Twitter is a very useful tool to build your Author Platform/Business. I recently published a post, in which I provided 9 great ways to use Twitter for Writers. The last feature mentioned was Twitter Cards, and I received a few questions on this very much underutilized function.
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We all know the legendary, sometimes frustrating, Twitter’s 140 characters’ limit. You can certainly add a Gif or a picture, but sometimes it’s simply not enough. As much as this is a great exercise to be concise and straight to the point, we still need more on some occasions.
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Well, what if I tell you we could do more? More? Yes, more!
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More text, better-looking tweets and very important functionalities! You can get it all with Twitter Cards. But first, let’s talk about Website Cards.
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By the end of this post, you’ll be able to create Twitter Website Cards to drive even more traffic to your site (or book page on Amazon for example). The cherry on the cake is that you can have all of these for FREE.
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Is Twitter Cards a dream? Absolutely not!
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Let’s start:
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What is a Twitter Card?
First of all, Twitter offers five different types of cards.
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Summary Card with a thumbnail or large image
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Image App Card
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Player App Card
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Website Card
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Lead Generation Card
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Summary Cards are often used when posting a blog post, referring to a webpage or blog post. If you paste a link in a regular tweet, you will see them appear as shown below.
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Find out why you need beta readers before you hit the “Publish” button! https://t.co/RHwDKjPoiW #SundayBlogShare #amwriting #betareader
— L.M. Durand (@Loryannhd) December 18, 2016
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An Image App Card is used to redirect the traffic to the App page or an iTunes page for example.
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A Video App Card uses a player instead of a large image in the tweet allowing you to watch a Youtube Video right from the tweet (without ever leaving Twitter). If you have a book trailer or YouTube Channel, this card can be a great tool.
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A Lead Generation Card is also an excellent tool to generate sign ups or have a call-to-action button. This type of Cards is a topic for my next post, and I will discuss privacy policy as well.
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Today we will discuss Twitter Website Cards.
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What is a Twitter Website Card?
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Want to build your audience? Check out my site and claim your free e-book and bonuses. #writerslife https://t.co/RyWFCzUP5M
— L.M. Durand (@Loryannhd) December 24, 2016
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A Twitter Website Card is an ad format tweet that looks like an extension of your tweet. It provides a place to promote your website or a page. Ultimately, the [tweet_dis]Twitter Website Card helps drive traffic to your Website[/tweet_dis].
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This Card is a richer media experience for the reader.
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What are the benefits of using this Card?
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These Twitter Cards offer four key benefits.
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Track them with Twitter analytics to get insights on your audience and how your Cards perform.
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[tweet_dis]Have better control over the display and what type of information you decide to share[/tweet_dis]. The title, image, and summary are customizable. Once shared, the tweet appears exactly how you want it to be.
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[tweet_dis]Schedule your tweets directly from Twitter![/tweet_dis] This is the only place within Twitter where you can schedule them.
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The last point is undoubtedly not the least. I repeat myself, but the Website cards will drive traffic to your Website, which is a significant advantage.
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Where can you find Twitter Cards?
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GO TO TWITTER ADS
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To create a Twitter Website Card, you will first need to go to the Twitter Ads Tab:
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On some browsers, it may look like this:
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REGISTER
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Note that you will need to register (the registration is pretty straightforward) and your credit card information will be requested before you can create a Twitter Card. You will NOT be charged for what I will show you, but you need to provide this information to access it.
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Once you’ve registered, the dashboard will release new tabs that you won’t see before.
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CREATION OF THE CARD
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The tab we are most interested in right now is “Creatives,”select “Cards,” and now things are getting real:
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I would say Twitter Lead Generation and Website are probably the two most exciting features for Writers, but first, let’s start by selecting “Website” and then clicking on “Create your first Website Card.”
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CARD CONTENT
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Card Image:
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Click on “Edit Image” and upload the image of your choice.
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You can upload PNG or JPEG files and use logos, your banner, or even a picture of your book. Twitter suggests to avoid Stock images, and it’s primarily because your media should reflect your product or brand and its message. Create as many as you need so the message is relevant to the tweet.
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A window will pop up, and you can upload the image. You will have the option with a slider to make it bigger or smaller, and with your cursor, you can center it. Once you’re happy with the changes, click the Save button.
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I noticed that, with the Chrome browser, it doesn’t work so well. Safari was better for me. So if you have any technical issues, consider changing browser.
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Website URL:
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Make sure to enter the Website URL you want to promote. It could be your website, your blog, or even your Amazon page for your book.
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Headline:
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Make it personal and make it count – You only have 70 characters. If you offer discounts on your book/product or host a giveaway contest, it may help to indicate this here.
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What would you like to name your Card?
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This last box is only visible to you, so use a name that will speak to you. Ok, now your card is ready…
***I changed the Headline afterward. It appears in blue below.
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Now, what? Well, it’s time to create your tweet, BUT there is a little caveat to this.
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[tweet_dis]Tweets including Twitter Cards must be created from the Twitter Ads dashboard. [/tweet_dis]So yes, it is an extra step, but it’s worth it.
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You have two ways to create a tweet attaching the Card:
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From the screen shown above, click on “Compose Tweet with this Card.“
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From the Main Menu, go to Creatives > Tweets > New Tweet and select the card you want to use with your Tweet as shown below.
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Select the card you want to use. Write your tweet and don’t forget to include hashtags.
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Make sure to have the Standard button selected. The Promoted-only button is the actual ad. You can target your audience and will pay for it.
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Finally, you can either publish now or schedule your tweets. Just select the day and time and hit Tweet.
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Scheduling your tweets with Twitter can only be done using the Twitter Cards.
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Thank you so much for this information. I’m bookmarking this page.
I’d also be very interested to hear if you have any suggestions about best practice for using Twitter cards. Are they annoying to followers, do they seem spammy, and so should we limit their use? What types of tweets should and shouldn’t use them? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
You’re welcome! Having another post coming this weekend on Lead generation. 🙂 You shouldn’t be using them all the time, but only when you need them. Create a few so they don’t look like you’re posting the same information over and over. Maybe create one for a book promotion/short stories, one for your website and one for your blog. These tweets are only annoying if it becomes only about your website or your book. See this as a way to make a type of tweet that you’re already using to promote your site look better. I see them as a bonus feature.