Can’t find a relevant existing Twitter chat to join to talk about water and swimming safety? Start your own. Here are some tips on how to start a Twitter chat.
- Choose a time slot that works for you and your audience one the east and west coasts. The more people available to chat, the better the chat will go.
- Create an engaging hashtag. The best hashtags are unique, relevant and memorable, as well as short.
- Use an engaged moderator. Moderators of Twitter chats are usually brands, individuals, industry guests or members of your team. They must ask questions, monitor the conversation and keep it moving.
- Organize questions by number (Q1, Q2, etc.). Encourage participants to respond with the same format (A1, A2, etc.) to keep participants on track and limit confusion during the conversation.
- Promote your chat frequently and ahead of time so you have a greater chance of drawing a decent amount of participation. Invite industry colleagues and interested individuals to the chat.
- Plan ahead by scheduling guests, preparing topic questions, and having resource links and topic tips and conversation starters ready.
- Enjoy the chat! Don’t forget to let others share good information and ask questions. Directly reply to questions and encourage folks who ask additional, relevant questions. Prepare to fill in a slow conversation with some extra tips, infographics, links or questions. Also prepare to write down a list of extra questions that come in that you can’t get to during a very busy conversation. Commit to answering those questions on Twitter using the appropriate hashtags even after the chat is over to keep the dialogue about water safety going on social media. Remember to understand your audience: Follow the conversation to continue to engage them.
- Take notes. Twitter chats provide opportunities to build your own knowledge. Participants may introduce you to new resources or research you didn’t know existed.
- Thank people for attending the chat and remind people to #BeWaterAware.
- Obtain feedback post-chat. Use the hashtag and ask for feedback on how the chat went after it’s over. Did people learn more about water safety? Did they feel more educated about National Water Safety Month? Do they have additional topic suggestions that involve water safety?
- Remember to build important connections relevant to water and swimming safety. Twitter chats bring people from various backgrounds together, so you may connect with some additional influencers who can continue to help spread the importance of National Water Safety Month. Tweet chats can also help you gain followers, so don’t be surprised to see your numbers elevate after a successful chat.
- Use National Water Safety Month hashtags: #BeWaterAware, #NWSM2020, #Learn2Swim, #DrowningIsPreventable
- Repurpose your chat content in a blog or on your website so more people can benefit from what was learned in the conversation.
- Measure your chat engagement. Look at the metrics to see how your Twitter hashtag mentions and impressions performed.
