Twitter is an incredibly mobile marketing channel: If you have a smartphone on you, chances are you’re able to connect with people and brands all across the world through the network.
With eighty-two percent of Twitter users accessing the platform on a mobile device, it’s an ideal channel to connect with others on the go, highlighted by the surge of trending hashtags during nail-biting sports games and season finales of popular television shows. But, the concept can also be extended to drive conversation about your brand’s events or conferences you’re attending.
Here are four tips to make you an all-star at live tweeting, help you spread the word, engage with others, and join the online conversation.
1. Make an Introduction
It can be confusing when you scroll through your Twitter feed and see a bunch of tweets using a hashtag that you’re unfamiliar with. Many users will then click on the hashtag to learn more, but are unable to figure it out based on the Top or Latest tweets.
To avoid the confusion, be sure to send out a few initial tweets introducing the event and letting your followers know that you’ll be live tweeting throughout the morning, day, etc. Also consider adding the event hashtag to your company’s Twitter bio so it will appear in the results.
2. Preparation is Key
When live tweeting your own company’s event, having to save a post as a draft while you search for someone’s handle so you can tag them in your post can be time-consuming and frustrating. To make your job easier (and less stressful), create a spreadsheet ahead of the event with all of the speakers’ information:
- Name
- Twitter handle
- Position
- Company
- Company Twitter handle
With these details at your fingertips, you’ll be able to seamlessly post tweets without having to pause to search for the correct information. You can also use a tool such as Hootsuite to schedule out tweets throughout the event to announce the next speaker and remind attendees to join the conversation by using the event hashtag.
Consider creating templates in design software such as Photoshop or Canva to post quotes from the conference with ease. Download speaker photos ahead of time, dropping them in to software so you can quickly add their quotes to post within minutes.
3. Focus on Quality, Not Quantity
It may be tempting to post rapid-fire tweets while working or attending an event, but the old adage “quality, not quantity” is key to successful live tweeting. Don’t feel pressured to immediately post every quote or statistic that was said – wait for the most important pieces of information that your audience will be interested in. There’s no hard and fast rule of how often you should tweet, but once every five minutes is a safe place to start.
Since a character limit is in place, it can sometimes be difficult to fit everything you want to say into one tweet. Avoid shortcuts such as condensing words or taking out spaces – your followers may not understand the post, and therefore be unlikely to engage with it.
4. Join the Conversation
Be sure to utilize any event hashtags as a way to raise awareness to and spark conversation about the event. Although it may take some creative wordsmithing to stay within the 140-character limit, prioritize the hashtag to be included in every tweet.
Engaging with others is often overlooked during a busy event. Retweeting, liking, and replying to others’ tweets will help build your own follower base and continue to build the conversation around the event.
Before your event, keep these four tips in mind for stress-free live tweeting that builds your follow base, increases engagement, and drives the conversation.
