What is a Twitter chat and what you need to know

Twitter chats have been around for some time now and they are an awesome way to engage and network online.

What is a Twitter chat?

A Twitter chat is a public conversation on a particular topic on Twitter that occurs at a designated date and time and is centered around a unique hashtag. A hashtag is a word or phrase preceded by a hash sign (#), used on social media websites and applications, especially Twitter, to identify messages on a specific topic. This hashtag allows you to follow and participate in the discussion. The hashtag is used to link Tweets together in a virtual conversation. If you miss the chat, you can follow what was discussed by using the unique hashtag.

Twitter chats are usually a regular occurrence on specific topics to connect and engage with people with similar interests and typically last an hour.

Twitter chats are business networking events – minus the dress code.

Imagine a business networking event—but without a dress code and with a keyboard instead of a bar. The same social customs apply—courtesy and respect—and it’s a great way to meet new people with similar interests. There are Twitter chats in almost every industry imaginable. Source Buffer

Twitter chats are used very successfully by brands that want to interact and engage with their audience and communities.

Why participate in a Twitter chat?

Twitter chats provide an opportunity to network and connect with like-minded individuals through shared interests. They are a great forum for small businesses owners to connect and learn from people in a specific industry and to collaborate with their peers.

It also allows you to share your expertise on a specific topic by engaging and interacting with others on the chat. It takes networking to a new level as it connects you with people from all around the world and those you would not normally meet in your regular networking circles.

Twitter chats help to grow your following and build lasting business relationships and in so doing, build your personal brand.

It is the perfect way to gain exposure as most of the time when you Tweet, less than 10% of your followers are on your timeline and see your Tweet.

However, when you are on a Twitter chat, you get a chance to engage in a more meaningful way, not only with your followers, but to those that are not yet following you, and thereby increasing your reach.

Most chats are either hosted by experts in a particular industry or they invite guests to share their knowledge on a particular topic, providing you with an opportunity to learn from the best, in a short space of time!

How do they work?

During the Twitter chat the hosts will lead the discussion by posting questions on the topic to prompt responses from participants and encourage interaction.

For Example:

The hosts will welcome everyone to the chat and ask you to introduce yourself.

Host: Hello Everyone. Welcome to our #XWBizChat. Please introduce yourself and let us know where you are from.

Reply: Hello! Great to be here! I’m Gwen and I’m from Cape Town. I am looking forward to tonight’s chat. #XWBizChat

The hosts will then post questions using (Q1, Q2 etc.) and the participants will respond to the prompts using (A1, A2 etc.) to each of the prompts.

It is important to use A1 in your Tweets if you are responding to the first question and to include the hashtag in your responses. If you do not use the hashtag, the chat participants and host will not see your Tweets.

For Example:

Host: Q1: What industry are you currently working in? #XWBizChat

Reply to the Tweet as follows: A1: I currently do Marketing and Social Media Strategies for SMME’s in Cape Town. #XWBizChat

Important: If you have a private Twitter account, only the people who will see your Tweets are those that are following you. Please consider unprotecting your Twitter account should you wish to participate in Twitter chats. Here is a useful article on how to unproctect you account.

What you need and what to do before a Twitter Chat.

How to prepare for a Twitter Chat:

1. Sign up for a Twitter Account: The first obvious one is to ensure you have a Twitter account. You can sign up for one here if you don’t have one. A useful Guide on Twitter can be found here.
2. Find the hashtag for the chat: Ensure you have the designated hashtag for the event eg: #XWBizChat
3. Prepare: Prepare yourself for the topic. If the questions are available before the chat, write down some thoughts you want to share on the topic and you can even prepare some Tweets ahead of time and have them ready to Tweet! As with anything, preparation is key to success.
4. Choose a Social Media Tool: Pick a tool to use to help you keep track of all conversations (refer to Suggested Tools to use below).
5. Ensure you are up to speed with Twitter etiquette: Do you know the difference between Mentions, RT’s etc.? Here are two great resources:
6. The Complete Guide to Twitter Etiquette, Using Twitter
7. About 10 minutes before the chat, log into Twitter or your Social Media Tool of choice, and search for the hashtag #XWBizChat.
8. Look out for any Tweets from the hosts (@XOrdinaryWomen, @ErikaKruger5 or @GwenSerrotti) for any special announcements or instructions.

