There’s a science to good branded Twitter content, best learned by studying the great accounts: Hamburger Helper, Epcot Centre, GOP Teens, BIBL-UK, and Tab Soda. Successful corporate marketing hinges on a nuanced understanding of audience, platform, and voice.
And while no brand account is perfect—I’m sorry, ha, of course there’s a perfect brand account: @buy_2_hams. This exemplary Twitter feed follows every cardinal rule of (and is a crash course in) social media advertising.
For one thing, it’s very up-front about the brand’s value proposition, which is right in the display name: “BUY 2 HAMS $20.”
It drives that message home, hard, over and over. And over.
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/697509902638563328
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/649271656955953153
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/696849543971917824
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/652140357161848832
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/718163146985357316
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/701997900012855297
Of course, this is but one thread among many more varied tweets. B2H stays relevant by referencing the memes and news pegs of the day.
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/698170549911076864
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/696124386835828737
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/717200971202486272
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/654163973567348736
The account’s author also references more evergreen content to ensure staying power and broaden its appeal to “mainstream” customers:
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/709067370996879361
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/717713464404418560
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/662440302557446144
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/703286231883452420
Note how B2H weaves its brand into its references, resulting in a free endorsement that grants a “halo effect.” But a good brand account doesn’t simply borrow other brands’ stories. It builds its own.
It gives us a peek inside the business.
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/717731546476716032
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/717521997119557632
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/718096808946352128
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/714810203640840192
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/707584917622939648
A strong brand also stresses its differentiators. In B2H’s case, these are threefold: cost-effectiveness, sexiness, and sopping wetness.
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/659126555784945664
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/716999045139533824
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/701043385671557121
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/702165645706723329
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/705071499615543296
It also expresses true passion about the product.
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/715536587371716608
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/692735374624448513
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/712826802369138688
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/705568834548318208
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/708058930384150528
It encourages responsible use of the product.
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/704878954914533376
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/706172224500342786
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/707583297363300352
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/708719488343134208
It engages with other brands where appropriate.
https://twitter.com/DeltaAssist/status/705481760826589184
https://twitter.com/DeltaAssist/status/705493270789545984
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/712685492471521284
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/714887570669174784
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/705801432989986816
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/689514208887615489
It embraces and retweets fans.
When the ham mans plowing you and "forgets" to pull out pic.twitter.com/LmgH25dcYL
— Nancy Sankle (@nancysankle) April 3, 2016
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/716357778286182400
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/714642340909027332
https://twitter.com/forrestprussell/status/702019641393094656
https://twitter.com/Racheleahh/status/714600319821357056
What do you think about them apples? @buy_2_hams pic.twitter.com/2kCrWaHqCo
— Chadzilla (@MemphisSlide) March 13, 2016
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/714442156010770433
Let’s look at a case study to learn more. In March, B2H ran a high-engagement campaign, a Tournament of Meats pegged to March Madness:
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/710817954817032192
The campaign was carefully planned: 64 carefully seeded meats and a sophisticated Google Forms voting mechanism. The campaign cleverly positioned the core product, a pair of sopping wet hams, amid the wide variety of consumer options. This gave a sense of agency to fans, who by choosing the ham will convince themselves it was their idea, not B2H’s.
It was, of course, a real setback when ham got knocked out by hamburger in the fourth round.
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/713865802173194240
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/713866247553871873
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/713876307348692992
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/713880616157245440
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/713890176481828865
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/713894536154587136
https://twitter.com/buy_2_hams/status/714068531642515457
So even in the throes of its greatest challenges, B2H shows us how to persevere. It didn’t hide from its mistakes, deleting embarrassing gaffes and falling victim to the Streisand effect. It’s an authentic brand that owns its missteps and rises above them.
The Daily Dot reached out to the Ham Man (the account is run by the company’s owner, who also serves as Chief Drenching Officer) for his direct advice.
“We engage with our followers A TON,” he wrote. “Probably have DMed with at least 500-600 people. We encourage all of our followers to DM us about anything. Our DMs are a healthy hodge-podge of transactions, customer service requests, sexting, etc.”
The Ham Man gave some more general business tips:
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Don’t sell a poor product. Our hams are top quality, grade A, PREMIER hams.
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Charge $20 for your product.
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Sell your product in pairs.
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Make sure your product is ham.
Once again, @buy_2_hams follows the No. 1 rule of business: Always be closing. Brand managers, take note.