6 Steps to a Flawless Twitter Party
Twitter Parties are great forums for sharing ideas, catching up with large groups of friends, gathering for a cause, or just about any other group activity you can think of. Just like our #careSHAREgrow Twitter parties, anyone can join the conversation, share ideas and win prizes. If you are a brand, company or a marketer looking to host a twitter party but have no idea where to start, we have you covered. Here are the basics of how to create your own Twitter experience.
Step 1: Choose and register your hashtag.
First thing’s first. Choose a hashtag that will represent the topic or theme of your party. It’s best to choose a hashtag that is very unique and unlikely anyone other than you and your party goers will use. This way you wont get random users entering your chat. Make sure to register your unique hashtag with Hashtag.org. When people search your hashtag, they will be able to view a custom description of your event.
Step 2: Draft your conversation.
Ok, so you have the perfect hashtag. What now? It’s time to brainstorm the flow of conversation. Every good event needs a good host. Your job as a host is to keep the conversation interesting and moving. It’s always better to prepare for this task in advance as Twitter parties can sometimes be overwhelming when there’s a lot of different conversations going on at once. Keep things on track by laying the groundwork in an excel spreadsheet. Layout your spreadsheet in 2 columns. Time and tweet. If your Twitter party is an hour long event, schedule tweets 3-5 minutes apart. This gives your tweeters a chance to read and respond while still keeping the conversation moving and dynamic. Here’s an example.
4:00pm- Hey guys! We are so excited to chat with you about X brand cars today. #Xbrand
4:05pm- We have a great event planned for you. Are you guys ready for some trivia questions and a chance to win a car? #Xbrand
4:08pm- Alright let’s get this party started. #Xbrand
You can include fun facts, promote idea sharing and experiences, pose trivia questions for a chance to win prizes or any other conversation starter you can think of. Plan the large majority of your conversation using your excel spreadsheet as a guide. Trust us, you will be glad you did once it’s game time.
Step 3: Know Your Platforms.
Hashtag, check. Planned tweets, check. So what now? It’s time to familiarize yourself with twitter platforms that will up your game to the max!
Twubs is a twitter platform that is dedicated to following and aggregating Hashtags. What does this mean for you? This means that you can follow all tweets using #Xbrand all in one place and in real time. The conversation layout is super easy to follow and there are tons of easy to use functions. You can host your own party, follow another party, manage various hashtags and design your own hashtag homepage. This platform is great for managing your conversation and responding to tweeters. Hashtags are automatically tacked onto the end of every tweet, making conversations more streamlined. No more copy and paste!
Cons: Twubs can sometime clog and deliver tweets much later than when they are first tweeted. We suggest having TweetDeck on hand just incase you hit a snag.
This platform is great for 1 major reason, the ability to schedule tweets in advance. Tweet deck allows you to schedule tweets at specific times and is also great for managing multiple twitter accounts. Tweets deliver super fast which makes this platform superior for it’s real time capabilities. All scheduled tweets appear in a scheduled column; allowing you to see what will deliver next. This is helpful so you can know in advance where your conversation is going.
Cons: The platform although super fast, can be visually messy. The conversation layout definitely takes getting used to and can feel like there’s a whole lot going on with a multiple colum format. Auto hashtag tacks are also not available on this platform. Despite this, TweetDeck is generally more reliable in performance than Twubs and should be used in conjunction for best results.
There are other platforms out there such as Hootsuite, Brizzly, Sobees and others. Feel free to experiment and find the one that works for you.
Step 4: Incentivize your tweeters.
Ok! You are now familiar with your platforms and found the perfect one or combination. How will you get people to attend your party? Promote Promote. Promote. Put up banners on your company website, create email blasts, in store ads, flyers, Facebook posts, Twitter posts, blog posts or any other platform or medium you can think of. You never know who you will attract. Tweeters also expect that with a Twitter party come some sort of prize. Incentivize attendance by providing an awesome giveaway for your guests. Gift cards, free merchandise, and other giveaways are always appreciated by tweeters and promote a fun gaming spirit.
Step 5: Have fun!
Now it’s game time! Enjoy yourself. Let your scheduled conversation run it’s course while you read and respond to tweets and comments. Feel free to welcome guests and interject where there’s an opportunity. Tweeters always appreciate when a brand responds directly to a comment. It creates a personal touch. Having the free time to be able to directly interact with your tweeters is exactly why scheduling your core tweets in advance is so valuable.
Step 6: Analytics.
Yay! your party is complete and you had a fabulous time. So, how do you figure out how your party performed? one word. Hashtracking.com. This platform will tell you everything you want to know about how your twitter party performed. Analytics such as Number of tweets, timeline deliveries, number of participants and devices used are all available. you can even see who your most active tweeters were and see a transcript of your conversation. Hashtracking is a lifeline for any social media marketer.
Alright, there you have it! Plan your next twitter party fully prepared and ready for just about everything. Good luck!
