What’s your reason for being on Twitter? Here at Typefully, this is an important question because it affects the type of account you should operate. If you need a platform for self-expression, a personal account will serve you best. On the other hand, if you want to market your business brand, you may want to open a business account.
Statistics show that Twitter boasts 330 million active users monthly and 145 million users every day. So, it’s a great platform to choose when you wish to connect and join conversations with individuals across continents. Having a personal account also helps you get real-time information about what’s going on worldwide.
Twitter is an amazing platform for businesses too. With a professional account, you can market your company, just like 65.8% of US companies with 100+ employees. This pays off greatly as brands that use Twitter for marketing enjoy a 19% boost in customer satisfaction. Again, 54% of tweeps will take action when a tweet mentions a brand.
But what is the difference between a business (or professional) account and a personal one? Do you have to choose between one or the other? If so, which is better?
In this article, we’ll discuss the differences that tell these accounts apart and which will serve you best.
Twitter Personal Account vs. Business: What Are The Differences?
Deciding between the Twitter personal vs. business account depends on your understanding of what makes them unique. These are the differences between a Twitter personal account and a professional one:
Purpose
As we mentioned earlier, Twitter for professionals is much different than Twitter for personal use. A personal Twitter account is for you alone and has no connections to a business or corporation. It reflects your daily activities, views, likes, and personality.
However, a business account is for your company, organization, or blog. There’s a limit to the type of content you can share. You’ll have to make sure that whatever tweets you put out reflect your company’s values and goals.
Tools
Business accounts are for brands, businesses, content creators, developers, and other professionals to grow their audience on Twitter. The platform provides them with specific tools to help them achieve their goals.
These professional tools are not available to users who run personal accounts. This includes features such as Quick Promote and future products like Professional Profiles and Twitter Shopping.
At Typefully, we also offer numerous useful features for users with professional Twitter accounts. These features allow you to schedule tweets for posting at optimal hours and provide accurate analytics to boost engagement. Be sure to check out some of these incredible features here.
Eligibility Criteria
You don't need to meet many requirements to have a personal Twitter account. You just need sign-in details like your email address or phone number and be above 13 years old.
However, with business Twitter, you need more. To be eligible to open a professional Twitter account, you must show that:
- You haven't previously and regularly violated the Twitter user agreement
- Your account profile is complete with a name, bio, and a profile picture
- You have a clear and authentic identity. For example, you can't operate a business Twitter with a parody or fan account. Profiles that feature other brands or identities are not eligible too.
Profile Photos
Generally, you can use any image as your profile picture for personal accounts. It could be a picture of you in your favorite outfit or your dog's photo.
However, with a Twitter business account, we advise that you be more careful with the pictures you upload. A business account will use the company logo as its profile picture because it advertises the brand at first glance. It also ensures that your readers don't get confused about what your page is really about.
Terminology
Whether you own a personal or business Twitter account, your tweets should be conversational and interesting to read. However, the terminology for personal and business tweets is pretty different.
You'll generally pay more attention to your sentence structure, spelling, grammar, etc., on your business page than on your personal account. Again, while abbreviations like "FYI" are okay for a personal account, they don't cut it for business Twitter.
Twitter Business Vs. Personal Account: Which Should I Manage?
Now that you understand the differences between business and personal Twitter accounts, which of them should you use? We'll advise you to run both. If you manage a corporate outfit, you don't have to choose between accounts when you can conveniently manage both.
Here's why operating a business and personal account is a wise idea:
You Always Need a Space For Self-Expression
While business Twitter can be fun to operate, especially with Typefully, you still need a space to express personal interests. Personal branding is just as important as your corporate brand.
Your personal Twitter allows the world to see you for who you truly are without the work tag. It also allows you to connect with amazing individuals personally.
Again, if you want a social media platform for recreational purposes, personal Twitter serves you best. So, managing a business and personal Twitter account ensures that you're not missing out on any benefit Twitter offers its users. You get to grow your online business while also having a nice time on the platform.
Your Personal Account Remains Yours For Life
Life happens, and you may decide to sell or leave your company for numerous reasons. When this happens, it's good to know that you still have a personal Twitter account to fall back on. You wouldn't have to go through building an audience from scratch.
Note that you can switch your professional account to a personal one if you no longer need Twitter business. However, you will still have lots of work to do growing your personal audience.
You Can Leverage Your Personal Page To Grow Your Audience on Your Business Account
There are many useful tips for managing your personal and business Twitter accounts. For instance, you can retweet your Twitter business posts that you think will interest the audience on your personal account. When you do this, you can generate traffic from your personal account to your business account.
Personal Twitter Account Vs. Business: Examples
Many Twitter users effectively use their personal Twitter and business accounts to serve their private and commercial interests. You can do this too. Here are some examples to inspire you:
Helena Morrissey
Helena Morrissey is one lady who knows how to manage both Twitter business and personal accounts for the best results. As the founder of the 30% club, a group that advocates for improved gender balance, her business Twitter is @30percentclub.
She has done tremendously well with growing her online corporate brand by posting valuable and relevant tweets. @30percentclub is strictly professional as Morrissey only posts about her blogs, events, and causes.
However, her personal Twitter account (@MorrisseyHelena) deviates sharply from her business-like approach on @30percentclub. With @MorrisseyHelena, it's evident that she's truly at home as she tweets about her interests, daily activities, and personal values.
Javier CR, Rafael Garcia, and Juan Imaz
The trio founded beBee, a social network that allows professionals in various industries to connect with employers, clients, vendors, etc. @javierbeBee, as a co-founder, has leveraged his personal account to grow his business profile simultaneously. Many times, he shares his personal and political viewpoints on his account. Other times, he shares @beBee posts on his account.
Notice that his profile picture is a mix of beBee’s logo and his image. This is a great example of how you can use your personal account to boost your brand’s reach. Meanwhile, the business Twitter (@beBee) has a strictly professional outlook.
Gary Vaynerchuk
Gary Vaynerchuk, the CEO of @vaynermedia, advocates for using personal Twitter accounts alongside business Twitter. He wants everyone to have a personal voice on the platform while leveraging Twitter for Professionals to build their brand image. You can see that he does just that with @garyvee, @Vaynermedia, and @veefriends.
Twitter Personal Vs. Business Account: How To Set Them Up
Setting up your personal and business Twitter accounts starts with selecting your preferred device (i.e., Twitter for Android app, a google account, or an Apple device). Then, visit twitter.com/signup on google or your mobile device app and signup to get started.
For personal accounts:
- Set up your profile with your unique handle, a profile photo, a short bio, etc.
- Search for your friends and start following them. Also, follow topics, visit explore, like tweets, etc.
- Start tweeting
For business Twitter:
- Open the sidebar on your app’s home timeline and scroll down to “Twitter for Professionals.” Click it. Alternatively, go to your profile settings, scroll down and select “Switch to Professional.”
- Hit “Get Started,” select category, and click “Next.”
- Choose “Business” or “Creator” and select “Next.”
- You now have a professional Twitter account
Boost Your Engagement On Twitter With Typefully
Twitter personal account vs. business account; which wins? Both.
While both account types serve their unique purposes, it's best to have both for the best Twitter experience. That's how you get the best of both worlds.
Fortunately, Typefully is here to ensure that you have an even better Twitter experience than the platform offers. With our amazing features, you'll have a fun time engaging with friends and growing your business on Twitter.
Learn more about how we can turn your personal and business Twitter experience up a notch at typefully.com.
