How-to guides are super fun, but I don’t always feel like I’m enough of an expert in things to write comprehensive guides. I do, however, feel I’m enough of an expert on my own experiences to be able to give you a guide on things that have worked for me. I haven’t been on Twitter as long as some people, but I gotta say, I don’t make the same mistake twice, so I pay attention to what works and what doesn’t. These 7 Twitter tips are things I’ve found really work for me, and things that irritate me to no end, and I wish everyone would stop doing them.
Forever.
If you have any engagement tips to add to the list, please let me know in the comments! I love comments, and respond to every one!
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Twitter Tip #1: DO be friendly
If you’re looking for quality engagement, being friendly is at the top of the list. When you join Twitter, or any social media for that matter, you want people to pay attention to what you say and how you say it. If you immediately start playing Devil’s Advocate right out of the gate, chances are you’ll find yourself blocked by the very people you want to be friends with.
Twitter Tip #2: DON’T DM right away
I’ve used this analogy before, and I’ll say it again: DM’ing someone immediately after they follow you is like walking up to a stranger at the bar and saying, “hey, come in the bathroom. I need to tell you something.” It’s creepy, and most people will block you for it. Instead, if you have something to say, find a tweet that you find interesting and reply.
In Public.
True story: when I first started on Twitter, I would get so excited about every new DM. It meant people were noticing me, and reaching out to get help with their books. When I started my editing branch, same thing. After a while, I decided I wasn’t going to answer every DM, because of several randoms in a row. They were either asking for money for their family in Africa (don’t tell me you’ve never gotten one) or claiming to be some sort of prince looking for a wife.
I received one, immediately after following someone new, and when I told my husband about it, he tells me, “they might be a potential client. You should answer.”
Because I trust my husband, I did. BIG mistake.
The person was looking for a relationship with someone, and thought I would be a good match. Despite the fact that my bio states I’m married. That person, whoever he was, got blocked immediately. And I told my husband I wasn’t listening to him anymore.
When DM’ing someone, or commenting in public, make sure you have something valuable or friendly to say. People will notice, and you will find yourself drowning in notifications before you know it.
Twitter Tip #3: DO share about yourself
Did you eat at the best restaurant in the world the other day? Share it with us! Especially if they have good tacos, or allow animals such as dogs or cats. I’ve found that in the writing community, we love learning about each other just as much as we love talking about books.
You don’t have to get super personal, but ONLY talking about your own book/s gets boring and frustrating.
Twitter Tip #4: DON’T post only with negativity
I’ve seen this a lot, and those people never last very long in writing Twitter. Yes, everyone has their bad days, and we all want to commiserate with you during those times. We also want to celebrate with you when you’re having a great day, so if you only post about the bad ones, we’ll get bored pretty quickly. I’ve muted people who did this.
If all you do is complain in your original tweets, check yourself and try to find a silver lining somewhere.
Twitter Tip #5: DO Have Fun!
Twitter is such a fun place to hang out, so one of my favorite things to do is scroll through my feed and answer random questions. It’s fun for me, and many times I get to meet awesome new people that way. If you have a comment that is related to an original tweet, don’t be afraid to reply. It not only helps the original tweeter, but it helps you show up in the algorithm as well, so when you post an original tweet, people will see it and will be more likely to comment.
Twitter Tip #6: DON’T engage with what you don’t want to see in your Twitter news feed.
When I’m scrolling through Twitter, I’ll see something that truly just gets my back up. Has that happened to you? When that happens, I bet you head straight to the comments, so you can let the poster know exactly what you think of their super offensive content.
Sometimes, this is a good idea. In many cases, the original poster truly didn’t know their post was problematic, and will apologize profusely while correcting their behavior for the future.
Unfortunately, sometimes that reaction will be the opposite. The person may respond in a way that means one of 2 things: they didn’t know their behavior could be offensive and don’t care, or they simply don’t care. Either way, you could end up in a Twitter war.
My solution is this: 1, only respond to content you want to see more of, and 2, only respond to those negative posts if you’re willing to risk a twitter war.
Personally, I will scroll past negative posts, because I prefer to keep my twitter feed a positive, safe space. On the rare occasions that I actually engage with something negative, it’s to support my friends, and usually involves going and making sure I’m not following a specific person.
Twitter Tip #7: DO pay attention when someone says “NO DM.”
No one likes unsolicited DMs. It’s not fun for us, because then we have to either go to the trouble of replying, go to the trouble of deleting, or even worse, go to the trouble of taking a screen shot and calling said person out on public twitter. This last item isn’t something I do personally, but I see it a lot and it’s not fair to anyone. Be aware of how you’re behaving and make sure it’s in a polite way, because that will increase the fun for everyone, including you.
Twitter is really easy to figure out, once you know how engagement works, and how to do it the right way.
Speaking of Twitter, come hang out!
So, do you have any Twitter engagement tips? Let me know in the comments below! I’m so happy when I get a comment, and I reply to every one.
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Until Next Time, Friends!
