Twitter is and always has been a fantastic platform to engage with people. You can use it to build connections, have conversations, and share your thoughts with the world. However, with 10,033 tweets posted every second and 396.5 million active users, how can you stand out and grow your audience?
Plus, how can you repurpose your longer-form content effectively on the platform?
To get some insight into the answers to these questions, we spoke to social media marketing expert Dan Knowlton all about Twitter.
He shared his expertise on how to crack the Twitter algorithm, how to use the platform in the most effective way, and how repurpose your content on Twitter.
Dan is the co-founder of marketing agency Knowlton. Along with his brother Lloyd, they have grown it into a multi-award-winning business. They have worked with brands including FIFA, Nestlé, Citibank, Eurotunnel and Boston Consulting Group.
To listen to this podcast episode click the player below, or read on...
Why repurpose content on Twitter?
Twitter is a great platform to share your content and increase engagement.
But what can it offer in terms of content repurposing and audience growth?
Twitter has always stuck with its core mission of allowing people to share their ideas and information quickly and in the most succinct way possible. We have 280 characters and that’s it. Well…we can share video too, but in that case we have just 2 minutes and 20 seconds.
It’s about connecting and engaging with people “in the moment”.
Because it’s so quick and easy to reply - and very transparent as to whether you have replied/engaged or not - people are more likely to engage with brands and vice versa.
Twitter is where you really can have a short conversation with people and brands that you previously thought were untouchable.
How can you use Twitter effectively for your business?
Twitter is incredibly noisy, so what can you do to stand out?
Dan emphasizes the fact that it’s all about quality, NOT quantity...
You do not need to feel like you should be keeping up with what’s going on. You should simply consume content in the moment, as intended.
On Twitter, people are much more likely to engage with creative, quality content that presents a new idea or opinion that they might not have considered before
This is key when deciding what content to repurpose for Twitter and exactly how to go about it.
What content works best on Twitter?
Twitter offers a range of content features, from live videos to chats and polls. But the question remains – what content should you repurpose? What will resonate with your audience?
To get the answer, go back to what Twitter is used for. What makes it the go-to platform for sharing and obtaining information instantly, and how can you base your content around this?
Respect the platform and don’t adopt a copy-and-paste approach.
- Live events: People will often tweet using hashtags related to a particular live event as it’s happening, before and shortly after. Organizers will actively promote the use of their event hashtag.
- Breaking news: Trending topics are highlighted, which makes staying up-to-date easier - whether it’s a government election, an international incident or the latest gossip about the Kardashians.
- Customer service: Twitter is the core customer service commutations channel for many brands. Dan points out that companies like Buffer and MailChimp have brilliant interactions with their customers
Why not repurpose some of your content by sharing it in relation to an ongoing event in the news? If you do this with trending hashtags, you could reach an entirely new audience.
Test out different types of content to see what works for you and what doesn’t.
Opinion-based tweets
How can you repurpose your content into a tweet that’s likely to get retweeted?
Being bold, sharing your opinion and starting conversations is a great place to start. The kind of tweets that demonstrate thought leadership, maybe presenting a new opinion or idea, work well. If you have an opinion or question to ask, you shouldn’t be afraid to tweet it! It may attract a lot of engagement.
Ask yourself if you could present your content as an opinion or question.
So think less…”Check out my latest podcast episode/blog post/video…” and more, “What do you think about…?”.
You’re still drawing on the topic of your content, and hoping to get people to consume it, but on Twitter, you are getting conversations going as opposed to just broadcasting.
Repurposing with video content
You can repurpose your podcast episodes or videos into video content on Twitter. We have a useful post all about repurposing videos onto social media here.
TOP TIP: Use Media Studio to optimize your video
Dan explains you can use this feature to make your content richer by adding a thumbnail, call to action button, title and description.
You can then tweet out your optimized video from within the Twitter Media Studio. It will be formatted nicely and look professional when you put it out there.
You can also use the “producer feature” for live videos. During the live video you can go into the studio and cut clips to repurpose.
For example, cut a 30-second clip then tweet it with a link to the full video. This can be done while the live video is happening or afterward and is an effective way to instantly repurpose live content.
Tips for live videos:
- Keep interactions and engagement in mind. Focus on using the live option to interact and help your audience.
- Behind the scenes, asking for opinions and Q&A's are great, as you are directly interacting with your audience.
- Live videos tend to work best once you’ve built an engaged audience
Repurposing Twitter chats
Twitter chats are a great way to network and engage with your audience, as long as you can keep up! They are usually very fast-moving, and you need to go in with a clear focus on exactly what you want to say and share.
However, they can be repurposed in a variety of different ways. When we spoke with Madalyn Sklar about repurposing Twitter Chats, she had so many great ideas - from blog posts, to a live Facebook video.
The best repurposing approach on Twitter
How would Dan repurpose a podcast on Twitter?
Step 1: Create a table with all of the different content features on Twitter
This can include a text-only tweet, live videos, tweets with graphics, running polls, sharing video, sharing audio…etc.
Step 2: Think of a content idea for each feature
You can now use the table as a basis for your repurposed podcast content.
Start a conversation by sharing an opinion about the podcast topic.
Could you do a live video to discuss the topic? Maybe you could invite a guest to join you, or do a Q&A answering people’s questions.
You could create some video content based on the podcast episode. Short, teaser videos sharing some of the key points. Could you run a poll?
Consider every feature and how you could make the most of it.
Step 3: Measure and see what’s working
Once you have tested the different features, dive deep into your analytics and see what worked best.
In time, you’ll notice what your audience respond to the most. This is the type of content you should go all in on, on the platform.
What is the biggest mistake businesses make on Twitter?
The most engaged brands on Twitter all have something in common - they talk to their customers like they are chatting to friends.
Dan says the biggest mistake that businesses make on Twitter is talking like robots and using corporate language. This doesn’t resonate with people. It’s important to speak from the heart.
Your audience are more likely to trust you and want to support your business.
Connect with Dan
Get creative when repurposing your content on Twitter!
To find out more about Dan head to his website Knowlton Marketing and his Twitter for some great insights!