Whether you’re a large or small business, you should harness the power of social media to grow your business, create brand loyalty and engage with your consumers, readers and clients.
For us here at Fat Kid Deals, Twitter has been our most important social media channel over the last decade. In fact, at our current pace, we’re adding roughly 100,000 followers per year — and today, we wanted to share those tips and tricks that got us there. These are the strategies our team has used consistently over the years to develop our large and loyal audience.
Post Consistently and Stick to a Schedule or Cadence
When creating a Twitter account for your business, one of the best things you can do to build the page is have a consistent posting schedule. New followers will want to see what they can expect from your account and the value you can provide to them. Better yet, thanks to Twitter’s chronological timeline, the best way to get in front of new followers is to be consistent with how and when you are posting.
Don’t Treat Twitter Like Facebook or Instagram
While it may be easier to repurpose your content for multiple social media platforms all at once, the end result is that your posts will look automated and stale. In the long run, they’ll draw less engagement than if you had taken the time to create content specifically for Twitter. It’s important to have a nuanced strategy that takes into account your audience on each platform and create content that resonates with them on each individual social media channel.
Join In on Social Media Trends to Engineer Virality
We will be the first ones to tell you that there’s no secret “sauce” or formula to go viral, but there are some tips and tricks you can use to increase your chances.
By regularly observing your target communities and staying plugged into larger discourse and trends on Twitter, you can use your brand voice that propels your account into the limelight.
For example, we’ve found many different methods of going viral when scrounging for deals. One of our favorite ones was the “Harambe Cheeto” eBay listing. We Tweeted about it in typical FKD fashion, and before we knew it, the tweet made its way onto Jimmy Kimmel Live and even coverage on the BBC.
Be Topical, But Mindful of Your Tone
While participating in trends and attempting to rack up the engagement, it’s important to think of all angles and make sure that you aren’t stepping over the line. After all, you don’t want to be the Twitter main character of the day, or have a large story center in on your account.
We’ve seen brands try to jump in on the conversation and totally miss the mark plenty of times — such as DiGiorno’s, as you can see here.
Conduct Fun Product Giveaways
Running giveaways are one of the most tried and true methods for finding new followers. People get excited about the chance of winning free products they love, so you’ll want to make sure the product(s) you are giving away align closely with your audience. It’s also important to make sure the value of the giveaway is appropriate for the expected reach of the campaign, as well as the amount of work you are asking your followers to put in.
You also have to look at the quality of follower gained in a giveaway: Will you be drawing in from your target audience, or adding followers who are unlikely to engage with your content and eventually unfollow? These are important considerations to weigh as part of your larger social media strategy.
Understand That Social Media Isn’t a Side Project
If you’re starting a Twitter account to “get rich/famous quick”, you’re out of luck. Managing a successful Twitter brand is hard work and something that you cannot just set and forget. It requires active maintenance in all forms — posting, replying, planning and more. You need to put in the time, day-in and day-out, to see the fruits of your labor really pay off.
Have Some Personality
We’ve been known to roast people, brands and everything in between. Humor is intertwined with our brand personality. Humor isn’t necessarily the best route for every brand, but you’ll want to add “human” elements that can make your account more personable and approachable, and not just words on a screen.
Join In the Larger Conversation
Sometimes the best way to grow your Twitter — or any social media channel for that matter — is to go beyond it. Chances are, your product, service or topic is being discussed in other places such as Discord or Reddit. We have found that maintaining our brand in these channels and providing the same consistency as our Twitter has helped us grow our presence across the social media ecosystem.
Another great way increase your followers’ brand loyalty is to develop strong relationships with them. Some social brands and influencers decide that they’re going to be exclusive, but we are the exact opposite.
In fact, 99% (or more) of people that tweet at us get a reply within a few minutes. Our followers feel heard and connected to us, which strengthens our relationship. Whether you’re joining the conversation on Twitter or another platform, be friendly, helpful and accessible.
Bottom Line
Now it’s time to put these plans into action. If you want to make waves on Twitter, be active, helpful, human and work hard. The more thought and time you put into your Twitter (or any social media strategy for that matter), the better results you will see. Lastly, be patient. The first few thousand followers are the hardest to earn, but with these tips in mind, you’ll get there before you know it.