don't understand what works. understand why.

a giveaway article about giveaways that isn't really about giveaways.

the giveaway train

If you’ve on been on Twitter (X, wtf ever) for longer that a month, you’ve seen a giveaway Tweet (Xeet, idk). The equation looks something like this:

Equation:

Hey - I did this really cool thing that you obviously want. 

If you want it, then: 

1. Follow me
2. Comment "YRNFS" below

And I'll send it to your inbox. 

This specific giveaway helped Ryan double his followers almost overnight.

And multiple creators popped off by using the “Giveaway” mechanic. And right behind the first waves were the copycat creators.

About 3 months ago, all of Money Twitter was just giveaway tweet after giveaway tweet. Eventually, everybody got tired of all the “free value” that was being given away, and giveaways cooled down.

But - the principles behind giveaways still remain.

understand the principles, not the form.

To be a top-tier creator, you don’t need to understand that giveaways work. You need to understand why they work.

• What principles did giveaways capitalize on?

• How can you repurpose those principles?

Let’s take a look at Ryan’s giveaway again really quickly.

Why did this post pop off so much?

Well - if you haven’t read my article on Surviving Twitter in 2023, you probably should. The principle that Ryan used was Number Two.

Twitter favors tweets and posts that people interact with. Posts that maximize engagement.

But what does engagement mean? One word:

• Comments

• Likes

Posts that get quick comments are the ones that expand in reach quickly. That is why these work:

• Giveaways

• Asking simple questions

• Posting controversial takes

Each of them gives your audience the motivation to comment on your tweet. And Twitter sees those comments as engagement, and the algorithm boosts your post.

It’s also the reason why this post went absolutely insane for an account with 450 people:

It’s an easy question that most people have an opinion or advice on. And it got a ton of comments quickly, which created a snowball effect in post reach.

put the creativity into creator

Now - this article isn’t giving you permission to go post simple ass questions like “What’s your favorite ice cream?”.

Please don’t.

Instead - I want you to think about how to use this principle to build content that reaches far and wide. This is where the you need to actually use your creativity. You know - the thing that you got into the creator economy to exercise.

To utilize the “Giveaway/Question Dynamic” - ask yourself the following questions:

1. What action do I want my audience to take?

   1. Usually this answer will be comments.

2. How do I engage with them in a way that will get those comments?

   1. What do they care about?

   2. What do they have strong opinions about?

   3. What questions can I ask them?

3. How do I make it super easy for them to interact?

   1. Simple opinion questions that only take a few words to respond to.

   2. One step interactions (like voting on a poll or commenting with an emoji to align with an opinion)

   3. A singular comment like the giveaway above.

4. If this post goes big, what outcome do I hope to drive?

   1. More followers?

   2. More emails for your list?

All of these make up your content.

an example of the same dynamic… but different.

Here’s Brandon.

Go follow him for the sales framework to get your more clients without being shady af.

But check this post out.

“New profile pic. Yay or Nay?”

It got 30 comments, 51 likes, and 3500 views. At the time of this post, most of Brandon’s work was getting around 500 views and 5-7 comments.

Why did it work?

1. What action do I want my audience to take?

   1. Interact with me.

2. How do I engage with them in a way that will get those comments?

   1. What do they care about?

      1. Brandon’s audience is creators and coaches. So they care about offering their expertise and opinion on things creators think about (like profile pics and bios).

   2. What do they have strong opinions about?

      1. Branding and creator economy.

   3. What questions can I ask them?

      1. Their opinions about being a creator. Like:

         1. How’s my bio look?

         2. Is this a good PFP?

         3. What do you think of my new banner?

3. How do I make it super easy for them to interact?

   1. Simple opinion questions that only take a few words to respond to.

      1. Literally Yay or Nay.

This post was bigger than most of Brandon’s posts at the time, simply because he understood his audience and made it dead simple for them to interact with him.

remember why it works, not what works.

Don’t just copy the posts here.

Instead, step away for a moment and truly ask yourself how to make content that can be easily engaged with.

The next trend-setting content hasn’t been made yet. It’s being created by those who understand what their content is optimizing for.

Put the creativity back into creator, and find new ways to engage your audience in authentic, valuable ways.