This article is for community managers who manage accounts with less than a thousand followers and want to increase their followers to a thousand.
The social media space consists of over a billion people. On an hourly basis, brands are in a constant battle over the attention of these billion users. If you are committed to growing an active online community, you need to be:
seen
heard
found
I will explain these three steps in the next section.
Twitter is a social media platform that sends shorts messages called tweets to its users. Twitter is also a microblogging platform. This means that the number of characters per tweet is limited.
Twitter also allows the users to share website links, pictures, conduct polls, and many more. With Twitter, users can report in real-time; live stream live events that are going on, or they may be attending, activities they might be engaged at that moment.
So, with the followers on the app, you create a bond that offers a brand a human feel. When people can relate to your content, they become your followers and refer you to their friends and colleagues. Though sometimes, the growth may be small, consistency should always keep you going.
Be seen
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This is achieved through the use of amazing graphics or amusing GIFs. With these, your followers will connect quickly with your brand message as well as your brand tone.
At the early stages of growing a Twitter community, you can iterate a lot of processes. You will get to known what works well with your followers and what doesn't. Growing to a bigger number doesn't mean those processes won't work or that you shouldn't try alternate means of communicating with them. this just gives you a template or a guide on what works and what doesn't.
Be Heard
image gotten from google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fw..
Jumping on existing trends or even creating yours is one great way to be heard. People would love to know your brand stand on certain issues and if they align with theirs, they follow you. This process can be quite dicey too if not done appropriately.
A tweet can be misunderstood, read out of context then made viral. the effect this has on the brand perception most times are irreparable. So, if you want to make your voice known, either be known to take a stand or say nothing at times. If you do intend to say something, run it by the PR department of your firm. Never forget; the internet never forgets.
Be Found
image gotten from google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fe..
You can't grow an online community and be absent on social media. Offline activities are good but it is location bound. the ease of social media is that it offers you the opportunity to convert someone in a different time zone as you into a follower.
Knowing this, you need to have a social media presence and be active too. Whatever online community you would love to grow, be there. I wouldn't advise limiting your search on just that platforms, you can find followers on
- Quora
- other social media platforms.
You can also blog about hot topics and then direct people who find your blog post to your twitter handle for a more personal communication or discussion.
Be a Cheerleader
image gotten from google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fw..
This is a bonus tip.
You are a community of diverse people. Celebrate major milestones achieved by members of your community. Events such as birthdays, promotions, childbirth, child adoptions, and many more. Although it may be hard to keep up, the effort is what counts most times. Or, it could be made known to them to celebrate themselves and then tag you to the posts. This way, you can show they matter just by a simple retweet, like, or even a comment!
These are a few of the tricks I use to grow our Twitter community.
Are you currently having issues growing a Twitter community? Send a DM to @maegy_george. I wouldn't mind showing you one or two tricks.
We are a community after all.