Why Twitter users in Brussels should look to radio for inspiration

Despite its undoubted transformative potential, there still exists large swathes of people in the Brussels Bubble who just ‘don’t get’ Twitter. As a social strategist I sometimes find that pretty frustrating; there are so many great things which industries, associations and individuals could be doing, but there is just such little appetite for them. The challenge is to demonstrate to the bubble just how easy, accessible and effective Twitter is.

Although everybody knows that Twitter should be part of a successful public affairs strategy, many just don’t know how. To understand, we need to stop viewing it as this newfangled, modern tool and realize that it’s the same as other broadcasting platforms which we’ve been using for years. To explain, here are 3 similarities between Twitter and radio which demonstrate just how easy it is to build a successful social media strategy for your clients.

1. Stations with a clear direction are the most successful

In Radio, the most popular stations are often those with a clear and accessible offering. Popular stations are successful in part because they are synonymous with certain values, messages and content and they are consistent in the way they communicate all of these things. The same is true for Twitter. Too many accounts are run without a clear objective and so don’t stand out. Users who have a clear “brand” are typically successful and that’s because they have identified what works for them and have repeated it.

2. The key is being able to cut through the noise

Having a clear direction is the starting point, but it is increasingly not enough. In radio, there are a plethora of stations which occupy the same space, playing the same music and interviewing the same artists. Popular stations have to find a way to stand out. Twitter users are faced with the same problem. As I mentioned in my last post (and as our team constantly say to clients) in 2016 it’s not enough to just write tweets. Just like the best radio stations use quizzes, phone-ins and features to stand out, so Twitter users need to be bolder and more creative when it comes to communicating.

3. it’s essential to know your audience

The best radio stations are those that develop content which speaks to their own niche audience. If a station which specialized in classical music suddenly started playing Kanye West, their audience would quickly lose interest- no matter how good Ye’s songs may be. As I’m sure you’ve guessed by now, this also applies for Twitter. Interaction with an audience is useless unless it’s targeted and tailored to suit their needs. Otherwise they won’t be interested in what you say and if they’re not interested in what you say then you may as well not be tweeting to them at all.

As you can see, the similarities are as simple as they are obvious. Despite this, the majority of Twitter accounts in Brussels lack direction, produce little to no cutting edge content and fail to target their audience.

So, next time you’re typing out a tweet, think about how you can learn from your favourite radio station. If you do, you’re more likely to achieve your objective- and that’s always a good thing.

Alex Burchill