We fell in love with Twitter chats here at Blue Archer not too long ago. It connected us with influencers in the industry, allowed us to share our views, and learn from others.
We want to take it a step further than just participating and go over the basics of hosting your very own Twitter Chat.
Why Host a Chat?
As mentioned above, we have greatly benefited from the people we met and information shared over various industry related chats. Here are a few perks of hosting.
- Meet and connect with industry influencers
- Get feedback from the community on important issues (You pick the discussion topics!)
- You will also gain insight into your audience and understand what they really want
- Build and solidify your social following
- This will in turn strengthen your brand
Twitter chats may open the door for you to become an important voice in the industry.
The Basics
Before you dive into creating your own Twitter chat you are going to want to participate in others. This will help you gain an understanding of how it functions and what topics are popular to discuss. You will also meet great people to share insight with.
After you get a feel for the atmosphere:
- Find a niche. You want to work within your industry, but try to cover a subject that is appealing but not overly covered
- Determine what topics you will discuss within that subject
- Create an appropriate hashtag for your chat
- Select a date and time. This is important! Try not to schedule it during a time slot of other popular chats in your industry.
- I prefer chats during business hours and other brands will leverage this during business hours as well. If your topic is not within your professional industry, try to select a time that is suitable for when people are off work.
You need to select which chat format you will prefer for your chat.
- Single Topic, Question Based
- Multiple Topic, Question Based
- Single Topic, Free Conversation
- Q&A
Once you get the basics of Twitter chats sorted out, you can move on to promoting your chat. For more tips on running a Twitter Chat check out HubSpot and Mashable.
Spread the Word
After you have your chat idea in place you need to let people know it exists. If you have a large Twitter following, you should announce it over your social media platform. That is the easy part.
Other options include:
- Leverage your blog to advertise for your chat
- Mention it at the end of a similar Twitter chat
- Do not overly advertise it during another chat, that is not proper etiquette. Instead you can causally mention when your chat starts for those who are interested after that chat is finished.
- Use your email list to let people know about when your chat is and what it covers
- Add a section on your website that informs potential chat participants
- Allow for guests to host your chat for exposure
Read more about spreading the word on Social Media Examiner.
Most importantly, follow up on everyone. Highlight tweets that really stuck out during the chat. Show your appreciation and create conversation with those you meet. Provide your new followers and participants opportunity to be involved with the chat.
For more information on running a social media campaign, please contact a Blue Archer professional.
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