Twitter Bios: Describing What You Do in 140 Characters
April 5, 2015
Everyone wants to make a good first impression, especially on social media.
Your Twitter bio acts as an introduction, a foot-in-the-door for you to show what you’re made of and for others to decide whether you’re worth following.
Think of it like a highly optimized elevator pitch. And I should know about elevators since my dad is an elevator designer (fun fact!)
So how can you encourage people to follow you on Twitter before you’ve even had a conversation? By clearly explaining who you are and what you do in the most important 140 character space on the Internet.
As a short-form poet, Twitter’s restriction of 140 characters excites me. I love that I only have 140 characters to make an impact. What you do with those 140 characters is everything.
Whether you get jazzed about character restrictions or think they are a pain, I’m here to help you nail down your bio so you can make more connections with your primary audience.
Let’s first look at the psychology behind why a person might follow you. It might be because:
- They think you could add value to their feed.
- They want to learn from you.
- They see a connection with you as a networking opportunity.
- You are both like-minded people.
- They admire you and your work.
There are several more reasons why, but this covers the basics. When crafting your Twitter description, you must keep each of these lenses in mind. Are you giving your audience value? Are you someone people can’t wait to connect with?
If yes, you’re on the right track.
State your mission and “why”
The best way to solidify what you do is to put it into one sentence. Seriously. The clarity that comes from this exercise is like magic. Start by filling in these blanks:
“I help [target audience] with [what you do] because [your why statement].”
Now that you’ve got this down, find a way to fit this into your bio. You might need to do a few edits to make sure it can fit into your bio with some space for other goodies.
Know your target audience
The best way to seal the deal with a potential follower is to address them. In my bio, I call out “creative bloggers” because those are my people. Who are yours? Whether it’s crafters, designers, or entrepreneurs, make sure you are speaking to them from the get-go.
Add a personal, quirky detail
If your bio only includes your professional titles and accomplishments, it will be a snore. That authority is still important to incorporate, but people are on social to be human. Have a little fun! I felt so much more like myself when I added: “fueled by adventure + hot chocolate” to my description.
Be all about you
I get that you’re describing you, but also share what you have to offer your audience. That will secure the connection.
Only include an inspirational quote
“Fall down seven times, stand up eight” is a great quote, don’t get me wrong, but if that’s all your bio is, it’ll be hard for any visitor to understand what value you will bring if they follow your Twitter.
Use random symbols
I know back in the Myspace days, we all thought it was cool to use the trademark symbol by our names or use symbols so our screen names looked like ~*{K@y1@}*~ (and don’t say you didn’t because we all did), but now we’re in the big leagues. It’s the same with emojis. Keep them in text messages and out of your bio.
#Hashtag #Every #Word
Yes, hashtags can help people find you, but don’t overuse them, especially in your bio where readability is super important. You will still show up in Twitter search results for those keywords even if you don’t use all the hashtags. I promise.
