How To Use Twitter To Build Your Personal & Professional Network
“I want to build my Twitter presence and connect with industry leaders and professionals, but I don’t know how to use this platform, I don’t know how to get involved in conversations.” Does this sound familiar?
Building your Twitter presence and profile takes time, love, and tweets. It’s like any relationship. You have to put in the work or nothing good will come from it. As an avid tweeter (going on 11 years now), I can truly say that Twitter has become one of my favorite social media platforms. I’ve learned a plethora of information from a variety of people, I have secured freelancing opportunities, won contests, and I’ve had the opportunity to engage with some of my favorite celebrities (Justin Bieber did tweet to me once), and business folk. During the pandemic is when I really ramped up my tweeting, especially regarding social media marketing, and I’ve gained over 1000+ new marketing friends/followers, just from engaging and tweeting my thoughts and expertise. This was in no way planned. Having been in the pandemic, on lockdown, with no coworkers to bounce ideas off of, Twitter is where I spent a lot of my time engaging with other marketers. There is no hack to building your following or presence. However, there are 7 things that I believe every Twitter user should consider if they are interested in building their personal and professional status while also connecting with like-minded industry pros.
Here we go!
#1 - Tweet! Tweet! Tweet! Consistently.
I can’t emphasize this enough. You will not see engagement on your tweets unless you TWEET consistently! I’m talking multiple times a day, every day. It could be about your day, your job, tips and tricks for your industry, an article you found interesting. Tag users when you tweet, if it makes sense. Share your thoughts and use appropriate hashtags that could help amplify your tweet. Do not be afraid to express yourself. Decide what your objective is for being on this platform and cater to that. This may sound crazy, but the way this platform is set up, you have to commit to being present on there. They say the life span of a tweet is about 18 minutes (though this study was done in 2012, I’m curious to see what the stat is today). Imagine tweeting only once a day, and never engaging. You can’t build a community or a presence like that, especially if you’re just starting. Tweet away, tag appropriate profiles when necessary, and please don’t be spammy!
#2 Choose Who You Follow Wisely
The best part about social media is you get to choose who you follow, therefore, you are in control of what’s on your TL (timeline), for the most part. Who you follow will also aid in a better Twitter experience. From a personal standpoint, if you see tweets from users that don’t excite you or spark a reply from you, maybe it’s time you unfollow. The objective of the platform is to share your thoughts. Ensure that who you are following can help you get to a point where you are comfortable engaging in conversation. Conduct research on industry professionals that you admire, follow them.
Go through their follower/following list to see who they are connected to and start a conversation with someone that sparks your interest. It could be a simple hello, or maybe you feel more comfortable following them for a month to see what they share, and when the time is right, introduce yourself. Find a commonality. This has to be genuine. People will know if you’re in it for other reasons. Moreover, if there are companies you enjoy learning from, follow them too. You don’t have to keep yourself in a box of only following people. A lot of companies send out brilliant and informative tweets!
#3 ENGAGE in conversation
Nobody likes talking to a wall. This isn’t a toot it and boot it kind of deal (unless of course that’s your MO). You have to spend time each day engaging on the platform. If you’re just starting out, take some time to follow appropriate accounts, then get to tweeting! For example, when I first started using Twitter, I followed celebrities and then fans of those celebs and over the years I’ve transitioned to following marketing and business leaders, as those individuals align with my interests. Share updates about your personal life/work life, use hashtags to be a part of conversations (always research first), and consider engaging in Twitter Chats.
As defined by TeachThought, “A Twitter chat is a Twitter-based twitter public discussion based on a specific topic. Generally, there are pre-written questions that act as prompts”. This is a FANTASTIC way to help amplify your brand and connect with other professionals. You get the opportunity to converse with other accounts, firsthand. My Twitter acquaintance, Brianne, is one of the queens of hosting Twitter chats! She started a very niche Twitter chat called, PopChat, where each week you can engage in conversation about popular culture and marketing. This is a prime example of building community, engaging with other users, and an opportunity to share your expertise! Adweek Chat is also another fun Twitter chat to join in, and how I started getting my name out in the marketing/advertising world.
