Common mistakes developers make announcing their games on Twitter
Game marketing consultant Chris Zukowski has shared his thoughts on how to properly announce a video game on social media. He also cited a few examples of good and bad tweets from real studios.
Zukowski touched on this topic in a Twitter thread on November 25. According to his research, the best-performing tweet for any developer is usually the one where they announce their game.
Of course, this post should be used wisely, so that it inspires people and so that they share it with their friends.
Chris cited a tweet by Stray Fawn Studio, in which it announced its city-builder The Wandering Village, as a good example. It had a few links, a simple CTA, and a good-looking gif.
This is the announce tweet for @StrayFawnStudio Wandering village. It announces the steam page and the kickstarter. Simple game explanation, simple call to action, final cta to ask for RTs. Good. Also a good gif. Here is the link to it https://t.co/Qj4ekxLcV7 pic.twitter.com/TRPVUJp27D
— Chris (@AdventureMtn) November 25, 2021
Another example is Paralives. While its announcement post performed well, Zhukowski thinks that this tweet could be better, as the news itself is hidden in a gif.
This is the announce tweet for Paralives. I think it could be stronger. The news is hidden in a gif, lacks “Announcing Paralives now on Steam.” it needs to scream this is novel! But what do I know they have 127K followers: https://t.co/B962LnsGig pic.twitter.com/uQWEZR3CLE
— Chris (@AdventureMtn) November 25, 2021
Chris Zukowski also shared a few tips that should help avoid common mistakes:
- You need to use the word “announcing.” The post also should include a description of your game, a clear call to action, a trailer or a gif, and ask supporters and friends to retweet it;
- It is better to remove hashtags and put links to stores in reply, as there are rumors that links might decrease the visibility;
- The most important thing is to make a proper announcement tweet and not just share a gif with the link to your game.
