As I write this, I have around 3,000 followers on twitter — so I am by no means an expert at this game. Here is what I’ve figured out so far, and this is the playbook I’m running:
- Treat your profile like a product landing page. You are the product. Your bio, photo, and cover photo (and optionally: pinned tweet) should give people a strong reason why to follow you. The best way to do this is to pick 1-3 topics that you’re knowledgeable on, and state them in plain english. Give enough background so that it’s clear you’re a credible person on those topics.
- Send tweets. There isn’t really a hack here. You get big by putting in the work. Threads are really effective, especially when they’re unique and well-written. Quality and consistency are key. Stick to your 1-3 topics mainly. My favorite tool for composing and scheduling tweets is Typefully.
- Engage. One of the quickest ways to grow a following is to reply to “locally famous” accounts. Remember the 1-3 topics you picked in step 1? Follow 25 or so interesting accounts who also tweet on those topics. Consider making a special list so you can focus on just those 25 accounts.