9+ ways to grow your following on X/Twitter

Plus, all the top tips, news & feature updates you need on your social media journey

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Hey folks👋🏽   I was chatting with some friends about Marques Brownlee (or MKBHD), a tech creator who's been active for over 15 years, and just how big his brand has become.   It got me thinking about other creators who have built essentially new-age media houses — from Mr. Beast to Chelsea Fagan of the Financial Diet to Colin and Samir.   They all have five years or more of experience and the rewards to show for it. You don't get those results without sheer grit and consistency.   So next time you're in a rut, scroll down your favorite creator's feed and look at where they used to be versus where they are now to jolt yourself into action⚡.   Let's get into it!   💌 In today's email: 🐦 Run through 9 ways to grow your following on X, formerly known as Twitter 🤖 Use this AI Assistant prompt to tackle some common challenges in your niche 📱Mitra shares a tip for kicking off your short-form video journey 📣 The latest social news, features, and bonus reads And as always, all the latest and greatest content from the Buffer blog. Have a great weekend, and we'll see you next Friday! Warmly,    Tami & the Buffer team P.S. #Bufferchat is Back! We'll be hosting it over on Threads on Tuesdays at 12pm PT/ 3pm ET/8pm UTC. Give us a follow and hit the bell to get notified 🔔 🖊️ Deep dive: 10 ways to grow your following on X/Twitter Twitter is changing — but the best ways to grow and engage your following on the platform remain the same. Kirsti drafted nine tried-and-tested strategies to help you grow on X — here they are. Audit your profile: Open your profile on X in a new tab and use this checklist to make sure it ticks all the boxes: Updated profile photo and cover image Updated bio and pinned tweet sharing who you are, what you do, and what you post A link of your choice — try a link-in-bio tool like Buffer's Start Page Clean up your 'Following' list to clear out accounts you no longer engage with. Weigh in on global events: X is where folks turn for up-to-the-minute, real-time news and commentary. If something is making waves in your corner of the world, it's a great idea to share your opinion with your Twitter followers. Check out our social media content calendar and ideas list for every official (and unofficial) holiday and event of 2024. Share visual content: Even text-based X has not been immune to the ever-growing power of short-form video. Of the 1 million+ tweets sent through Buffer in 2023, video posts received the highest engagement — and text came in second. Connect with your followers — and beyond: If people have taken the time to comment or retweet your post, reward their engagement by engaging right back — the X algorithm likes it. Grab attention with a strong hook: Use hooks to get your audience emotionally invested from the first line. Share personal stories: Build a rapport and a personal connection with your audience by sharing real-life stories they might find relatable — bonus points if you can tie them back to your work. Post consistently: This advice applies to all social networks — you get rewarded for participating. While there's no magic number of tweets to post per day, we recommend a minimum of three per day. Find your best time to post: There's no magic time that guarantees virality, but we've found that Monday is the best time to post on Twitter, with high engagement times at 4 a.m., 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. Keep an eye on your analytics: Monitoring your content's performance is essential to fine-tuning your X strategy. You can do this via X's native analytics or, if you're a Buffer user, in Buffer's Analytics tab. Consider X Premium: If X is a major platform of focus for you, then you might want to spring for X Premium. The features and perks like being boosted to the top of things like replies and the algorithm might just be the push your content needs to reach the right audience. Dive deeper 🚀 Three entrepreneurs skyrocketing their growth with Buffer We pride ourselves on being an excellent tool for entrepreneurs and business owners to grow on social media — and our users were more than happy to back us up. Jayak at redpigeonmedia: "Over the past 3 months we've managed to grow one of our client's social media accounts by 400% from 6k to over 23k followers!" Press 1 for Nick on YouTube: "My following has grown 10% consistently since I started using Buffer" Jon Buckley: "Over the last 90 days, I've seen a 24.5% increase in accounts reached, a 53.2% increase in engagement, and a 9.3% increase in followers." Want to skyrocket your growth? Click the link below to get started with Buffer today! Try out Buffer for free today 👇🏽 The latest from the blog How These LinkedIn Creators Are Planning for 2024: We spoke to 4 LinkedIn creators about their strategies for 2024 – here's what they had to say. 9 Lessons From the Ultimate World Cruise Creators Who Have Taken Over TikTok: Kirsti chronicled what creators can learn from the rise of CruiseTok. Dark Social: What You Need to Know: Dark social has significant implications for marketers, brands, and creators — here's what you need to know. How to Find Trending TikTok Sounds While They're Still Popular (+ 11 of the Best From 2024): How to source the best audio clips for your TikToks while they're still popular. 🤖 A tip for Buffer's AI Assistant Use this prompt to tackle common challenges in your niche. You can either copy-paste from here or click the link to get it right in your Buffer Ideas. Create a [your platform] post that addresses a common problem in [your niche], offering insights, advice, or solutions to help my audience overcome this challenge." Niche: (Specify the area of focus. E.g., Freelancing, Healthy Eating, Personal Finance) Platform: (Indicate the social media platform where you'll share this post. E.g., LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter) Problem: (Identify a specific, common problem faced by individuals in your niche. E.g., "Finding consistent work as a freelancer", "Sticking to a healthy diet on a budget", "Saving money while in debt") Tone: (Choose the tone of your post. E.g., Encouraging, Authoritative, Relatable) Key Points: (Highlight the main points of your advice or solution, focusing on why it's effective and how it can be implemented. Include any relevant personal experiences or success stories.) Call to Action: (Encourage engagement and further discussion. E.g., "Have you faced this issue? Share your experience below!", "Know a friend who could use this advice? Tag them!") Get this prompt in Buffer 📱Social tip of the week from Mitra, Buffer's Social Media Manager  Not sure where to start with TikTok, Instagram Reels, or YouTube Shorts?   The easiest way to get inspired is to scroll through the platforms and see what other people are doing to help you get ideas. Don't just copy what everyone is doing for certain trends though - make it authentic to you and your brand!   Once you start learning more about how people are posting on TikTok/Reels/Shorts, you'll feel more comfortable trying it out yourself. ✨ 🤳 What's happening in social? TikTok's prompting users to download a new, dedicated TikTok Search shortcut; X is developing a new 'Articles' content option for long-form posts; LinkedIn's removing its 'Creator Mode' option; Mashable chronicled how Facebook changed the Internet as we know it for its 20-year anniversary; How Threads' feed algorithm works; and Bluesky finally opens to the public.   Get these updates and more here! Thanks for reading! 💟 What would you like to see more (or less) of in the newsletter? Give us all your feedback in this form or let us know on all our social channels @buffer! Unsubscribe | Update my mail settings    Sent by the team at Buffer 2443 Fillmore St #380-7163 San Francisco, CA 94115 USA