What do mascots and social media have in common? They are both great marketing tools that allow you to communicate and engage with fans, customers and followers.So, what would happen if you combined the two?
Social media is a way to promote your mascot even when they are stored safely away, and it’s an excellent way to engage with your fans. One very popular social media platform that your mascot can participate in is Twitter.
Twitter is a great place to get relevant and “in the moment” information about the things that interest you the most. In the case of your fans, that’s your event, big game, and your mascot!
Creating your Twitter account is straight-forward. Visit Twitter.com and click on Sign-Up. Enter you name, number email address and password and you are ready to go. Remember, all of this information is editable once the account is created.
Once you have created the account, you will have to go through a couple of steps: choosing a username (which is also editable), selecting interests and people to follow.
Select interests that relate to your mascot's values and personality as well as anything relevant to your brand, school or organization.
Follow others by selecting them from the suggested list or searching for a specific person or group. Perhaps you want to follow your brand’s other Twitter page or groups you interact with regularly. You can always add more later, so if you can’t think of them now, don’t worry!
Once you have done all of this, it is time to start setting up your profile.
Setting Up Your Profile
Your profile lets people know who you are and what you are about. To ensure your profile is complete, you will want to focus on 6 key areas.
- Your Twitter Handle (@name)
Your Twitter handle is what people use to interact directly with you. It will become part of your social identity. Your Twitter handle can include up to 15 characters and should help people quickly find your mascot. Your best choice will likely be your mascots name - Your Profile Picture
Your profile picture will be included in every one of your posts so you will want to make it count. Take a fun headshot of your mascot, including any props or logos that make him easy to identify! Aim for an image that is 400x400 pixels - Your Bio
You have 160 characters to tell people about your mascot. You can talk about who they represent, their favourite things and their pastimes. Make the description fun and personable. You can also include a link to your organization’s website (it doesn’t count towards your word count) - Your Header Image
Your header image is another way for you to show your mascot's personality visually. Choose a picture that is engaging or that relates back to your mascot. The more fun it is, the more inviting your page will be. Aim for an image that is 1500x500 - Your Pinned Tweets
Pinned Tweets allow you to keep important and well-preforming performing tweets at the top of your page. If your mascot will be at a local event or has a tweet that is doing really well, in terms of engagement, pin it. It will help new visitors get engaged faster.
Posting on Twitter
Now that you have made you mascot's Twitter account and personalized it, it is time to get posting.
You will want to take lots of pictures to go with your posts. Pictures make Tweets more engaging and also add more character to your Twitter page. Take as many photos as you can of your mascot in fun situations.
Check out this blog for some helpful tips for taking great photos of your mascot!
To help with content creation, consider using a social calendar to outline when and what types of posts you will be posting.
Similar to creating your profile, you can really help your character come to life by making your Tweets to sound as if they are coming from your mascot. If it helps, create some basic guidelines around the language that should be used and types of content you will be sharing.
Engaging on Twitter
Last but not least, you want to engage with other people of Twitter. If someone comments on a Tweet or retweets, join the conversation. Let them know that you are listening and happy to join in!
If you see a Tweet that is relevant to your page or fan art that would be fun to share, retweet it or like it. Other Twitter users will love it when you engage with their content as well!
Having a social media account like Twitter is not only a great way to share photos, but gives your mascot a voice. This is especially important when communicating with college or high school students who are big users of social media.
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The BAM Mascots team blends creativity with manufacturing excellence to create an innovative, high-quality mascot for your school, sports team or organization. With more than 25 years experience in mascot design and manufacturing, and hundreds of mascots in our portfolio, the BAM team has the knowledge and skills to bring your dream mascot to life. Contact us today at 1-877-858-4226 to get started!
