In my last post, I told you how Netflix is killing it on Instagram and engaging their audience. In this post I am going to take a look at how Netflix is utilising their Twitter profile. I was impressed with Netflix’s ability to roll with the punches on Twitter, but there are a couple of things Netflix could be doing better to achieve similar results to their Instagram page.
Make a Good First Impression
On most platforms, your bio is the first opportunity you have to make a good impression. Across all of it’s platforms, Netflix is not fully embracing the opportunity to make a good first impression. Although Netflix is a well known streaming site, they are not well known for their social media accounts. Using the bio to make a first impression could create a concrete personality beyond the original content they create and deliver on their streaming site.
One thing I noticed about Netflix’s bios across all of their platforms is that they are all very short and sweet. Generally, their bios are one to two sentences that tie in references from the Netflix original content or the content they offer on their streaming site. Netflix also changes their bio a lot, especially on Twitter. Hannah discovered that they were changing their bio as often as once everyday. As I mentioned in my last blog post, one thing you can do is create a personality for your business profile. The perfect place to introduce that personality is in the bio of your profile. My classmate, Hannah Jordan, goes more in depth about the poor practices Netflix applies to their Twitter bio specifically, if you’re interested definitely check out her blog!
Share More Exclusive Content
On Instagram Netflix posts exclusive content every other day, if not daily. They frequently share extended trailers for upcoming original content, behind the scenes video, tours of the sets of your favorite shows, and interviews with the casts of upcoming Netflix originals. This is the content that the audience wants, it is exclusive content that can only be delivered by Netflix. Not everyone utilises Instagram, it is important to be consistent across all platforms. If you make an announcement on one platform you should make that same announcement on your other social platforms. Same goes for exclusive content, while you don’t have to post the same exact content across all of your platforms but you should at least share the same amount of exclusive content across all of your platforms.
Maybe you share a few experimental posts and see how they do on each platform. Perhaps cast interviews generate more engagement when you post them as an Instagram story, maybe trailers generate more buzz when you post an extended version on Twitter. You’ll never know until you try it out, so spread the love!
Keep Up With Your Followers
It is important to make sure that you are active and timely when responding to your followers. After conducting my audit, I found that Netflix would respond to the first few comments on their posts. I assume that someone was watching the post as it gained traction for the first hour or two, but due to the magnitude of followers they have it is very practical and understandable that they do not respond to every comment left one every post. That would be too much to keep up with. Usually if celebrities or any one involved with the content they’re posting about comments on the post they will respond. They also usually respond to the occasional excited fan or loyal viewer.
After reviewing my classmate Hannah’s audit she conducted on Netflix’s Twitter page, it is apparent that Netflix could be taking advantage of having a direct line of communication to their followers. They should be responding to a lot more comments per post. As I mentioned earlier, Twitter can be brutal. Whether you’re a verified celebrity with millions of followers, a micro influencer, a regular Twitter user, or a well known streaming site. People are not afraid to tell you how they really feel on Twitter. In today’s world it can be a bit daunting to respond, celebrities and brands alike are constantly being “cancelled” on Twitter and nobody wants a Twitter war on their hands. But regardless of the threat of being cancelled is not an excuse to leave your followers high and dry. Respond to some of them, even the negative comments are an opportunity to offer a solution.
What Have We Learned?
I think it’s safe to say that we can all learn a lot from Twitter. Number one, don’t tweet anything you are ready to defend at the drop of a hat because chances are if you tweet something, there’s someone out there that will disagree with it. Maybe even years from now, so stay ready with your defense. All jokes aside, it can be easy to just focus on the platform that is generating the most buzz for your brand, but no one ever said social media was easy. It is imperative to put in the work and prioritize consistency across all of your social media platforms.
Thanks again for reading my blog! How do you feel about brand interaction on social media? What would you like to see from the brands that you’re so loyal too? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Shelby's Social Media Blog 