“Anyone not ‘@’ replying on Twitter doesn’t get it. It’s about listening and communicating, not press releasing”–Gary Vaynerchk
If you are new on Twitter and barely update it then using the ‘@’ reply can be difficult. However I would suggest deciding on a ratio between “push” and “pull” tweets.
I do not have an exact one, but functionally I ‘@’ reply once for every two “push” tweets I send. I often do this in spurts rather than intermittently–I may send three or four ‘@’ replies at once and then push tweets for a few days.
The ratio is not the point. The PRINCIPLE of listening and communicating is.
In ministry we often have many projects that we’re working on that we want more people to know about. It’s tempting to jump on twitter to “spread the word” which is a great goal.
However I would define “spread the word” on twitter in this manner:
- Searching out users who are ALREADY talking about things related to your project and getting to know them first by reading their recent tweets
- Then ‘@’ replying those users when they tweet something that you find useful, insightful, or encouraging
- Then engaging them with an ask to promote or share your project with their network.
The biggest miss I see is not understanding these tactics but getting on Twitter WELL BEFORE the actual project or event deadline. If you can be on twitter months before the event, steadily engaging people and posting sporadic push messages, you can set yourself up really well when the project or event draws near.
Have you been on the front-end of this? What are some tactics for using the ‘@’ reply that you have found helpful for listening and communicating with people on twitter?
