Following the success of Instagram Stories, Facebook Stories, Snapchat, and now LinkedIn Stories, Twitter’s finally launched its own tale feature.
It’s called Tweets Fleets.
The launch of Twitter Fleets comes after an effective pilot which began 9 months ago. In 03, Twitter began testing the particular feature in Brazil and continued to add other countries to its pilot till unveiling the feature within the U. S.
But , how does Fleets work and how may your brand leverage it in your marketing strategy? We’ll stroll you through everything we all know so far below.
Fleets, or fleeting tweets, are similar to Instagram Stories. Like Instagram’s design, Twitter users who have Fleets will see a bar along with circular Story icons through each account above their Twitter feed.
From their homepage, a user can tap on a circular Fleet icon to see what an account posted in their Fleets area.
In contrast to tweets, the text, video, or even photo published shows up in a vertical format, similar to Instagram Stories. But , if you like the Tweet format, you can also reveal a one in a Fleet in order to draw more attention to this, like McDonalds does beneath:
How to Use Twitter Fleets
1 . Tap the group with your face in it within the Fleets bar.
Like Instagram and LinkedIn Stories, the Fleets pub is above your give food to and your Fleet icon is going to be on the right side, since seen the first screenshot demonstrated above.
2 . Create your content.
3. Add text and descriptions.
4. Publish your Fleet.
The Motivation Behind Twitter Fleets
Because Fleets disappear after 24 hours, much like Instagram Stories, Twitter says it’s aiming to see if its ephemeral content will advertise deeper and more personal conversations on the platform.
To make Fleets even more “personal, ” other users cannot retweet or reveal the link to them. Twitter users can also only reply to Fleets via direct message.
Whenever Twitter started its Fleets pilot, the company surveyed some of the first beta testers. As expected, most who used Fleets said they felt much more comfortable publishing more personal ideas or opinions than they’d publish in standard tweets. This was because the users understood that this content would eventually disappear.
“We hope that those people who are not usually confident with Tweeting use Fleets to speak about the reflections that come to their head, ” said Mo Al Adham, a Tweets product manager explained, within Twitter’s announcement.
Twitter Fleets also signifies yet another proceed social media platforms are making towards embracing ephemeral content.
While disappearing video, text, and Stories might’ve sounded such as gimmicks back in the earlier times of social media, ephemeral content functions are increasingly common in today’s online landscape.
Although Fleets might not be the center of brand techniques just yet, you can still begin identifying potential ephemeral content material that could ultimately work on the woking platform. Below, I’ll highlight some commonly used ephemeral tactics that could boost brand awareness on Twitter Fleets.
Exactly how Brands Could Use Twitter Fleets
1 . Publishing Limited-Time Offers
Want to sell out a lot of a single product quickly? Or, provide a promotion to your most involved Twitter followers? One great way to perform both of these things could be making use of Fleets to promote temporary product sales, offers, or coupon codes.
Considering that Fleets only last for 24 hours, users won’t be able to discover the codes or promotions forever. That could mean that these audiences might feel a sense of emergency to make a purchase, use a given coupon code, or just visit your site to learn more about your product.
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second . Hosting Daily Giveaways
Together with posting about short-term product sales and coupon codes, Fleets — and other Story platforms — could be great places to advertise giveaways. With a Story-like platform, you can include more text, video, and photo about the items you’re giving away and clarify the rules of your giveaway inside multiple pages.
While you may announce a giveaway in standard tweets, all of this details might have to be published in multiple posts or a line due to Twitter’s character depend limitations. And, because Twitter’s feed is so fast-paced, you’ll likely need to post more than once to get a large number of contest entries in the limited time.
With a platform like Fleets, you’ll not only be able to post multiple web pages of tweets in the exact same Fleet story, but your content material will also appear in the Fleets area above a user’s feed. This might mean that there may be less risk in your contest announcement being buried simply by tweets from other accounts.
Additionally , because Fleets and Tales only last for 24 hours, viewers might feel a sense of urgency. Like with coupons or sales, audiences might want to enter your contest, view your entire Story, or go to your website prior to the Fleet disappears.
To give you several added inspiration, here’s a good example of a contest that a brand name once ran on Instagram Stories:
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3. Embracing Live Events on Social Media
Want to leverage live events or immediate news in your social media marketing strategy without it clogging up your Twitter profile? Consider covering the event with ephemeral content. That way, when the event has ended, users focus back on the overall brand and company.
In this example below, the particular NBA’s Instagram Story showcased coverage of the Toronto Raptors parade in Ontario, North america. At this point in the Story, the Raptors team member took selfies with the rapper, Drake.
4. Interacting With Loyal Fans
While Twitter’s highly public platform already allows brands numerous opportunities to find and socialize directly with fans, Fleets could also be a helpful device for this.
On Instagram and Facebook Stories, you might regularly see content where manufacturers ask users to DM them questions or articles. Then, a brand might create a Story with user-generated estimates, images, or videos. This tactic makes users who participated feel like the brand cares about their thoughts. In the meantime, an interactive Story such as this allows other audiences to find out that the brand appreciates its most engaged followers.
Aside from question-and-answer interactions, you could also go one particular step further by publishing Fleets with user-generated content material from customers or enthusiasts. One brand that regularly does this on Instagram Stories and Facebook is certainly Planet Fitness. In the tale below, they highlight physical fitness journey photos sent to all of them by their actual customers:
Not only does this Story allow faithful Planet Fitness fans in order to contribute to the brand’s social media content, but it also allows leads to see how real people have benefited from the gym’s providers.
5. Offering Behind-the-Scenes Content
Most of us know that people like seeing behind-the-scenes content through celebrities, athletes, and influencers on Instagram Stories, Facebook Stories, and Snapchat. But , research shows that consumers also enjoy behind-the-scenes material through brands.
While tweets offer brands a platform to generate quick well-worded posts or publish heavy-lift content, Fleets could allow brands to show audiences behind-the-scenes content or even insights that make them appear more authentic and relatable. This is something we’ve seen brands frequently do on the temporary Instagram Stories.
Within the Story below, the New England-based Caffe Nero highlights a Barista of the Year competitors that it holds with its staff every year. The Story highlights how Caffe Nero baristas are dedicated to serving customers and showcases an authentic piece of the restaurant’s company culture that many customers might not know about.
5. Informing Audiences About Complex Industry Subjects
When you craft a twitter update, you need to sum up your message in 280 characters or even start a thread. But with Fleets or other social media Stories, you can add further information or understanding with photos, videos, or multiple pages of textual content. This could allow brands to offer Twitter users a more powerful variation of valuable, easy-to-create content that isn’t limited to tiny tweets, pricey marketing videos, or time-consuming live streams.
Here is an example of how HubSpot discusses more complex industry topics through Instagram Stories. While you might not be able to add the same amount of imagery to Fleets content, you could potentially leverage multiple webpages of text in a similar way.
Navigating Impetuous Content
Can content that will disappears really leave an impact? Well, if Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Tweets have taught us anything at all — the answer to that query is, “Yes! ”
Whilst ephemeral platforms are a new and exciting opportunity, it can take creativity and brainstorming to create content that will get your audience in a memorable way.
To get better acquainted with key ephemeral content tips and strategies, check out this summary of the content type. Then, learn more about how major brands are leveraging current ephemeral platforms such as Instagram Stories, Facebook Stories, and Snapchat.
Editor’s Note: This blog post has been originally published to cover the particular Twitter Fleets pilot in-may 2020, but was updated within November 2020 for comprehensiveness and freshness.