Want to boost your brand’s search engine rankings?
Twitter teamed up with Google and tweets are now being fully indexed by Google’s search engine. This means that learning Twitter SEO techniques can help you generate even more traffic to your website!
Let’s take a look at some tips on how to achieve this:
#1st Twitter SEO tip: Know which keywords to use
When writing an article, you need to use targeted keywords in order to improve discovery and help users match the content they seek when searching. Same must be done with hashtags on Twitter.
Use your intended keywords as your hashtags in your tweet. When you do this, each hashtag will appear in the Twitter search for a particular topic or in Twitter’s Trends feeds.
However, it is essential that you do not overstuff your hashtags as this may appear to be spammy to users and dissuade them from following you.
The optimal number of hashtags to use per tweet was found to be three. Usually, the tags are added to the end of the sentence to define its topic or field.
It is important to keep studying the hashtags you use to see which ones were most fruitful. Engagements like clicks, retweets and likes are the measurables you need to look out for. Using a tool like Twitter analytics can help you keep track of these without much work.
Make your tweets as detailed as possible and use different media sources like videos, images, gifs or links. Using media links will enable you to write tweets longer than the maximum of 140 characters.
Another important tip in Twitter SEO techniques that can really promote your brand is to use specially branded hashtags when creating a campaign or releasing a new product for example. This will help build awareness of your brand across the community.
Don’t just place the keywords in your tweets, add them also in your bio so that Google will link your account with the applicable keywords. In the next section, I will describe in more detail how to optimize your Twitter profile.
#2nd Twitter SEO tip: Optimize your profile for discoverability
Why bother on this? Well, optimizing your profile across all social platforms and keeping them consistent, will help you promote your brand and website and maximize your discoverability.
When it comes to choose a username and twitter handle, try to avoid using numbers. Apparently Google might consider such a username as spammy.
Umamo uses a diagram that explains how best to fill in your bio profile:
Sometimes you will see a verification blue badge on some accounts. Normally, these are used for public figures or brands that have a big audience reach. It is used to confirm your real identity on Twitter (not fake). The blue badge puts Twitter users at ease that they can trust the handler. Although not easily achievable, a blue badge can be obtained if you are active enough and provide very detailed information. Here are more details about this here.
Although the username and Twitter handle can be changed via settings, it’s not recommended to do so. This action is risky because it can confuse your followers causing them to unfollow. Also, if you have a verification blue badge, it will be removed once you perform the change.
#3rd Twitter SEO tip: Make your bio stand out
Unlike tweets, Twitter allows you to use up to 160 characters to describe yourself. Since bios are indexed regularly by Google, it is wise to optimize it as much as possible using target keywords and links.
In your bio, mention what your followers should expect in your profile. Try not to be complex, use the KISS principle. Pinpoint which parts you are an expert in and try to advertise yourself in a charming but artistic way. Sometimes if you are too serious, it can stray away users. A little humour in your bio can make your account more appealing.
#4th Twitter SEO tip: Obtain a Twitter carousel
A carousel of tweets uses quite a bit of amount of vertical space in Google search results. This grabs the attention of the users. Here is as an example of twitter carousel:
The primary goal is to tweet frequently and have other users interact with your tweets regularly. There are a few techniques you can apply to help achieve this goal:
Tweet frequently
The carousel of tweets algorithm requires your tweets to be recent. So if you stop tweeting for a while, even if you already managed to obtain a carousel, it can as easily disappear if you don’t post consistently. Recommended: Post twice daily and during business hours.
Build your followers
Since you need users to interact regularly with your tweets, its important that you have a considerable amount of followers. To be precise you need have at least 100 followers. Try to follow other accounts that have similar interests, return a follow and follow users who interact with you. It is time-consuming but the results can be worth it.
Engage with others
It’s important that your tweets are not only your own. Retweeting is a good way to showcase your interests to your audience. You should also try to reply to other peoples posts and liking them. Apart from tweets themselves, it would be a good idea to converse with other accounts that have similar interests and expertise.
Adapt your tweets
It’s hard to know exactly what works and what doesn’t until you tweet enough posts. Browse through your tweets and study what gives the engagement from users. Voicing your opinion on controversial topics or writing something comedic is a good idea to get the interaction you need. Never ask users to retweet or like a tweet as it comes off as desperate.
Know the trends
Look for the hashtags that are trending on the day and see if there’s something worth tweeting about. Important events such as concerts, sports events and other conferences, tend to have custom hashtags that are used for discussing. If you are involved in such an event, it can quickly drive traffic to your account from other people posting using the same hashtags.
Final thoughts and Considerations
Twitter SEO techniques are a great way to not only build your followers and user interaction on Twitter, but it opens up a door to ranking higher in Google. Not every tweet will be indexed, but if you stick to these optimization tips, you have a really good chance that your tweets will be indexed and if you are diligent enough, even appear as a Twitter carousel!
Veteran content writer with focus on Technology and SEO.
