Twitter is a powerful tool that you can use to expand your professional network. It’s an open conversation where you can jump right in and engage with interesting people from around the world.
The most influential people in any industry tend to have a shortage of time. Tweets, with their limited number of characters, are the ideal way for them to communicate at scale. You’ll be amazed at the number of responses you can get from popular people on Twitter with a little bit of effort.
Build Your Dream Networking List
The best way to approach Twitter is to have a plan before you start tweeting. You will get better results if you know what your goals are before you start.
Make a list of 20 people who you’d love to interact with. Focus on people who are posting new tweets every day. The more active they are, the more likely you are to successfully engage with them.
You don’t need to reach out to these people as soon as you create an account. In fact, you will be better off having some restraint at the beginning. The point of the list is to get your mind organised and start thinking about who it is that you eventually want to talk to.
Follow at Least 300 Other Users
You don’t want to curse yourself with a slow Twitter feed. The best way to learn how this platform works is to follow a variety of users who are active on the platform. Not everybody tweets in the same way.
This also helps because it gives you access to more conversations. Above all else, Twitter is a way for people to interact with each other. The shortness of a tweet forces users to be concise and to have real conversations, rather than ramble on about their own ideas.
You may discover new people to network with as a natural result of following many different accounts on Twitter. This will help to boost your reach on the platform.
Tweet at Your Target Influencers
Keep an eye out for opportunities to interact with your target influencers. Don’t just tweet at them for no reason. Instead, wait until they’re talking about something that you can really contribute to.
The best time to respond to somebody is within the first hour of them posting a tweet. They’re most likely to be actively checking their feed and looking at the conversation during this time.
Be patient. The more popular somebody is, the less likely they are to respond to you. You can be persistent, but don’t tweet over and over at the same person when you don’t get a response. It often takes many separate attempts before you successfully engage with a new influencer.
Expand Your Professional Network
Your network is one of the most valuable assets you have as a professional. If you use Twitter for 15 minutes each day to engage with other people in your field, it will do wonderful things for your career. Give it a try and you might be amazed at the results.
