So, you have thousands of users following you on Twitter. Well, that’s an achievement, so pat yourself on the back. But, if those users are not engaging with your tweets, something is still missing from your Twitter marketing strategy.
What is Engagement?
Lots of people talk about social media engagement. And you probably have a good idea of what engagement means. Still, here’s what engagement means in Twitter Marketing.
Engagement refers to the interactions people have with your brand. So, the term includes replies, retweets, and likes. Twitter brand engagement also includes brand mentions and actions like following a hyperlink in a tweet.
Why Is Engagement Important?
The number of followers on any social media platform is a crucial KPI (key performance indicator) to monitor. However, some people may follow you to get you to follow back, for example. And some users may be infrequent users of the platform. So, you will accumulate some inactive followers who have no interest in your brand.
Actions such as retweeting, answering, and liking, increase the reach of your tweets. So, the followers who will help you build your presence on Twitter are those that engage with your content.
Engagement is also an indication of the effectiveness of your content. So, monitoring Twitter engagement will help you determine which types of Tweets work best.
How Can You Measure Twitter Engagement?
The most straightforward way to monitor Twitter engagement is with Twitter Analytics. You can access this tool from your Twitter profile.
Twitter Analytics will show you metrics such as impressions, which is how many people saw a tweet. And the tool also displays retweets, engagement rate, and link clicks.
The information provided by Twitter Analytics is relatively basic, though. So, for a better understanding of Twitter engagement and reach, it would be better to use a third-party analytics tool, such as Hootsuite, Klear, or TweetReach.
Simple Ways to Increase Twitter Engagement
When you first begin monitoring Twitter metrics, you will find some tweets generate more engagement than others. That data will give you an idea of what types of tweets resonate with your followers.
However, there are also some fundamental ways to increase Twitter engagement that some people miss. So, here are a few tips to improve Twitter reach and engagement.
Get the Timing Right
A Tweet has a relatively short useful lifespan. So, it would help if you tweeted at the times of day your users are most likely to be using Twitter. The precise optimum time for a tweet varies depending on the target audience and location. Studies have shown that it is generally best to post tweets around midday on weekdays. However, it would be advisable to test tweeting at various times and monitor the results.
Use an agency
Hiring a social media management agency can be an excellent solution for your social media goals. An agency can provide great depth to your content and give you a better chance of going viral.
Use Visuals
There are around 500 million tweets posted every day. Of course, your followers will only see a tiny fraction of that number of tweets. Even so, there is a lot of noise on Twitter that you must cut through. And the best way to grab people’s attention on Twitter is with eye-catching images or videos. According to Twitter, an image increases retweets by up to 35%. And tweets with a video are six times as likely to be retweeted.
Keep Tweets Brief
You only have 280 characters available in a tweet to get a message across. That number might sound quite limiting. However, if you use all 280 characters in your tweets, you are probably limiting the engagement with your tweets. Studies have found that the optimum length of a tweet is between 80 and 100 characters. So, it is best to keep tweets brief and to point.
Engage with Other Users
Interacting with other people’s tweets will increase the visibility of your account and encourage more people to interact with your content. So, avoid merely scheduling a few tweets a day and then deserting the platform. Instead, comment on, retweet, and like other users’ Tweets, and reply promptly to any messages or comments on your account.
Monitor and Use Hashtags
Twitter is a social media platform of the moment. So, keep an eye on trending hashtags, and add to the conversation when hashtags are relevant to your brand. Using hashtags in your tweets will also significantly extend the reach of your content. However, it is best to avoid hijacking non-relevant hashtags for marketing purposes.
Encourage Engagement
When developing your Twitter marketing schedule, try to include content that will be likely to encourage engagement. Polls and quizzes, for example, are excellent for generating interest. And, of course, unique content with value is a must. It doesn’t hurt to ask for engagement sometimes, too. You could prompt people to have their say on a topic, for example. Or suggest that users retweet if they agree with or like the content of a tweet.
Conclusion
The crucial takeaway from the above is to consider engagement when devising tweets. For example, adding eye-catching visuals to your tweets will boost engagement. Tweeting at the times of day when your users are active on the platform will also help. And encouraging interaction using polls or asking questions will get more people to interact with your content. In other words, don’t tweet for the sake of tweeting. Instead, consider what will provide users with value and interest them enough to engage with your brand.