Top tips for participating in Twitter chats:

1. If you don’t want to overwhelm your followers with all your upcoming Tweets, you can give them a quick heads-up before joining a Twitter chat (“High Tweet volume warning”). You can also invite them to join the chat if you think they may be interested in the topic.
2. Use the hashtag in every Tweet. This is crucial, as the hosts or participants won’t see your Tweets.
3. Introduce yourself and where you’re joining from. It is a great way to get the conversation going.
4. Follow the number convention for the chat. The host will publish a question prefixed by Q and the corresponding question number. Example – Q1, Q2, Q3, etc. You need to respondent with your answer with an A and the corresponding number. Example – A1, A2, A3, etc. See the examples mentioned above.
5. Don’t be shy to jump right in. It might give others some encouragement to join in!
6. Don’t make the #1 Twitter mistake when you reply to an account, and their Twitter handle is at the beginning of your Tweet, you are replying directly to that account and only they can see it. If you want your Tweet to show up in your feed for everyone to see, make sure you place an “.” in front of the @.
7. Reply directly using Twitter handles for one-on-one conversations with one or two people. When answering a specific question or if you want to reply to another participant, use Twitter handles to identify who you’re speaking to in order to avoid confusion.
8. Be an active engager and “Favorite” Tweets that you agree with, Retweet great answers or points you want to emphasize and reply to other’s Tweets to help drive the discussion.
9. Proofread your answers before Tweeting. Things can get a little hectic on a chat and you will want to reply to Tweets as soon as possible, but we don’t want the grammar police on your case, and typos are not always a good thing.
10. Engage with everyone, not just the hosts or the guest. Build your community by interacting with as many people you can.
11. Help promote the chat. Share the event with your followers and encourage them to join you on the discussion. The more participants, the better the chat!
12. Be polite, positive and engaging. It can be a bit overwhelming at first, but the hosts and participants would love to hear from you.
13. Twitter chats are about connecting and learning, not selling your product or services. Use the time to provide as much value on the given topic as possible and show your expertise without over-promoting. People in the chat are there to learn something new, not to be sold to. If you have a blog that relates to the topic, you can mention it in your Tweet together with a link to the blog.
14. Follow the participants on Twitter after the chat and don’t forget to follow up on connections that you have made. Keep the conversation going or get to know fellow participants on a more personal level. You never know what new connections you can make! We have made valuable connections through Twitter chats.
15. Schedule the monthly Twitter chats in your calendar and invite others to join you. Become a regular as this is the best way to build lasting business relationships as people will get to know and trust you.
16. And most importantly, relax and have fun! Use some gifs to make your interaction fun and engaging.

Tools to use to participate in a Twitter chat:

1. Twitter. You can use Twitter by simply searching for the #XWBizChat in the search bar at the top of your screen. Is important to note that you will have to manually enter the hashtag on each of your Tweets.
2. Tweetchat is a free simple, powerful tool to quickly interact and reply to Tweets. Once connected to your Twitter account you can easily keep up with fast-paced Twitter chats as it updates and refreshes in real time. You just enter the hashtag of the conversation you want to follow and after authorizing the app, you are ready to go. If you use TweetChat there is no reason to switch to Twitter. The hashtag of the conversation is automatically added to the Tweet, so you don’t have to remember to do it yourself.
3. Tweetdeck is owned by Twitter and integrates seamlessly with your Twitter account as a login. Tweetdeck lets you create several ‘columns’ in a single screen, so you can see everything that’s happening in one place. You can choose the type of columns you want to add, such as mentions, lists, messages, and search.
4. In order to view and participate in a Twitter chat, you’ll need to add the hashtag you’re interested in. You can do this by adding a Search type column and setting the matching term to the hashtag. When setting up your column, you’ll be able to exclude Retweets and choose to see only Tweets in a specific language, as well as Tweets with a certain number of Likes and Retweets.
5. To send Tweets during a chat you will click on New Tweet icon on the top left column and the Tweet box will pop out. From there you can write your Tweet, add images, and even schedule the Tweet to go out at a time you choose.
6. Hootsuite organizes your social media profiles or searches into streams that you can easily scan and manage. This is one of the favorites for following along and organizing social content. HootSuite can monitor multiple Tweets at once. Here is a great article on How to use HootSuite to Manage Twitter Chats.

Why does Xtraordinary Women host Twitter chats?

To engage with our audience, members and community and to provide value and information which will help entrepreneurs in business. We also want to promote our Members/Guests and give them additional exposure and help position them as leaders in their industry.

We want to:

• Help business owners build authority and establish their brands as leaders in their area of expertise
• Provide a platform for our members and audience to be exposed to industry leaders
• Make new connections online and extend our network beyond networking events
• Share valuable and informational content with our audience.

Who will be your hosts:

Gwen Serrotti (@GwenSerrotti), CEO and Founder of Xtraordinary Women and Erika Kruger (@ErikaKruger5), workplace wellness consultant, speaker and massage therapist and Chapter Leader of the Xtraordinary Women Helderberg Chapter.

Hashtag:

#XWBizChat

Frequency:

Last Wednesday of the Month at 19:00 (SAST).

Follow @XOrdinaryWomen, @GwenSerrotti and @ErikaKruger5 on Twitter and look out for the hashtag #XWBizChat for more information.