If you’re a regular Twitter user like myself, you’ve probably seen this new thing called Fleets.
Not to be confused with the Voice Tweets that have been circulating around for IOS users, Fleets are basically Twitter’s version of Instagram and Facebook Stories.
With Fleets, you can share text, photos, videos, and re-share Tweets that will be made public for 24-hours before disappearing from the feed. If you’re planning to record videos to Fleets, you can share up to 30 seconds of video per Fleet (I know this because I timed it).
The feature has only been available to myself for a few days, but here are a few of the big takeaways I’ve gathered from Twitter’s newest stories-like feature.
I went Live on Twitter last night to talk about Fleets. I go much more in-depth in the video, or you can continue reading the “cliff notes” version below.
What I Like Most About Fleets
Fleets Seem to be a Better Way to Share Video Content on Twitter
To this point, I haven’t received much love on the video content that I share on Twitter. This may just be a me issue, but the lack of engagement I’ve gotten on videos compared to any other Tweet has been discouraging.
Tweets can disappear into the mix fairly quickly. Due to a variety of different factors, including time of day, algorithms, etc. Your Tweet could go completely unnoticed by your followers.
With Fleets on the other hand, your post will be right at the top of everyone’s Twitter feed for a full 24-hours. This means you have a much better shot at getting your content seen by your audience.
You can Build a Better Relationship with Your Audience
Video has exploded over the last couple of years.
Part of the reason for this is because you can build a much better relationship with the person sharing content when you can see them. Videos tend to be more personal than simple text.
Getting your face in front of an audience on Twitter hasn’t been the easiest thing to do unless you’re brave enough to hop on Periscope and go Live on Twitter.
With Fleets, you can pop on camera for 30-seconds, show behind the scenes footage of your business, and build a better connection with your audience.
What I Don’t Like About Fleets (Right Now)
No Organic Reach with Fleets
From what I can tell so far, there is no way to build organic reach by using Fleets.
This may be a big turn-off for most people. Why spend the time to create content for Fleets if you can’t grow an audience with it? See previous section for why I’m personally planning to take advantage of the feature.
At this point, Fleets are only available to a limited number of Twitter users and can only be created or viewed from the mobile app. At this time, there is no access on the desktop version of Twitter.
No Video Editing, Tagging, or Text Overlay
One of the things that I do like about Instagram stories is the ability to tag other users or add text overlays to the videos I create.
Right now, this is not an option with Fleets.
When you create a video for Fleets, you simply record the video and post it as is. For me, this is a bit of a bummer.
When I am mentioned someone or sharing information I heard from another user, I like to give them credit by tagging them in the story. Not only is it courteous to do so, you might even spark a little more engagement from your post by doing this.
The Fleets Feature is Optimistic
There are many other things to like and dislike about the new Fleets feature, but overall the new feature seems optimistic.
I’m sure Fleets will get new features as Twitter continues to test and this will hopefully open the door for increasing organic reach and encouraging more engagement through Fleets.
Overall, this will be a feature I plan to take advantage of.
To me, getting in front of my audience and being able to build that “face-to-face” relationship with them is worth my time invested in Fleets.
If you want to see how I’m using Fleets, go follow me on Twitter.
What are you thoughts about Fleets? Do you plan on utilizing this feature?
Let me know in the comments below.
I am an entrepreneur and adventure enthusiast, looking to break free from the Nine-Five grind. I'll show you what has worked and is currently working for me, as well as what hasn't worked so well.
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