Having a huge following on Twitter is nice for marketing. It can even give some companies an edge. Today I’m going to show you how to gain more followers on Twitter without following back! But before we get to it, let’s look at a little history about the platform.
Twitter is a social media network that enables people to send and share messages or snippets of information (280 characters max) known as “tweets”. Jack Dorsey, Evan Williams, Biz Stone, and Noah Glass created Twitter in March of 2006.
The company officially launched in July of 2006 and quickly gained popularity worldwide. Looking at recent usage statistics, I can tell you that the network still has lots of growing to do.
Twitter Statistics
While it may be growing a lot slower than the likes of Instagram, Twitter is still a massive player in social media. Here’re some usage and demographic stats.
330 million active users – Source: Twitter (last updated Feb 8, 2018)
1.3 billion registered users – Source: Business Insider (last updated August 3, 2015)
120 million unique monthly visitors to Twitter.com, including mobile and desktop users – Source: ComScore (last updated November 20, 2015)
100 million daily active users – Source: U.S Securities & Exchange Commission (last updated October 3, 2013)
There are 65 million users in the U.S – Source: Recode (last updated April 26, 2016)
21% of Twitter’s monthly active users are located in the U.S – Source: Recode (last updated April 26, 2016)
38% of millennials in the U.S have accounts – Source: eMarketer (last updated January 16, 2016)
83% of world leaders use the network – Source: PR Newswire (last updated January 23, 2016)
How to Gain More Followers on Twitter
Unless you’re already a famous celebrity or politician, you’ll have to put in the work necessary to grow your Twitter followers. Is it worth it? Yes and here’s why…
People like to buy from businesses that they already know, so establishing a following can attract customers. You just need to offer the right products. But first, start by creating a Twitter account for yourself, if you don’t already have one. Then, use the tactics listed below to attract followers.
1. Make Your Profile Follow-worthy
Your profile should be intriguing enough to entice others to follow you. Make sure you add a photo and try to use a personal photo for your avatar. However, it depends on the image that you’re trying to portray.
If you own a business, using your logo as the avatar is fine too. For your banner image, you can use a photo that clearly tells people what you do or at least able to create some kind of emotional connection with your target audience.
2. Complete Your Bio
Don’t go mediocre on your profile, complete your Twitter bio in full. Your bio should tell others about you and what you do for work. Most of us will read a bio before we follow a person.
3. Do You Have Other Social Profiles?
You are more likely to be followed by people you already know or have a connection with. So an easy way to grow your list is to share your new account with people who’re already following you on other networks.
4. Share Good Content
Curate content that others will find useful, funny, controversial etc. Don’t share stuff just because you want everyone to follow you. Share content that will grab the attention of your target audience.
5. Use Hashtags
Use relevant hashtags in all your posts. With this alone, you can gain thousands of followers overtime. Use Twitter search to see how a specific hashtag is performing or to see how it’s being used.
6. Create Valuable Content
Content curation is great but you also need to create your own stuff. Anything you publish on your blog or website should provide some value. This is important because you have to make a good first impression. To reach people on Twitter, share your content multiple times within the day. Why?
That’s because Twitter is a spur-of-the-moment platform and most people are not on it 24/7. So users who missed your post will still have a chance to view your content.
7. Use Images in Your Post
Adding images to your post will increase engagement and the likelihood that you’ll gain fans. Notice how most of what’s on your Twitter feed is text? When you add an image to your post, you’ll stand out from the rest. Here’s a good example of this:
8. Use Videos
You can attach a video to your post but it has to be 2 minutes and 20 seconds or less. A limitation set by Twitter. The platform lets you crop videos within it, so your film doesn’t have to be an exact length.
9. Tweet often
Tweet at least once or three times per day. Nobody wants to follow someone that never tweets! Incidentally, no one wants to follow someone that tweets every minute either. So manage your posts accordingly.
10. Add Variety to Your Tweets
Tweet about various subjects or topics such as sharing a thoughtful quote or photo of something cool. Don’t just tweet about yourself or your company.
11. Join a Twitter Chat
Groups within various industries get together on Twitter to discuss related topics. By joining and engaging with some of these discussion groups, you can establish new relationships, as well as hopefully, gain new followers.
12. Retweet and Respond to Other People’s Tweets
When you retweet other people that share similar interests, they may follow you. Use the @twitterusername to mention or call out anyone. They’ll receive a notification about it.
13. Share Your Profile
Share a “follow me” link on other social networks or your website. You can gain followers this way.
14. Get Influencers to Follow You or Retweet Your Tweets
This tactic doesn’t work all the time but when it does, it seriously kicks butt. Use the @twittername to call out a person. Make sure your post is something they’ll find interesting and hey, they just might retweet it!
15. Ask People to Retweet Your Content
Don’t overdo it but sometimes, it’s ok to ask for retweets. Add something like “please RT” or “RT if you like this” at the end of your post.
16. Repost Your Most Popular Tweets
Take a look at your tweets and find the ones that performed really well. You can measure performance by retweets, likes or follower growth, it really depends on your objective. By repeating your tweets, you can have it seen by people who may have missed it.
17. Promote Your Most Important Posts
Promote your most important messages such as promoting your live contest or speech. You may attract new followers, more likes and retweets this way.
18. Start a Hashtag and Promote It
Like many social media networks, Twitter is a distraction-prone platform. Use custom hashtags that are conversation starters. Public holidays can be especially advantageous but make sure you promote the post.
19. Use Countdowns
Build anticipation towards new products. For example, “You know that marketing e-book we teased about yesterday? Tweeting it at 12 PM EST”.
20. Exclusive Contests, Content and Promotions
Use exclusivity to drive engagement and reward your followers. For instance, “Follow us today for a chance to win an iPhone X 32GB”. Since Twitter allows a maximum of 280 characters per tweet, be sure to include a link to your landing page with more details about the promo. You may do a draw for the winner at the end of the week or month, depending on your goals.
21. Share Your Account in The Physical World
No matter what you do, whether it’s a presentation, podcast, handing out a business card, recording a video etc. Always find a way to link up your most important social media channels.
How to gain more followers on #TwitterClick To TweetI’m a freelance copywriter and SEO specialist. I aim to empower individuals and businesses with impactful marketing solutions and insights. In my downtime, I recharge by embracing the beauty of nature or cherishing moments with my loved ones. If you found value in this post, please consider sharing it.
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