According to statistics, the average twitter user has about 200 followers and tweets at least once in a day. Twitter is the 4^th largest social network behind Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. With 500 million active users every month, there is no reason you shouldn’t have get twitter followers. In fact, all twitter statistics point to the fact that it is a platform where you could easily reach a thousand followers or more within a short period.

So how to get more twitter followers? First it is important to understand that you are in a similar boat with millions of other twitter followers who are constantly looking for ways to improve their following. Your struggles looking for more engagement in tweets reflect the struggles of millions out there.

However, these struggles could turn out to be your best tools to attract twitter followers. Imagine if you could identify 1000 people with the same interests as you who would like to get followed on twitter. Convince them to follow you and you have a 1000 more followers. But it is not easy at it sounds, right? Well, these twitter facts and statistics should give you some ideas of how to get twitter followers without paying anything.

Tweets with “Retweet” request are retweeted 12 times more often

The retweet icon is one of the best tools on twitter. It helps people share and spread your tweet as you soon as they read your message. While looking for more followers; you have to ask people to share your messages so that people who are interested in your content can share. However, statistics show that asking people to actually retweet your message is 12 times more effective.  In most cases, adding the word retweet at the end of your message produces the most impact.

Twitter’s Fastest Rising Demographic are people aged 55 and above

Yes, twitter is no longer a teen’s only platform. Today the demographics using twitter have broadened, with middle aged and senior citizens joining the social networks. Speaking of senior citizens, a recent study by twitter itself shows that the fastest rising demographic on their platform are people aged 55 and above. If you are in this demographic looking to increase our following-then the study should help you find followers easily.

As already stated however, twitter is filled with people from all sorts of demographics. Everyone has the potential to find a demographic that will be interested in their content. Your only objective should be to segment the users to identify the people who are most likely to follow you. Let’s say for example you are a small company that deals with selling luxury watches. Your demographic in this case will be people who can afford the watches irrespective of their ages, right? With that kind of information you can then tailor your messages to attract people who are interested in luxury watches. With time, your few followers will share your messages to their friends who love luxury watches.

Fewer Tweet Characters attract more Engagement

Another interesting trend on twitter today pertains how your customers engage with your tweets. According to a study by Dan Zarrela, tweets with 130 characters or fewer attract more engagement than those with 140 characters. That is to say that you actually don’t need many words to attract people who will retweet or comment your tweets: You need to tweet quality messages.

So, how do you improve the quality of tweets and get more twitter followers? The following statistics and tips should help you out.

• Tweets with Images attract more Engagement

There is more than one study that supports the inclusion of pictures on your tweets. People are twice as much likely to retweet your message when you include a picture onto it than when you don’t. Generally, images pictures and diagrams haveimmense power on people. Some is likely to interpret a picture as funny and share it. Someone else could find your picture inspiring and follow you on twitter immediately. And because of that, you should tweet messages alongside images or diagrams as often as possible.

• Hashtags attract 3x Engagement

One of easiest techniques you can use to boost engagement with your twitter followers is to include a hashtag below your tweet. Everyone who searches the hashtag will most likely come across your tweet and probably react to it. According to one study, including at least three hashtags to your tweet attracts about 21% more in engagement. For someone looking for twitter followers-having that boost in twitter engagement can increase your following tenfold.

• Include Links to your tweets

Instead of simply sharing breaking news with no evidence; include a link to back your message. Not only will this attract people to retweet your message, a few people will follow you to ensure that they can always rely on your for fresh information. The technique works with almost any tweet you send out there. If you are a blog owner rallying people to adopt greener technologies for example, offer a link to support your claims. With time, your links will increase both engagement on your blog and attract you more twitter followers.

• Tailor your message to have an impact on your target audience

One mistake many people make while tweeting is to send random messages with no specific audiences to target. A generic message never goes well on twitter-which is why about 66% of twitter users abandon their account after just one month. Instead, a message tailored to attract the attention of specific audiences will more than likely have a better impact.

Finally, consistently is keyof how to get twitter followers. Once you identify the audiences to target therefore, build your brand through a series of top quality tweets. Look for clear pictures to add to your tweets and ask people to retweet your messages whenever you can. If you are a brand, avoid sounding too sales-y when you should be working to attract twitter followers. Build a relationship with your followers by engaging with them and they will certainly become your loyal customers.