The Blogger’s Guide to Twitter Chats, you say? As someone who’s actively participated in Twitter chats for the past year, I’ve come to the realization that absolutely everyone should be utilizing Twitter chats to improve their social media strategy. They are extremely beneficial for your blog + biz. Without further ado, here’s my intensive guide on making the most of Twitter chats and some of the best Twitter chats for bloggers.
What is a Twitter Chat?
According to Social Media Examiner, a Twitter chat is a public conversation around a unique hashtag. This hashtag allows you to follow the discussion and participate in it. Twitter chats are usually recurring and on specific topics to regularly connect people with these interests.
Twitter Chat Benefits
There are many benefits of attending a Twitter chat including but not limited to:
- Building community around your brand // When you participate in a Twitter chat, you are able to bring awareness to your blog or biz and potentially bring new eyes to your website. This could result in new followers or even customers.
- Meeting new people // In the past year of participating in Twitter chats, I have been able to meet so many amazing creatives that I wouldn’t have gotten the opportunity to meet otherwise. Being able to meet these inspirational people has been one of my favorite parts of participating in Twitter chats.
- Gaining inspiration // I always leave a Twitter chat feeling inspired and recharged and basically ready to take on the world. Each participant shares their own insight which fuels my own creativity and will probably do the same for you.There are a number of different Twitter chats out there and each chat provides excellent value depending on your niche.
Tips for your First Twitter Chat
- Always use A1, A2, A3, etc. when responding to questions // This helps the other participants follow along with your responses to each individual question. It also ensures that you remember which question you’re responding to.
- Don’t forget to use the hashtag // I know this tip may sound a little silly, but we’ve all been there and forgotten to use the hashtag in a Twitter chat once or twice. Remember, the chat’s participants won’t be able to see your responses if you’re not using the hashtag so make sure to include it with every response – no matter if it’s your response to the question or you’re just replying to someone within the chat.
- Engage in conversation with other participants // When participating in Twitter chats, it’s so important to engage with the other participants. Making connections with other bloggers and business owners can provide you with a potential new friend or client.
- Give the chat your full attention // I know as a blogger/biz owner we’re always trying to do a million things at once but for the allotted hour, it is best to give the chat your full attention and be fully engaged so that you don’t miss anything because trust me, the chat moves quickly and you will miss a lot if you’re trying to watch TV, write a blog post, and participate in the Twitter chat all at the same time.
- Soak it all in // Your first Twitter chat may leave you feeling a little overwhelmed with information overload once it’s all said and done, so just take a day or two to really soak all of the content in before trying to join in on another chat.
Twitter Chats for Bloggers
Mondays – #CreativeCoffeeHour hosted by @calliegisler at 8 pm CT
Tuesdays – #TheSwarmSocietyChat hosted by @christinajochoa at 8 pm CT (second Tuesday of every month)
Wednesdays – #CreateLounge hosted by @kayla_hollatz at 7 pm CT
Thursdays – #ElleChat hosted by @laurenelizhook at 7 pm CT
It’s no secret that Twitter chats can be a little daunting at first but once you’ve got the first one under your belt, I promise they will get easier. The above Twitter chats for bloggers are some of the best that I have found.
Your Turn:
So tell me, do you regularly participate in Twitter chats or plan to start doing so in the future? If you do, what are your favorite Twitter chats for bloggers? Do you have any other questions regarding Twitter chats that you’d like for me to answer? I’d love to hear your thoughts!
