing strategy. To help strengthen your Twitter presence, here are three tips for increasing your brand’s engagement.
Post Visually Appealing Content
No one wants to read a giant block of text on any social media platform, especially not one that is popular because it forces people to be succinct. Twitter has the stats to back that statement up. In 2018, Twitter Business shared that Tweets with a GIF have 55% more engagement than those without.
Twitter limits you to 280 characters per tweet, but a picture is worth a thousand words and a video is worth more. You create appealing photo and video content for Instagram and TikTok. Don’t neglect Twitter simply because it does not force your creative to be visual.
Twitter text threads should not be part of your marketing strategy. Long blocks of text are usually associated with political rants and legalese, neither of which will win over customers. However, people will engage with an interesting photo and share those they find amusing, educational, or stunning.
Interact With Followers
Engagement on Twitter is a two-way street. Theoretically, you can post on Twitter and do nothing else. Posting on Twitter and not following up is equivalent to screaming into the ether and hoping you get results. It is a waste of time and energy.
You should not feel obligated to respond to every single tweet directed toward your brand. Interacting is about quality, not quantity. You want to establish a rapport with your Twitter followers. That’s the reason Wendy’s remains the classic case study in how to engage successfully on Twitter.
With that said, responding with a “Thank you” when someone says something nice about your brand will go a long way toward making that customer feel appreciated.
Post During Your Peak Hours
Twitter posts are time sensitive. The general belief is that a tweet remains relevant for 15 to 18 minutes before it gets buried by more recent content. Therefore, it does not make sense to post on off hours. Twitter Analytics and other tools provide the data you need to determine when your followers are on Twitter. Once you discover the sweet spot in the day to post, you will increase the chances that your most desirable customers will see the most relevant content to them.
Twitter is an aging social media platform, but that is not a reason to neglect it. Many of these Twitter strategies can be used on other social media platforms as long as you post different content on each platform.
