B2B buyers can see right through them. They’re more discerning than ever in their research. And they know when messaging can’t be trusted or even bothered with. 

But they still need to weigh their options. It’s a standard part of the buying process.

So, it’s not that comparison pages are useless. We just need to make them better.

In this article, we’ll show you a philosophy to create comparison pages that serve your ideal buyers and improve your conversion rates.

The problem with traditional comparison pages

The root cause of overly biased comparison pages is usually one of two things:

1. It’s too much about you
2. It’s too focused on discounting competitors

Bias as a default angle has led to a standard way of creating pages:

• Feature dumps with no context or differentiation
• Direct attacks on competitors (e.g., “Competitor X is too slow”)
• Empty claims that aren’t backed by evidence (e.g., “The No.1 alternative to X”)
• Comparison tables that only highlight what you’re good at

None of this helps potential buyers. Your content doesn’t meet user intent.

People visit your page with a clear pain point: to understand the actual differences between your product and its competitors.

Focusing too much on yourself doesn’t solve their problem.

Relentlessly putting down a competitor gives the impression you’re overcompensating for something. 

If you have to discount a competitor to make your product sound good, do you truly believe in it?  And why should customers? 

In both instances, you risk coming across as insecure or untrustworthy. This can harm your product’s credibility and your brand’s reputation.

If being too self-centered or disparaging is the problem, the solution is simple: be more honest and objective.

Here’s how to sell your product as the best solution while acknowledging what your competitors bring to the table.

Focus on positioning before features

Your product has features that deliver value unmatched by any other solution—a business model, process, or intellectual property that only you offer. They’re your reason for existing in the first place.

Rather than comparing everything you do against everything your competitor does, put your unique strengths front and center.

For example, ActiveCampaign’s biggest strength is its customer experience automation. Its tools let users go deeper with automation, improving the customer journey at every touchpoint. 

It’s an advantage ActiveCampaign has over competitors like Mailchimp. So, its comparison page leads with it: 

The brand is not overly boastful about automation. The tone feels factual, like a neutral third party could have written it. Instead, it uses positioning to demonstrate value. 

ActiveCampaign continues to position Mailchimp as a “simple” tool for anyone new to automation:

It then positions itself as the best choice for advanced automation:

When you’re clear on the unique value of your product over another, you don’t need to turn to hyperbole or trashing the competition. You only have to communicate what makes you the better choice. 

Before creating comparison content, identify what sets you apart from each specific competitor. These are the core differentiators around which to build all comparison content. 

April Dunford’s product positioning exercise can help with this.

Here’s an overview of how it works:

• Step 1. Get clear on where you are right now, the value you deliver today, and the best way to center that in your positioning.

• Step 2. List everything that makes you unique. 

• Step 3. Capture how your unique attributes help customers overcome their pain points.

• Step 4. Figure out who really cares about your value. These are the people you’ll aim to appeal to in your messaging. 

• Step 5. Choose a market frame of reference that makes your value obvious to your best prospects.

Crafting messaging around your unique attributes will help you talk about features in the context of differentiators. You’ll give buyers the kind of useful information they’re looking for, but you’ll do it with integrity.

Reframe the comparison table for balance

A comparison table is an integral part of any comparison page. It’s the most visually effective way to show what you offer over a competitor. 

It’s also easy to get wrong. We’ve all seen comparison tables that look like this:

Green ✅in the left column, red ❌in the right column. One product does everything, the other does nothing.

Guess what? No one’s buying it. 

By cherry-picking which features make you look good, you risk:

1. Including features that buyers don’t care (or know) about
2. Conveniently ignoring features a competitor has that you lack

Both condescend to the reader. It also removes nuance, which can backfire if you’re not careful, causing a prospect to question your credentials. 

For example, if you put a red ❌against a feature a competitor offers differently or with limitations—and the buyer knows this—expect to lose credibility.

A better solution? Stick to what matters to your audience. 

Focus on 6–8 core features, framed around buyer needs and pain points. 

There’s another benefit to this: user experience. 

Eyetracking research by NN Group shows people frequently re-read column headings. A list that’s so long readers have to scroll to see the headings disrupts their experience. When that happens, you’ll frustrate them, making them more likely to abandon your website. 

Chances are, your competitors offer similar features. What makes you truly different? Use your strengths to position your product as the better option.

You can do this while staying objective. Take a look at how app-building platform Nocoly compares its product to rival Outsystems:

Rather than use checkmarks, Nocoly sticks to the facts. It lays out what both products offer, positioning itself as a neutral advisor.

The neutral voice is refreshing. It helps Nocoly build trust by appearing objective and stops prospects from feeling forced to judge the competition. 

Nocoly’s differentiation on features like data, languages, and price makes it more appealing to prospects without discounting the competition.

