Social media moves fast, but nowhere is it faster than on Twitter. If you’re promoting events on Twitter, it means your marketing strategy needs to evolve quickly too. 

Twitter may be one of the most challenging networks for social media event marketing. Still, it’s also one of the most rewarding.  

What makes Twitter a unique platform for events 

Tweets may be short, but the Twitter community is large: the platform has 320 million monthly active users. Used by 21% of women and 24% of men, Twitter is most popular among high-income millennials: a prime ticket-buying demographic. 

 If your event draws a younger, tech-savvy crowd, Twitter should be a vital part of your promotion strategy. Michelle Manafy of Inc. calls Twitter users “information junkies,” referring to a wide variety of information: technology, news, sports, marketing, journalism etc. 

Choosing an event hashtag and Twitter bio 

The first step in promoting your event on Twitter is to create a hashtag and bio that embodies your event’s spirit. 

Hashtags are one of the most effective ways to consolidate conversation about your event on Twitter. When choosing an event hashtag, you want to keep it concise and memorable. When in doubt, consider simply using your event name, its acronym, or even including a hashtag in your event’s official name. Also, be sure to double-check that the hashtag isn’t already being used. Before finalising your event hashtag, search Twitter to make sure it’s not already in use. 

Your event’s Twitter bio is one of the first things people will see on your profile. As Google prioritises social media profiles, it’s likely your Twitter account will show up high in search results for your event. 

Write a brief, catchy profile — ideally just one sentence — that describes your event and gives the date, location, and link to the next event’s ticketing page.  

And don’t forget the value of images on social media. You’ll want to use your logo as the profile picture and a fun photo of a recent event for your banner photo that captures the excitement from a previous event. Your Twitter profile photo should be 400×400 pixels, and your header image should be 1500×1500 pixels. 

Promoting your event on Twitter 

Culturally relevant and timely posts work great on Twitter. Twitter users are usually most interested in news, quick tips, interesting articles, and trending topics. Use quick, witty, and eye-catching updates to engage them with your event. 

Every social media platform is a bit different, but on Twitter, images are king. According to Twitter, posts with images are a third more likely to get retweeted than posts without them. 

Beyond images, keep the post as concise (obviously) and eye-catching and to the point as possible. Send out news, tips, how-tos, interesting articles and trends. And ideally, you’ll want to keep them shorter than the 140 character limit. The ideal length depends on your audience, but in general, stick to a 70 to 100 character range. According to the social media management platform Buffer, tweets shorter than 100 characters have a 17% higher engagement rate.

Be aware that a tweet reaches its peak after 18 minutes, so you’ll want to post more frequently than on other networks!  

The best time to tweet 

Most tweets are sent between noon and 1pm in each time zone. This could be because many people are engaging with Twitter at that time, but it could not. You’ll need to run some tests to work out what times of day your particular audience is on Twitter.  

You don’t need fancy analytics to find the best time to use Twitter for events. For a week, try posting once a day during that noon prime time and once during a less popular hour. Then look back on your tweet impressions for each post, which you can find in Twitter’s free analytics. See which time slot is getting your posts in front of the most eyes, and stick with that. 

Using Twitter walls at the event 

At the event, it’s worth showcasing a Twitter wall. These screens display tweets and images as they’re posted — if they’re tagged with your event’s hashtag. People love to be in the spotlight on these tweet walls, and your attendees are no exception. 

To encourage use, make sure your hashtag is visible on displays and screens throughout the event, so people don’t forget it.  

Twitter is face-paced. While that may seem intimidating, it offers various opportunities to get in front of your potential audience and become essential in your social media marketing toolbelt.