8 Twitter Marketing Features for Business

Are you taking advantage of the newest Twitter features? Is it time to re-examine your Twitter marketing strategy?

In this article, you'll discover eight powerful Twitter features designed for marketers and how to get started with them. Learn how to leverage these tools to start conversations, monetize your content, and create community.

#1: Twitter for Professionals

Have you been waiting for years for Twitter to allow business accounts? Unlike many other major social channels, Twitter hasn't differentiated between personal and professional accounts—at least until recently.

In mid-2021, Twitter began rolling out professional accounts, which allow brands to create professional profiles. With a professional profile, you can customize your bio and tell people about your business.

Professional accounts can also use Quick Promote, a new option for promoting content. Similar to boosting posts on Facebook, Quick Promote lets you pay to sponsor content via Twitter ads without having to go through the entire campaign creation process.

To switch over to a professional account, open the full left-hand menu in the Twitter app or a browser. Select Twitter for Professionals and click the Agree & Continue button in the pop-up.

Next, choose the category that best describes your business. You can scroll through the list or type a category into the search bar. Since the category will display in your bio, make sure it's an accurate description that will make sense to your audience.

Then choose between Business and Creator. Twitter recommends that brands, organizations, and service providers choose Business, while public figures and influencers choose Creator.

Once you've completed the basic setup, you can customize your profile by editing your display name, bio, location, and website. If you want to change your category or switch between business and creator accounts at any time, click Edit Professional Profile.

To use the Quick Promote feature, first find the content you want to sponsor. Click the analytics icon in the lower right and click the blue Promote Your Tweet button. Then customize your audience demographics and choose a budget. Click the blue Create Promotion button to start running your ad.

#2: Twitter Shopping

Competing social channels like Instagram and Facebook have fully embraced native shopping tools in 2021 so it should come as no surprise that Twitter has also begun testing its own version of an integrated shopping tool.

In July 2021, Twitter launched a pilot version of its Shop Module, which essentially allows brands to create shoppable profiles. Brands with access to Shop Modules can set up a dedicated product showcase at the top of their profile. Then visitors can swipe through the product carousel and tap to learn more or purchase via the in-app browser.

Twitter's Shop Module may be the first of other professional modules to come in 2022 and beyond. As the Twitter blog explains, the social channel intends to take a module-focused approach to professional profiles, gradually releasing new sections for brands to add to their bios.

#3: Twitter Newsletters

Are you looking for additional options to monetize your brand's presence on Twitter? In January 2021, Twitter acquired newsletter service Revue and began testing its Newsletters feature. Now any account can publish newsletters via Revue and promote them via the Twitter integration.

For example, @samhoult publishes a Revue newsletter that follows his experience of building a Salesforce product in public.

To get started with your brand's own Revue newsletter, navigate to Twitter in a desktop browser and open the left-hand menu. Select Newsletters and click the blue Find Out More button to set up an account and start sending newsletters. Because Revue allows you to import email lists, you can begin using the platform with the list you already have.

Although you can create free newsletters with Revue, the platform also offers a paid model. That means you can charge a subscription fee for your newsletter and get paid for creating high-value content.

To attract subscribers, Twitter now allows you to add a subscription button to your profile. This module displays just below your bio so users can learn about your newsletter and subscribe easily.

For example, @sec_r0 displays a subscription button for his Security Zines newsletter just below his Twitter bio. To sign up for the newsletter, visitors can simply click Subscribe and confirm their contact information.

In October 2021, Twitter introduced a new subscription card, confirming its continued commitment to the Newsletters feature and making it easier for brands, public figures, and thought leaders to promote their content.

Essentially, whenever you or any other account shares a link to your Revue newsletter, a Subscribe button will automatically appear in the tweet. Then anyone can subscribe seamlessly without leaving Twitter.

#4: Twitter Super Follows

Twitter's monetization options don't stop there. In September 2021, the platform began rolling out Super Follows, a native subscription feature. Select creators can offer Super Follow subscriptions for a monthly fee starting at $2.99.

In exchange for the subscription fee, creators provide bonus content only super followers can see. As of November 2021, creators can publish bonus content via tweets but Twitter anticipates allowing Super Follow content via Spaces, Newsletters, and other formats in the future.

In some cases, creators can use both Super Follows and Tips, another new feature Twitter began rolling out in September 2021. While Super Follows provides access to exclusive subscription content, Tips offers a way for users to express their support—once or as often as they choose.

For example, @MakeupForWOC creates content for super followers and allows all followers to show their support via Tips. While the Tips option is available to all users, Super Follows is accessible to iOS users only as of November 2021.

#5: Twitter Spaces

From innovative features to completely new apps, audio has stood out as one of the key social media trends of 2021. Thanks to the authentic discussions it sparks, audio is likely to remain a hot topic through 2022. Twitter rolled out its audio feature Spaces to all users starting in May 2021, allowing brands to host or join audio conversations.

