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28 Comments

How did you grow your Twitter audience?

I'm curious as to how other indie hackers have grown their Twitter audiences.

I've recently decided to take it more seriously as it seems like a valuable marketing channel and a good way to connect with other people!

  1. 36

    If you're starting from scratch, do this:

    • Before you do anything, optimize your profile. I wrote about it here: https://zlappo.com/blog/ultimate-guide-optimize-your-twitter-profile-more-followers-and-conversions-examples-given/.
    • Next, start following 10-20 key influencers (big accounts) in your niche/market.
    • Add them to a private list called "Snipe." THIS IS WHERE YOU LIVE NOW.
    • Comment 10-20 times on these key influencers' tweets daily.
    • Do this for 3-6 months consistently. Day in, day out.
    • Make sure your comments add a ton of value and can actually stand on their own merit as their own tweets.
    • Double-down on influencers who engage back; cut off influencers who ignore you.
    • The goal is to leverage other people's large followings to build your own, to maximize your visibility in the easiest way possible, and also establish yourself as an up-and-coming influencer in your niche to entice people to 1) click on your name and 2) end up following you, so your profile and your content have to really look the part.
    • In 2020, this is the state-of-the-art growth hacking trick for Twitter, why else does "Eugene Gu, MD" comment so often on @realdonaldtrump's tweets?
    • Also, commenting on Twitter is a very delicate art, Twitter has its very own specific social culture/networking etiquette, here's an article I wrote on Twitter commenting strategies: https://zlappo.com/blog/4-smart-twitter-commenting-strategies-grow-your-followers-examples/.
    • Once you get some traction, start scheduling your own original tweets, automating retweets for your evergreen tweets, etc. to leverage automation to the fullest to turn your Twitter profile into a giant mega-funnel for your site/app/blog: see https://zlappo.com
    • Double-down on followers who engage with you and your content; don't bother with those who don't.
    • These people will probably be your first advocates, customers, affiliates, testimonial providers, and promoters. Treat them like your friends. Networking 101. They're your tribe.
    • Yes, you need to constantly write original content for Twitter. Platitudes, lists, actionable insights, stories, tweet storms, infographics, what have you.
    • You do this consistently enough, you don't even have to sell. The sale will find its way to you.

    Disclaimer: yes, I'm the founder of a Twitter growth tool company + author of a Twitter growth hacking blog

    1. 9

      This is the kind of reply I come to Indiehackers for!

    2. 8

      And this ladies and gentlemen, this is how proper marketing is done.

    3. 4

      I was going to respond to the OP, but now I will just Homer Simpson myself backwards into a hedge.

      1. 1

        Rob, your opinion is always valued! You know that!

    4. 3

      Awesome advice. One suggestion in your profile optimization article is to use a face in your profile picture in order to seem more authentic. I definitely agree with this, but what if we are a studio of 3 rather than just one individual?

      Should we use one of our faces instead of our product's logo, or use all 3 of our faces in the profile picture, or cover image? Or maybe use our individual accounts instead of a product/studio account?

      For context, we have a mobile word game. Currently header photo is gameplay screens, profile image is the game's logo.

      1. 3

        Absolutely use your personal accounts.

        Your personal accounts will be feeder accounts that capture leads from a broader audience, and your agency account will have more-qualified leads who are specifically interested in your agency.

        Just make sure to mention your agency in your bio, like "Founder @XYZAgency."

        1. 2

          Thanks for the reply! Okay, this sounds good. I at least will start using my personal account more actively. Definitely going to read more into your site as well.

          Is there a strategy then to balancing content between my own account and our studio's account? For instance, should our regular posts about game updates stay with the studio, and use my personal just for joining conversations (until I gain more of a following)?

          Though if the answer is to just learn by doing, I'm all for that.

          1. 3

            Agency account: definitely keep it focused on your agency, or related content (business-type posts)

            Personal account: you can promote your biz and also be a human being at the same time with opinions, likes/dislikes, interests, etc. Absolutely promote your own biz on it, but promote more in your profile/bio itself than in your actual tweets. People will naturally click on your profile if you're an interesting personality on Twitter. Let the sale come to you, don't need to push it so hard. Classic inbound marketing (on Twitter).

            Your agency account will always be followed by a more qualified pool of leads, so the content there should also reflect it and be more focused. I'd promote your blog posts, content, free lead magnets, infographics, and customer testimonials here.

            1. 1

              Awesome, thanks so much. Will give it a shot...!

    5. 3

      Thank you for your .02 cents, bro!

    6. 3

      Wow, great list of tips!

    7. 3

      Really interesting, I will try to follow these advices!

    8. 3

      Bravo. Commenting so I can find this later. ;-)

      #savedtohistory

    9. 2

      Totally following this right now. Love how much of it is actionable! 💪
      Thanks!!!

    10. 1

      Great advice. Worth a post. Maybe it is?

    11. 1

      Grow a Twitter audience, step by step guide

      Saving this comment into my IH history!

    12. 1

      This comment was deleted 4 years ago.

  2. 6

    Here are four things which worked for me

    1. Provide value
    2. Be consistent
    3. Give first & you can take later
    4. Building it in public
  3. 4

    I second all of @TheNakedPoet2's points.

    Probably the most common mistake is to use Twitter as just a place to post links, which of course doesn't work. Nobody wants to follow an account like that. Why would they?

    I'll add one points: Spend a ton of time on Twitter, and follow and engage with useful accounts. If you're already doing this, great. But if you're not, then you're not going to understand Twitter and you probably won't ever post decent tweets until you do.

    My personal answer to the titular question is I built something interesting off Twitter, which gained me some followers on Twitter. I actually don't tweet much, because I'm busy posting here instead.

  4. 1

    Hi, thanks for an awesome article. Are these applicable for product business accounts as well?

  5. 1

    Great question and great answers!
    Thanks @richardchu and @simplisticallysimple

  6. 0

    Provide value in your content and tag influential accounts. Here's my story:

    I had 100 followers in the beginning, then I posted a tweet about how I made it to #1 product of the day on Product Hunt, tagged Ryan Hoover along with a couple of people, and I got 500 followers overnight.

    The tweet: https://twitter.com/yusuf_giftworks/status/1234694242586415104

  7. -4

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    1. 3

      Really have to disagree with this. This might have worked in 2009, not 2020.

    2. 3

      The 2nd & 3rd points look unconventional.
      Surprised to know that they worked. Why would anyone follow back just for retweeting content?
      What am I missing?

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