If you want to truly leverage the power of Twitter, you don’t only need to follow people, you also need followers. More followers mean you can spread your messages to a large section of people. But people don’t follow you just because of you…you must be worth following.
How do you get more Twitter followers?
If you are famous you can get thousands of Twitter followers in merely a few days. Well, this is a by-product of being famous. You don’t really have to make an extra effort. Simply start Twittering, let the media know, mention it on your website and lo! people will be running over each other to follow you, and if they are lucky, to be followed by you. Examples of famous people can be famous movie and rock stars, authors, politicians, players, and even bloggers. Don’t think it’s been a free lunch for them; becoming famous takes lots of effort, focus and talent.
Being an unknown, getting more Twitter followers can be a slow, tedious process, but in the end of the day, it can be more rewarding. Since you have to use your conversation and communication skills, you get followers only if you are interesting and people like you. Here are a few things you can do to get more Twitter followers:
- Follow people. You cannot get followers by simply having a Twitter account. When you follow them they normally follow you back, and even if they don’t, you get to listen to some interesting conversations.
- Follow people carefully. Don’t follow everybody you come across in a desperate attempt to be followed back. Remember it’s all about relevant conversation and when it comes to social media there are rarely shortcuts. Follow people when you really think they should be followed.
- Have an interesting profile page. It helps if you are already running a marginally successful blog but even if you aren’t, try to tell the prospective follower why you should be followed. Include a small bio of what you do and what are your interests and what makes you special. 90% of your followers follow you after checking out your profile page.
- Strike up conversations. Lurkers rarely get followers. You need to appear in front of new people and this happens when you reply to people’s queries, questions and by reacting to their tweets. When you do that, and when they respond, your Twitter id appears in their stream and this is how new people know about you.
- Post useful information. All the time you are coming across useful tid-bits on the Internet. Post the links on Twitter and if possible, with your own comments. This gives people an insight into what ideologies you follow and what interests you.
- Retweet. When people post interesting thoughts and links and if you feel like sharing them with your own followers, retweet. They’re notified when you retweet and they often respond either with a thank you (and hence, your ID appears in their stream) or they remember to retweet your messages.
- Promote your Twitter ID. Twitter is not the only place you can promote your Twitter ID. You can put it on your blog or website. Some people even publish their Twitter profile links on their visiting cards.
While trying to gain followers, just make sure you don’t get swept away by the numbers. Your followers should be your listeners, and you should be able to hold conversations with them.