Click here to learn about How To Find Twitter Chats.
#4 Get outside of your niche
This is a tough one for some, but I highly encourage that every now and then you engage in Twitter conversations outside of your niche to better your engagement and personal brand. I am a marketer. I engage in a lot of marketing chatter, however, I also love to talk about food, politics, race relations, reality tv (give me some 90 Day Fiance please), and music! It gives me an opportunity to expand my Twitter reach and make relationships with people other than marketers.
I’m also an avid Black Twitter user, so my TL is very diverse in conversation. Being a part of unique conversations can open doors for you! Say someone in another field engages with you regarding J. Cole’s latest album, he or she goes to your profile and sees that you’re also a digital marketer, they have a successful small business but need marketing help, they slide into your DM’s, and instantly, a connection is made. Granted that isn’t always the case, but it is possible. This brings me to point number five.
#5 Optimize Your Bio
You’ve heard of the 10-second elevator pitch, right? Your bio is very similar. When people land on your profile, they will read your bio. What you type in there is crucial to whether people follow you or not. Here are a few things you may want to include: your professional title, email, website, or some way for people to reach you, some fun facts, and what you tweet about (if this fits), and keywords that describe your role. You don’t need to bombard your bio with a ton of hashtags, just keep it simple. Below is a screenshot from one of my favorite follows, Amanda Natividad. Her bio is simple and I still get an idea of what she likes, what she tweets about, and where she works and used to work. Similar to Amanda, another favorite of mine, Sidra, has a great bio! I know what she does, what she tweets about, and what she likes! Take the time to scroll through someone’s profile feed before you follow. Do you like what you see? Then give a follow. Don’t like what you see, don’t follow. No pressure!
#6 Amplify others
Don’t be stingy with the retweets and callouts. They are what make the Twitter world go round. If you like the tweet, retweet it. If you LOVE the tweet, quote, retweet it, and add your comments! What makes a Twitter user great and memorable is how they amplify others. If you like an article you read, share it, quote the author, and leave an opinion! If someone recently released a podcast episode, and you enjoyed the piece, share it! Retweet it, leave your comments. The reason this is important is that it shows your audience that, you’re not self-centered, but more importantly, you’re not afraid to give credit when credit is due. Amplify your audience. And, when you take this action and said author retweets your tweet, you are now in front of an entirely new audience, which means a larger reach and a new set of potential followers. It really is never-ending!
#7 Be a little controversial
Every now and then, throwing in some tweets to stir the pot is good. Controversy can be an extremely effective way to get noticed. It can make things more interesting to talk about, and encourages conversation. What I am not suggesting, is to tweet controversy for the sake of tallying up followers and replies, but really challenge the status quo in your industry. What is something that isn’t talked about enough? What is something that a majority of industry leaders follow but you just don’t quite agree with? Can you speak to it? For example, I am a fan of Jon's tweets and he frequently shares his opinions regarding the use of Canva, and as much as I may disagree with him, it sure does make for good conversation, and I appreciate that!
Don’t worry about being friends with everyone, the right people will find you. Be respectful in how you disagree, no need to troll or be excessive in combatting with folks. It’s okay to cause a little Twitter unrest but handle it professionally, because remember, once posted, it doesn't go away!
Well, there you have it, friends! I hope you found this piece to be helpful and informative! Twitter is such a powerful tool for connecting and building genuine professional relationships. Remember to always be you, be honest, and you’ll reap the many benefits of the connections you make online. To end, I wanted to share a tweet from Twitter user, sakmendiratta. It sums up being a part of this platform flawlessly!
If ever you have questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me, Twitter is where I’ll be.
Signed,
@codishaa
Publicist | Communications | Human Resources Generalist | Leadership
3yTwitter is one of the best platforms to build business and personal relationships. I really love that platform.