Over the past couple of years, Twitter’s growth has been continuous and rapid. Known as the social media platform that receives news the quickest, Twitter has become a home for the everyday individual and celebrities, politicians, and public figures around the globe.
With multi-billionaire Elon Musk taking a particular interest in it, Twitter—a place of hashtags and trends—has reached an international trending status as well. Safe to say, Twitter has earned its rightful place as one of the top social media platforms ever created. Building a following would be advantageous to several, but how exactly can one grow a Twitter following?
Let’s check out one simple yet powerful way—the short link.
3 Ways the Short Link Helps You Grow Your Twitter Followers
You may think that short links are unnecessary for those of you who are familiar with Twitter (and unfamiliar with short links). Why would we need a “short” link for Twitter when Twitter already shortens links automatically?
Alas, the shortening of a link is merely one of the many features of a short link (and far from the most impressive one too). And if you’re keen on growing a solid following on Twitter, you’re in luck. Here are four ways the short link helps you seem like that Twitter account—the one that has a bajillion followers and an enviable amount of interaction?
Everything Is Cohesive and Pretty
Being adaptive and accommodating, Twitter is aware that 140 characters do not mix well with a copy-paste link, so they have their very own feature that shortens a link. However, a short link coming specifically from a reputable link shortening service offers not only a shortened version but a customized one.
This means you can personalize all your links to be on-brand. Unlike Instagram and Facebook, it is much easier to distinguish uniformity on Twitter. When you scroll through someone’s tweets, you see several at a time. This is why having a cohesive and personalized brand can help.
So whenever you post links, a common and recognizable set of characters within them becomes achievable. Plus, Twitter knows that most professional accounts will have affiliate links or another website of its own. This is exactly why when you edit your profile, a field is available for websites and is the perfect opportunity for a personalized link.
So if you have a website, shop, vlog, etc., to advertise, the Twitter and short link tandem become a powerful pair guaranteed to get you some traffic.
More Than Just a Pretty Face
Sure, the shortened, customized link parades its looks on tweets, but its professional look is merely the tip of the iceberg. What’s impressive about the short link is the analytics. When users click on a short link, they aren’t just transported to another place on the internet, but bits of information about them are extracted. This information is then presented in an organized manner for you.
Which country your followers are from, what time your link gets the most engagement, which links brought in the most (or least) users, and more are all pieces of information you can receive. The advantage of learning these for your account’s growth cannot be measured.
When it comes to building a following, your content and how your followers interact with it are of utmost importance. Posting relevant and engaging content has become a sure-fire way to gain and keep followers. But how exactly would you know what most of your audience wants?
One good way is to figure out their location. For example, if you had a meme account with three thousand followers and half of them came from France, it would be good to post a tweet greeting the 50 percent of your followers a blessed Bastille Day on July 14th. Little things like that tend to make your followers feel more included and relevant.
Another critical factor is the timing of your posts. Links tell you what time you get the most clicks. Posting good content when most of your followers are busy or asleep would be a waste. Knowing when you get the most engagement will tell you when it is best to post.
Analytics is perhaps the most useful feature a short link can present you with. The more information you obtain about the people exposed to your content, the better you can tailor your content to their wants and demands.
You Offer Convenience
Have you ever tried clicking on a link on Pinterest only to be led to Facebook or Instagram? And not only that, but you’re also led to the browser version of the app, so you’re required to log in. You get annoyed because you’ve either forgotten your password or Facebook’s two-factor authentication security makes the whole process irritating.
In the end, you abandon the whole post. Initially, you were curious, but now you’re mildly annoyed and dissatisfied. You wouldn’t want your potential followers to go through the same thing, wouldn’t you?
That would be the perfect time for deep links. Deep links are another feature a short link has—they allow access to your mobile in-app locations. So instead of having to log in and endure with the browser versions of a social media app, they’d have the option to use the mobile-friendly versions.
When you use deep links, you eliminate the risk of losing interested users to inconvenience. So when your users get where they want to be, they are satisfied and ready to view your content.
Short.io Is Ready to Help You Grow
Although already incredibly impressive, those three features are only a few of the many features a short link offers. Considering URL shortening services can not only grow your Twitter following but also help you in virtually any online project. Check out Short.io for a complete list of services a short link has to offer and more.