How To Get Followers On Twitter

How to get followers on Twitter is a mad science.  Like it or not, if you’ve chosen Twitter to market yourself or your brand, you’re going to need to learn how to get followers.

Is there an exact science how to get followers on Twitter?  Yes.  And No.

There are certainly steps you can take to get followers on Twitter, but understand that knowing how to get followers on Twitter and actually achieving that goal are two different things.  It takes some time and energy to achieve your goals.  Twitter is not a quick fix and success does not happen overnight.

Your focus should be on Targeted followers, not numbers.  Buying an ebook or “system” to get thousands of followers on Twitter is a complete waste of your money.  Even if they work, the only followers you’re attracting are others who bought the same ebook or “system” and now you’ve got thousands of followers who have zero interest in you, zero interest in your company, and offer you absolutely nothing.

Your top focus for getting followers on Twitter should be attracting targeted folks who value your content, and engage with you.  If you don’t have that…there is no reason to be on Twitter and you should spend your time elsewhere.

Have a Consistent Voice

Having a consistent voice is the most basic and  best advice I can offer any brand or individual about Twitter.  Decide what your voice is going to be, and stay on target.  If you’re a brand on Twitter, this is pretty easy.  You’re going to be tweeting about your products, business, and industry.  But if you’re on Twitter as you, a personal brand, it’s not so cut and dry.  Decide what goals you want to accomplish.

For example, I was active on Twitter long before I had this blog as a platform for my voice.  My goal on Twitter was clear…I was going to be someone known for offering great marketing and social media content.  So each day I tweeted the articles I felt were solid and was currently reading.  After a while, you begin to be trusted as a source for information and a go-to for which ever particular niche you decide to focus on.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t tweet information about other interests or add some personality.  Absolutely tweet what you find interesting, but you need an overall arching theme to your profile.  It can be anything you choose, just make sure you’re consistent.

Be Active

If you’re going to be on Twitter, your profile must be active.  This means you are tweeting everyday.  If you’re scared about being tethered to a computer all day long, don’t be.  You can send a Tweet from any cell phone by using the SMS text function.  Twitter is about communication and engagement.  If you’re not active, you don’t offer any value.  If you make the decision to be on Twitter, commit to being an active valuable member.

Be Local

Being local on Twitter is important.  Have your city on your profile as where you are tweeting from.  Don’t have geo-location numbers, have an actual physical place.  When I look to see who is following me, I’m more likely to follow back those from my location.  If you live in a suburb, select the larger city for your profile.  Being local also gives you a sense of community.  Tweet about what’s happening in your city, and follow others that are local.

Some cities tweet more than others, here’s a list of the top Twitter cities.

Engage With Others

Give people a reason to follow you.  If you’re only pushing content and not engaging and creating a dialogue, you’re not creating value.  Engage, connect, discuss.

Submit Yourself to Directories

It’s a quick and easy way to have your profile become associated with specific locations or topics.  It doesn’t take long and it certainly can’t hurt to be listed.

• Twellow
• We Follow
• Geo Follow
• Just Tweet It
• Twitterhollic

Follow Others with Similar Interests

Use #hashtags to find others that are tweeting similar content, but use them sparingly.  You can also look at lists you or others are on to find folks that may be tweeting valuable content you’ll find interesting.  Follow some of these folks, and if you’re adding value, many will follow you back.  Again, use common sense when following people.    Twitter has rules about how many folks you can follow at one time…and it just looks bad when if you’re following 2000 people and 145 and following you back.  Choose targeted folks to follow.

Work With Me

I hate to slip in the self promotion, but the reality is that many business owners simply don’t have the time to be active and focused on Twitter.  I’ve helped get new brands up and running on Twitter with targeted followers.  If you simply don’t have the time to do it yourself…let’s chat.  And of course, if you’re not currently following me on Twitter…lets connect.

This is DAY 6 of my “28 Day Blogging Challenge“

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Scott S. Bishop is editor for Real Time Marketer and a marketing strategist with a specialty in social media.  He is an avid blogger and active across the net.  He is @thescottbishop on Twitter

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Tagged as: ebook, followers, great marketing, How To, personal brand, Strategy, Twitter, twitter followers