Twitter can be a powerful tool for networking, developing your personal brand, generating leads, or driving traffic to your website. Is your Twitter profile the best it can be? It doesn’t take long to optimize your Twitter profile, and there are so many benefits to doing so.
Follow the 6 steps outlined below to make a good first impression on Twitter, increase the visibility of your profile, and show visitors what they can expect from your page.
1. Upload a professional profile photo
The first step to optimizing your Twitter profile is making sure your profile photo is a close-up headshot. Ensure that your face is visible against a simple background. Showing your face helps your audience recognize and get to know you.
Use the same photo across your social profiles to make it easy for your followers to find you and connect with you on other platforms – especially if you have a common name.
If you can’t decide which photo to use, poll your audience! Post your top 3 photos you are considering and invite your followers to cast their vote. Crowdsourcing the decision is a great opportunity to engage with your followers. I’ve done this and the photo that my followers liked the best was different than the one that I would have chosen.
2. Create a header photo that showcases what you do
Your header photo is one of the first things people see when they click to your profile. You don’t have to be a graphic designer to create your own professional looking header image. I used Canva.com to create mine, for instance. Canva has great templates available that you can simply add your own photos and text to. Similar to your profile photo, try to use a consistent header image for all of your social media channels.
3. Write a power bio to introduce yourself to potential followers
Your bio is the 160-character, Twitter version of your elevator pitch. It is your first opportunity to tell visitors who you are, what you do, and what you post about. Optimizing your Twitter bio to make it informative and intriguing helps you to create a good first impression and begin building a relationship with your potential followers. It is also a best practice to disclose your business or the company you work for in your bio if you tweet about your products or services.
Before someone even clicks to your profile, your bio gives them a sense of what they can expect. Include industry specific keywords or hashtags in your bio to make your profile searchable. Furthermore, add a touch of personality. Including “#NASAsocial” in my profile helps my audience connect with me on a topic outside of my work.
4. Add your location
Including your location is helpful for networking. I’ve met some great people on social media that I have then met in real life since we lived in the same area! It’s also helpful if you are looking for a new job or collaboration opportunity.
5. Include a link to your website, blog, or another one of your social media accounts
Including the link to your blog, website, or company page gives your audience the opportunity to further get to know you and consume more of your content outside of Twitter.
If you don’t have a website or blog, you may include the link to one of your other social media pages where people can connect with you.
If you can’t decide on just one link, you can use linktree to create one link to house all the content you’re driving followers to.
6. Always pin a tweet
The lifespan of a tweet is only 18 minutes. However, pinning a tweet is a way to keep your most timely, top priority, or best performing tweet at the top of your profile. You can swap out your pinned tweet as often as you’d like. I have this blog, and so I often pin a tweet about my latest blog post in order to drive traffic to my website. If I am attending an event or a conference, I may pin a tweet about it so that my followers know that I’ll be there and can connect with me if they are attending, too.
In conclusion, optimizing your Twitter profile is an iterative process. Update any of the above elements to keep your profile accurate, compelling, and complete. Are you ready to optimize your Twitter profile?!
I’d love to connect with you on Twitter! My username is @elenacsalazar.
Want to optimize your LinkedIn profile? Check out my article on 5 Tips for Up-leveling Your LinkedIn Profile in 2020.
2 Comments