How Does Twitter Work?

Twitter is a social media platform that allows you to create micro-posts up to 280 characters each. Each post, known on the platform as Tweets, can also include links to your website or other links around the web. 

When creating a Twitter account, you will need to pick a username that you will be known by on the platform. It can be up to 15 characters long and should have some relevance to your person or your brand. You can create your own Tweets with new content, respond to other users, or repost others’ Tweets.

This post will cover how Twitter works, who the social networking site was designed for, and briefly touch on you can attract Twitter followers to your account.

Anyone can have a Twitter account, but who is the platform designed for? Popular personalities, brands, and those who want to interact with them should use Twitter. Many companies have also created a Twitter profile for customer support, allowing people to direct message the account for help.

Most users don’t use Twitter to communicate or share with their friends and family, rather they react to brands and their favorite (and least favorite) public figures. You will be able to see their status updates in your Twitter feed or look at trending topics on the platform.

Many of the popular Twitch figures include:

The “general public” can also create accounts and interact with these accounts in the same way they would any other account. While it is unlikely that you will receive a Tweet back from your favorite band member, there have been several instances where people have been able to interact with the rich and famous. 

An example of one of these instances is when Mark Hamill reacted to a father Tweeting what his 20-month-old daughter called various characters in the Star Wars franchise:

You’re never too young to be a Dah Wahs fan. Please hug your 20-month-old daughter for me!
Love always, Goop https://t.co/8XvZghRTbF

— Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) February 7, 2020

Whether you are growing a personal account or trying to grow a company brand, you should post content that relates to you or the brand. Interact with other content that interests you or is within the same genre of the brand. You can also repost Tweets that you think your followers would like to see. 

Here are a few things you could potentially Tweet about:

• Brand Info

  Periodically Tweet information relating to your brand or other posts. If something exciting happens in your industry or you get the opportunity to do something exciting for work, let people know. These types of posts will help your followers relate to you in the long run.

• Opinions

  While you should use some caution on which discussions you should join, many people want to know the opinions of their favorite brands or influencers. If something major happens in the world, comment on it or show your support. Again, show caution. Many topics are very polarizing and you may lose a good portion of your community if you go too hard in one direction.

• Surveys

  People love to give their opinion, especially in relation to items or services that they are passionate about. Posting polls or surveys will get them to engage with your account, which is always good for the Twitter algorithm. Make sure to keep the content within your niche for the best results.

• Updates

  Let your followers know if there are any updates about your life or brand. If you plan to do collaborations with others or will be shifting your content in a slightly different direction, let them know.

• Images

  Images of products (if you are a brand) or photos of life events will always do more to capture people’s attention than basic text. Continually improve your image quality over time. There are several YouTube tutorials on how to take or edit great images that will stop people mid-scroll.

• Events

  If you are hosting an online (or in-person) event, give people a heads-up about it on Twitter. You should also let them know how they can find details of the event’s specifics.

While many people don’t use Twitter to communicate with their friends, you can use it for updates about your life and let people know what you’ve been up to. 

Your First Tweet

The first Tweet on your account will generally be the hardest to write mentally. It will take a while for you to adjust to keep your statements to 280 characters. While you will want to stay on a niche and start off on the right foot, try not to overthink your first Tweet. You will likely write hundreds of Tweets in the lifetime of your account, the first one is just there to get you going.

If it helps, use your first Tweet to introduce yourself and your brand. Essentially write a “Hello World” piece that will let people know who you are if they check out your account.

There are several ways you can find new people to follow on Twitter. Once followed, you will be able to view the popular content they post in your Twitter feed. You can react to their posts, add comments, or retweet the content you find most valuable. To search for new people to follow on Twitter or to find topics interesting to you, do one of the following:

1. 1. Use the Search Bar

   If you know the name of the person you want to follow, you can search for their name or Twitter user name using the search bar. You can search for both personalities and brands.

2. 2. Suggestions

   Twitter will give you suggestions on who to follow based on others that you follow. You can see these suggestions in the sidebar on a desktop browser, or they will be shuffled through your feed on the mobile app.

3. 3. Connect feature

   When using the mobile app, you can use the connect feature which will give you even more suggestions based on the people you follow and the tweets you with which you typically interact.

Twitter allows you to stay updated with your favorite celebrities, experts in your field, or your friend base. You can see when your favorite content creators release a new video or go live and find out about special events you may want to attend. Interact with their latest tweets by either retweeting their content or replying to their Twitter handle.

As a creator yourself, you can spread more awareness about your brand and update your audience with recent web articles or videos. As your following grows, you will gain more influence that you can use in other ways, such as funneling them into an online class or event you plan to host. 

Twitter also lets you network with others within your genre. You can create contacts and potentially work with other brands within your niche, improving both of your businesses together. 

In short, Twitter is a great place to get quick updates on everything and everyone that interests you so that you know what you should focus on at the current time.