How to Successfully Participate in a Twitter Chat

Twitter chats are a great way to increase your organic following and spread brand awareness. Here’s a quick guide on what exactly a Twitter chat is, how you can participate in one, and the benefits of doing so.

Why Should You Participate In a Twitter Chat?

Tweet chats! Twitter party! Twitter chats! No matter what you call it, now it’s time to start using it. There are so many perks to participating in a Twitter chat and they’re easy for anyone to join. I’ll admit that the first time you jump into a chat it can be a bit intimidating, but the end result is so rewarding.

What Is a Twitter Chat?

A Twitter chat is a live conversation that is held on the platform and used by like-minded people to discuss a topic of interest. It is hosted and overlooked by a moderator who helps control the flow of the conversation. The moderator is someone who has knowledge on the topic, is working in the industry, or follows trends in the industry. A single chat typically occurs on a recurring basis; during the same time and day each month or week. They are used to regularly connect people with similar interests.

Related: How to Get More Followers on Twitter

How Do You Participate In a Twitter Chat?

To join a Twitter chat, you’ll want to find the conversation based on a hashtag. Every chat has one unique hashtag that is centered around the conversation. You’ll want to use the hashtag to follow the discussion. You could always see what other people are conversing about— but where’s the fun in that? Take initiative and jump right into the conversation.

Using a separate interface helps improve your Twitter chat conversation. From my own experience, I have had great success using TweetDeck, a website used for Twitter management. HootSuite is also a popular tool for social media management.

During the chat, the moderator will regulate how the conversation will happen. In each tweet, they will ask their question and end it with the conversation hashtag.

For example:

Moderator —  “Q1: What is a Twitter chat? #TwitterChat”

Participant — “A1: A Twitter chat is a live event centered around a topic of interest. #TwitterChat”

It is very important to add the hashtag at the end of the tweet. The tweet won’t show up in the thread otherwise and it will make it difficult for others to follow along, or even find your tweet altogether.

What Are the Best Twitter Chats to Join?

There are so many chats that you can partake in, so it’s important to choose the one that is best for you. Twitter chats occur nearly every day during work and fall at different times during the day. People join the chats from all over the country, so it’s important to note the time difference and take that into account when engaging in the conversation. Also depending on what your interests are, there are many different conversation topics being held. For the purpose of business and marketing, here are some of my favorites that I would recommend you check out first!

Related: How Participating in #TwitterChats Can Boost Your Followers

What Are the Benefits of Participating In a Twitter Chat?

Twitter chats open up the door for many opportunities. There are many benefits to participating in a Twitter chat. For starters, it helps you establish and define your brand. It lets you have a voice and share your knowledge with the rest of the Twitter community. Chats are a wonderful way to network with like-minded individuals or companies. The chats allow you to connect through a conversation rather than just posting content.

Twitter chats allow you to stay up to date with trends and gain new insights. It is an easy way to share new information, articles, blogs, videos, etc. that you can potentially use for future reference. The more involved you are in the conversation, the more you have to gain from it. It’s time to get those Twitter fingers typing and engage in a Tweet chat!