Zero To Hero, Part 6: Power Up Your DJ/Producer Twitter

In this 12-part series on getting noticed as a DJ/producer, so far we’ve covered generating income streams, crafting content, and building a recognisable brand. Moving onto social media, we’ve noted why having professional-looking Facebook and Instagram pages are necessary for DJ/producer success.

As we carry on with our look at individual social media platforms, this week we’re moving on to Twitter. One of the big three social networks, it is definitely worth putting in the time to apply the right kind of curation and approach to Twitter make sure your account takes off. These four tips will get you off on the right track:

1. Prove you’re really human

First, a bit of etiquette: avoid bot-like activities like the plague, which include things like sending automated DMs or constant following / unfollowing. No one wants that. And while Twitter isn’t as complex as Facebook, you still need to nail down a few key areas to be taken seriously.

Craft a nice bio

As the social media manager for Digital DJ tips, part of my job is deciding within seconds whether we’ll follow someone. Want to know the number one indicator that if you follow us, we’ll return the favour? The bio section. Easy to read, music related, and most importantly it can’t have a “don’t follow me” vibe written all over it – you know, annoying things such as writing EVERYTHING IN CAPS.

Use hashtags, keywords, describe what you do, and inject some personality in your bio; most of all don’t let this small yet crucial section go to waste.

Clean up your profile

For your profile picture, a clean image that includes your face will likely do best, but a logo works just fine. Have a sharp cover photo that instantly tells anyone stopping by that you’re a DJ/producer. Similar to Instagram, you only get one website link, so use it wisely.

2. Tweet often and mix it up

Twitter is one platform where we encourage posting content more often. Aim for somewhere around three to seven tweets per day for maximum effect. These don’t have to be 100% original gems either; retweeting content from other people counts. Variety is the name of the game; you’re curating a feed so keep it interesting. Pass along engaging articles, share video clips, post a quote from your favourite DJ, tell a funny story that happened at one of your gigs and so on. If you think it’s important and retweetable, then go for it. Increasingly, Twitter is the de facto place for up to the minute news and updates.

Think about the content you created in part two, and recycle that here on a regular basis. When reusing content, reword it and post at a different time than before. This way it’s highly unlikely any user will see the same tweet twice, or at least it won’t feel that way. Make sure you’re scheduling tweets ahead of time so you don’t get overwhelmed coming up with seven things every single day. Visuals do incredibly well, with videos getting six times the share rate than text-only content, so keep that in mind and make videos your friend.

Don’t be afraid to put some money behind promoting your best tweets. Keep your copy short and sweet to avoid looking cluttered. Having a character limit doesn’t mean you should reach it every time. Lastly, pin tweets selectively to the top of your feed that followers should pay special attention to.

3. Use “trend jacking” to your advantage

As with Instagram, the first part to being discoverable is using hashtags. Tweets with at least one tag get roughly 12% more engagement. Use them but take it easy, too many and you’ll become spam.

To really knick some trends though, look at the current popular hashtags from a certain location, such as “all cities in the UK”. What’s trending at any given time constantly changes and varies by region, so don’t feel disheartened if you absolutely can’t jump onboard. Wait, refresh, try again. If it’s #internationalwomensday, why not shout out one of your female idols, or share a relevant article roundup? Find the connection and utilise what’s trending.

 

Want to get serious about Twitter trends? Use tools like Filta, RiteTag or Trends24. You can also participate in event-based hashtags or community ones that happen weekly. We do it all the time with #WednesdayWisdom and our followers seem to like it okay.

4. Follow the right people

Say you want to retweet content to your followers, but your initial growth tactic was to follow 30,000 people. Hey, that’s too much stuff! A better approach is to have standards for who you follow. Set criteria that people need to meet before you’ll add them to your network. Here’s a tip: people who say they follow everyone back aren’t worth it, and neither are users not relevant to your industry. If your following count is too high, it’ll actually put off potential followers. Instead, go the quality route to have a healthy base of content you can retweet, and you’ll naturally have the right kind of people to engage with.

Using Twitter lists is another way to organise your feed. Make them public or private, give them titles and explore them at your leisure. Have a list for DJs, one for people who’ve gone to your gigs, another for users who retweet your content often, influencers, maybe one for friends and family. This way it’s a much more streamlined experience and nothing gets lost in the noise.

Twitter’s “Who to follow” is the holy grail of growth. Although based on an algorithm, you can help it along by uploading your contacts, using a single phone number/email address, tailoring tweets to your industry, and getting followed by influencers.

Finally…

Quality profile, quality tweets, and quality people sum up the Twitter recipe for success. In part seven, we’ll show you how to skyrocket your DJ/producer brand to YouTube stardom…

Here are the other parts in this series:

• Zero To Hero, Part 1: How To Hustle for DJ/Producer Success
• Zero To Hero, Part 2: How To Get Noticed Online As A DJ/Producer 
• Zero To Hero, Part 3: How To Develop Your DJ/Producer Brand 
• Zero To Hero, Part 4: How To Supercharge Your Facebook Page
• Zero To Hero, Part 5: How To Crush It On Instagram 
• Zero To Hero, Part 7: Getting Started On YouTube 
• Zero To Hero, Part 8: How To Keep Your Fans Happy 
• Zero To Hero, Part 9: Why The Humble Newsletter Is A DJ’s Secret Weapon
• Zero To Hero, Part 10: How To Turn Your Mixtapes Into A DJ/Producer Podcast 
• Zero To Hero, Part 11: Why Old School Networking Is A Killer Trick for Smart DJs 
• Zero To Hero, Part 12: Collaborate With Other Savvy DJs 

What’s your favourite kind of content to post on Twitter? Have you tried “trend jacking” yet? Share with us below!