Twitter is an online networking and micro-blogging site with the aim to connect people and share information with a wide audience. Twitter is great for sharing information in real-time.

Twitter users can ‘follow’ other users to see their ‘tweets’ (online posts) in their twitter timelines.

Tweets can be up to 280 characters long and can include links to relevant websites and resources.

The Twitter Help Centre can provide more information on setting up a Twitter account for your club.

Why use Twitter?

With a growing audience, Twitter is a great way to:

  • Increase the size of the club’s audience;
  • Support the delivery of club objectives and;
  • Engage future participants.

Given the short nature of Twitter posts, it’s a perfect way to share live information like score updates on game days, sponsor signing and/or deals and posts with a call to action i.e. “Just released: new club apparel. Click here to buy now”.

Tips for using Twitter

Twitter can be a great for reaching a wider audience and building a strong connection but its important you do it right to get the best outcomes.

1. Create a plan!

This will help you post regular and relevant content to ensure your audience is engaged. 

2. Add images to your tweets

An image or video should accompany your tweets to make your tweet much more engaging. If you can’t find a specific photo, a generic footy photo will do the trick. Images must be good – aesthetics are extremely important on social media.

  • Bright, colourful e.g. no dead grass, no dark clouds, where possible
  • Consider the background e.g. no carparks, no toilet blocks, no bins
  • Landscape format when possible (formats better to social platforms/websites)
  • Not zoomed in and blurry - get in close, fill the frame
  • No clip art or googled cartoon images
  • No logos as photos – action shots will get you much further

3. Interact with your community

Interacting with your audience is just as important as tweeting.

Make sure you reply to positive comments on your tweets – this increases engagement. Be playful and informative with your audience.

IMPORTANT: Do not engage with negative/troll behaviour – this is not a good look for your club. Consider who else is watching your page/club members contribute to negative behaviour online.

  • Think: Do I want sponsors to see the club/its members interactive negatively?
  • Think: Do I want parents of the next generation seeing this?
  • Think: Do you want this to be the example younger members of your club look up to?
  • Think: Is this the culture we want at this club?

Other fun ways to interact with your audience can include “Caption this photo” posts, polls on humorous matters like “Who wore it better?” from presentation nights or “socks up or socks down?”.

4. Use Call to Actions (CTAs)

Using effective action words and creative CTAs will drive engagement and potentially further your reach. CTAs could include:

  • Click here for more information
  • Shop our new club merchandise now
  • Register now
  • Celebrate the team win