What do you think about when you think about Twitter? When you consider recent statistics about it, you might think, “Potential.” After all, with 284 million active monthly users and 500 million Tweets sent each day, there is a lot of room for engagement. But, just how do you ensure engagement? Let’s look at some of the latest insights and tactics:

1)   Think Mobile. You've heard it before for your website, and you'll hear it again for Twitter: mobile is a key consideration for engagement. 80% of Twitter users are on mobile devices. That means your tweets should be geared towards the mobile reader. They are on the move and therefore likely aren’t going to engage with vague content or anything that doesn’t translate well to their device.

2)   Have a Daily Twitter Date. There is no getting around it, top brands not only Tweet once daily—the trend is 1-5 daily tweets. BUT:

3)   Remember the Golden Rule of Social Media. It’s more about your audience than you. 70% of brand tweets are replies. 70%!  That’s right, YOU must engage with your followers and those whom you follow. Twitter is not your field of dreams; it’s your playing field.

4)   Take a Picture. It Lasts Longer. In this case, we’re not talking about staring; we’re talking about engagement. Photos now comprise 45% of all Tweets sent, but account for more than half of all engagement on Twitter. So, if you’re still not using Twitter’s photo function, it’s time to start. And, don’t forget that you can tag people and share multiple photos.

5)   Hashtags Are Not Old News. In the social realm, it might feel that way, but Tweets with hashtags still see 23% more engagement than those without.

6)   Promise and Deliver. Click-throughs on Twitter are about your audience seeing something valuable at the other end of their click. The trick is enticing them with the way you frame that thing of value. Lucy Hitz of Simply Measured breaks it down like this:

• Don’t be too specific in your offer. It’s about piquing curiosity.
• Leverage one striking image that evokes a feeling.
• Share wisdom, out of context. Again, it’s about curiosity.
• Meet the needs of your audience. That’s right! It’s about contextual content.
• Show your quirky side. Enticing reader’s with content that isn’t quite your norm is a surefire way to invite clicks.

7)   Look for Successful BtoB Examples. We know it seems like most success stories come from BtoC brands. But, there are examples of BtoB success stories out there. Take Research, for example. They tripled their following in a year.

Applying these tactics should get you on the road to hearing more birds, and less crickets.