Top 5 Twitter Management Tips to Increase Your Followers Organically

People still don’t get it…

Twitter has been an influential social network for a long time now, but there are still marketers who don’t quite understand its power (or how to use it).

This is especially true when it comes to growing a big list of followers.

With a few small tweaks to your Twitter strategy, you can be well on your way to gaining loyal followers who will actively engage with your content.

Note of warning: Since quality is always valued over quantity, be sure to steer away from buying followers or adopting any other “unethical” methods of increasing followers.

Buying followers might look good on the surface, but if they never engage with your brand – what’s the point?

By gaining followers organically, you will access a group of highly engaged users who are more likely to convert and buy your product or service.

Here are 5 Twitter management tips that can help you build a long list of followers organically.

1. Make replying and retweeting a habit

Twitter is all about having casual conversations with your followers, and being as personable as you can be. Some brands that don’t really get the hang of how Twitter works often make the mistake of only talking about themselves, and posting jargon in each of their posts.

But in order to increase your number of Twitter followers, you need to bring yourself into the light by conversing with your existing and potential followers. Keep these conversations natural and free of any promotional content.

There are a few brands out there that are doing it right. Here’s an example from Olay:

Olay, the popular skincare brand, replies to questions and comments from consumers without fail. This tactic pays off down the road, and can get you more followers who truly want to engage with your brand.

There is also a lot of give and take on Twitter. When someone follows you, be sure to check out their profile and follow them back if what they do is relevant to your business. Also, when you reply to a particular tweet, mention the user’s name in your post.

Re-tweeting is another great way to show courtesy on Twitter. If you see a post on Twitter that is related to your brand or to the services/products you provide, retweet it. You can also add your own short comment to the post to personalize it.

2. Deliver good content consistently

Brands that publish informative content on a regular basis have a higher chance of increasing their number of loyal followers. People love reading new information, and the more informative you share, the more engagement you will get on your Twitter page.

Keep the 80/20 rule in mind when you are publishing posts. Around 80% of the content that you post should be purely informative while the remaining 20% can be promotional in nature. Also, try to alternate between text and visual content from time to time. Visual content can be quite appealing and draw more eyeballs to your posts.

Here’s one of Charmin’s tweets. The brand often posts tweets with creative images and subtle promotional content:

At times, you might not have the bandwidth to create fresh content or look for content that might be interesting to your followers. In these situations, it is good practice to use a content discovery tool for that extra bit of help.

Here are a few tools you can use:

• Storify allows you to find news stories and other content and lets you create your own stories by adding images, and text. You can then share your creations with others on your social media networks.
• Pocket is a content curation tool that lets you save content that you read on other channels for later use. With Pocket, you can easily group the articles together, and tag them for easy retrieval.
• DrumUp (Disclosure: I write for the DrumUp blog) is a social media content management tool that helps you discover share-worthy stories, which you can schedule for publishing to your Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn accounts.

3. Monitor hashtags and trending topics

The little pound symbol on your phone is now part of a huge tech culture. Hashtags are used to categorize the endless stream of content on Twitter, and can also make your tweets easy to discover. Using the right hashtags in your post can be very beneficial as they help put your tweet on other users’ radars.

To be able to use hashtags successfully in your posts, keep an eye out for trending hashtags that are relevant to your brand. While publishing your content, include a few hashtags in the post – emphasis on a few. Do not overdo it.

Also look at trending topics and try to publish posts that acknowledge specific events that are happening in your vicinity. This way, your followers will know that you are also involved in what goes on around you.

In June, JetBlue Airways sent out several tweets with the #LoveWins hashtag when the Supreme Court legalized same sex marriage. Here’s a tweet by JetBlue Airways:

Using hashtags in your posts can be a great way to raise awareness around an upcoming event, product launch or a contest as well. You can also create and promote your own hashtags through your Twitter posts. Just remember to align them with your marketing objectives.

4. Engage with influencers on Twitter

Find influencers in your industry and reach out to them via Twitter posts. Mention them in your posts, and engage them in conversations that relate to your brand. These thought leaders will in turn share your content, giving you more exposure to a larger network of users in the Twitterverse. If you are not quite sure about how to find influencers, the ‘Who To Follow’ lists on Twitter are an amazing resource for all to use.

If you can get an influencer to endorse your products/services, or mention them in a Twitter post, it can have a massive impact on the number of registrations or downloads you get for your product. According to a survey conducted by Augure, Twitter is the best channel for building working relationships with influencers in your industry.

However, it is important to be polite and give back. If an influencer does mention your brand, be sure to drop them a reply thanking them, and of course, retweet the post to your connections as well.

5. Promote your Twitter handle

One of the simplest ways to gain more followers is through the publicity of your Twitter handle. Create an eye-catching Twitter profile with an attractive header image, and a relevant profile picture. Yes, this means, your pet dog or cat can’t be on your profile picture!

Etsy’s cover photo on it’s Twitter page sums up pretty much everything that the website is about, and is also quite appealing.

Put up your Twitter details wherever it is possible. The best places are of course your own company website. You can also include your Twitter handle at the end of your blog posts and also embed a live Twitter feed on your blog page.

It doesn’t just stop there. You can also use offline marketing to promote your Twitter handle. Print it on company newsletters, brochures and business cards since this type of printed material gets circulated often. You can also include your Twitter handle in your email signature to give it more exposure.

Sum up

Twitter provides a sea of opportunities for people who want to market themselves or their brands. The key is to manage your Twitter account properly and be on the lookout for new ideas and trends that can be used as part of your marketing strategy.

Keep these 5 Twitter management tips in mind as you embark on your mission to gain more followers. Post engaging content, be courteous and give back to the Twitter community, get involved in conversations and discussions with your followers and influencers, and watch your number of followers grow!

Guest Author: Apurva Jog is a Content Writer at DrumUp, a social media management tool. She has penned down several articles related to social media management and content marketing. When she is not writing, she is usually catching up with anything that is trending in the social media sphere.

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