To find spaces to join, open the Twitter mobile app and check at the top of your timeline for spaces hosted by accounts you follow. Tap any live space and press the Join This Space button to begin listening. Depending on the host's settings, you may also be able to request to speak in the space.

To start your own Twitter space, click the plus icon in the lower-right corner of the mobile app and select Spaces from the menu. Give your space a name and add up to three relevant topics. Then start your space right away or schedule it for later. You can schedule spaces for up to 2 weeks in advance.

Before you host your first space, it's important to note that you have minimal control over who joins your event. All spaces are public so anyone aside from accounts you've blocked can listen. But you don't have to give just anyone permission to talk. You can invite up to 10 people to speak and you can mute or remove speakers at any time.

When your space is live, you can share it on your timeline or spread the word via DM. You can also share existing tweets in your space to shape the discussion or add context to the conversation. Twitter announced that it was testing recorded spaces in October 2021, which may mean you'll be able to save and reshare spaces in the near future.

Once you get the hang of this new audio feature, you may want to consider hosting a ticketed space. With ticketed spaces, you can set an admission fee and collect up to 97% of the revenue. Note that ticketed spaces are still in beta as of November 2021 and require submitting an application via the Twitter app.

#6: Twitter Communities

Taking authentic connections a step further, Twitter has also announced Communities, a feature that's designed for developing smaller interest-based groups. Similar to Facebook Groups, Twitter Communities lets members start conversations or ask questions on certain topics, giving users opportunities to build and share knowledge.

Unlike Facebook groups, all communities are public so any user can see the content; however, only members can post or reply to conversations.

As of November 2021, communities are accessible by invitation only so adoption is somewhat limited. But it's not too early to start planning how your brand could use this feature once it's fully launched.

Your brand might apply to create a community focused on topics that matter to your business. You might also request an invitation to join a community where your team can add value, drive brand awareness, and establish thought leadership.

For example, the iOS Devs community below invites developers who work with Apple's platforms to help each other and swap tips.

#7: Twitter Conversation Settings

When you join a community, you may welcome all of the conversations your posts generate. But if your brand's public tweets tend to get a lot of traction, you may find it challenging to manage all of the engagement. When absolutely anyone can reply to your tweets, conversations can get off track and decrease the value of your content.

To address these concerns, Twitter has been rolling out new features to limit who can reply to your tweets. When you publish or schedule a tweet in the app, every account can now limit replies to people they follow or people they mention.

In July 2021, Twitter began introducing even more options for limiting replies. Now you can change who can reply to your tweet even after you publish it. To change permissions, click the three dots on any tweet you've published and select Change Who Can Reply. Then choose between people you follow and people you mention.

If your brand uses Twitter to start or join conversations, you may want to use this feature sparingly. But with a little planning, this feature can enhance your Twitter strategy in 2022. By limiting replies, you can create a thread with a carefully curated conversation among your brand and a few specially selected peers, influencers, or industry experts.

#8: Twitter Blue

If your team wants to get even more out of Twitter in 2022, it could be worthwhile to subscribe to Twitter Blue. This paid subscription service is brand-new to U.S.-based Twitter users as of November 2021, and you can access it via the left-hand menu.

For the introductory price of $2.99 per month, you get features like:

• An Undo button that lets you fix typos, add missed tags, or rework your message to make sure it sounds just the way you want.

• Ad-free articles from major U.S. publishers so you can catch up on the news without all the distractions. (Note that this doesn't let you read content behind paywalls.)

• A list of top articles so you can keep track of the most popular and most shareworthy content in your network.

• Reader format, which transforms long Twitter threads into a more efficient reading experience.

• Bookmark folders to help you organize all of those tweets you saved to reread later.

• Pinned conversations to clean up your DMs and make navigation more efficient.

• Longer upload times so you can tweet video content that lasts up to 10 minutes.

Will Twitter Blue be worth the subscription fee? If your business depends heavily on this social channel, there's a good chance that the nominal monthly cost will provide plenty of value. Here are some potential use cases:

• If your team uses Twitter for customer service, pinning DMs could help you keep track of conversations that still need resolutions.

• If you collect user-generated content (UGC) or testimonials on Twitter, bookmark folders can help you organize content and permissions.

• If you want to join key conversations in your industry, the Top Articles feature can help you avoid missing out and remind you to share popular content.

Conclusion

From shopping and live video to Twitter Blue and community-building features, this social channel has ample opportunities for brands and creators to build their businesses. Whether you want to monetize your presence on Twitter or build a stronger community around your business, you have a long list of new features and tools to incorporate into your plan for 2022.

Get More Advice on Twitter Marketing

• Drive local foot traffic with Twitter ads.

• Create a Twitter Amplify pre-roll ad.

• Connect with your following using Twitter Spaces.