However, if an enterprise-level developer views the table, Outsystems might look like the more appealing option. 

Will this mean losing potential buyers?

Look at it this way instead: a good comparison table should attract your best-fit buyers and filter out the rest.

You’ll only lose people who weren’t ideal prospects in the first place. 

Give competitors credit where it’s due

There are some things your competitors will do better than you. You know it. Buyers know it. 

Being honest about it will set your page apart from most other competitor pages. It’ll also build trust with buyers who’ll view most of those pages.

For example, rather than ignore or diminish Gong’s standing as the pioneer of Revenue Intelligence, Claap kicks off its comparison page by paying homage:

This immediately disarms skepticism. Claap isn’t trying to be brash. It’s simply showing why its product is a viable alternative to another great product. 

Vidyard does a similar thing, acknowledging Loom as a powerful video communication tool from the start:

ActiveCampaign goes a step further, praising Mailchimp for better ease of use:

It makes a refreshing change from comparison pages that “talk themselves up” while dumping on rivals. Better still, it’s objective, making the page more trustworthy. 

It comes back to positioning. Which is why it’s so important to get clear on your value first. 

When you know your strengths, giving credit where it’s due doesn’t take away from your product. It’s a power play.

It shows you’re confident that your product is the best option for prospects, regardless of the competition.

Consider competitive alternatives 

A common mistake startups make is defining a competitor as a solution that looks like yours. For example, if you’ve built a project management tool, you might view other software solving the same problem as your rivals. 

In reality, you’re up against all kinds of solutions. April Dunford calls the biggest of these “status quo” solutions — the tools people were using to solve their problems before you showed up. They’re usually free (or cheap) and easy to use. 

For instance, a business might manage projects in a spreadsheet or over email.

If you want to win business, address the status quo in your comparison content, particularly your middle-of-the-funnel (MOFU) “alternative” articles. 

ClickUp does this in a guide comparing project management software (its core offer) against Excel.

The guide acknowledges the benefits of Excel as a status quo product:

Then subtly positions ClickUp as the better solution by comparing the two products:

While competitors focus on each other, ClickUp jumps the queue, gaining the trust of prospects before they consider other project management software. 

To identify your competitive alternatives, ask yourself: “How are target customers solving their problem today?”

You’ll often find the answer in your market research and sales conversations. The solutions that keep cropping up are the ones to target in your comparison content. 

Something to keep in mind when digging: not every product is a competitor. 

As April notes:

“I see startups making the mistake of considering every solution on the market that could possibly be competitive as an ‘alternative.’ The reality is that many of these solutions simply aren’t on the radar of your customers. That could be because the company targets a very different type of customer. It could be because the company is very small and is simply not known in the market outside of their specific niche.”

“Whatever the reason, these ‘phantom competitors’ should not be considered when working on your positioning. You’re watering down your positioning by trying to position against them.”

Help buyers select the right solution for them

The goal of your comparison pages is to make prospects feel like they’re making an informed choice.

The best way to do this? Be helpful.

Let’s go back to ActiveCampaign’s Mailchimp comparison page. Here’s the first paragraph:

Naturally, the page positions ActiveCampaign as the best solution. But it’s also truly informative. Prospects get a good look at both products on the features they care about.

Vidyard does a similar thing on its comparison page. Rather than answer: “Which one is better for your business?” with a blatant sales pitch, it stays objective:

It informs readers and empowers them to make the right decision by being helpful, not desperate.

Here’s another example from XTM’s website localization tool comparison article. 

A comparison table makes it clear that XTM is best for large teams and enterprises with complex needs. While other tools are better suited to small businesses:

It’s a helpful guide with relevant information. XTM’s ideal customer is naturally drawn to its product, while everyone else is pointed in a different direction.

Here’s what you need to do: focus less on being your competition and more on showing who your product is for. 

Trust your positioning. If you’re clear on your value and ideal buyers, you’ll have an easier time presenting competitors fairly and demonstrating superiority in a neutral tone. 

Let customers do the talking

There’s no better trust builder than social proof. But reviews are standard practice. 

To tip the scales in your favor, get strategic. Use testimonials from customers who have switched to your brand.

FreshBooks does this well on its QuickBooks comparison page: 

Highlighting real experiences of users who switched from QuickBooks builds more trust than a generic five-star review. Their results speak louder.

Track which products customers switched from during your onboarding. Follow up with interviews a few weeks later to get powerful testimonials. 

Make sure you focus on how using your product has solved a problem they were experiencing with their previous solution. That’s what’s most relevant to potential buyers. 

Alternatively, follow FreshBooks’ lead and pull reviews from a third-party platform like G2. 

If you want a more radically transparent approach, let your customers shape the content of your comparison page. This is something Nocoly is testing on its website.

Founder Phil Ren explains how opening a section of its pages for notes and comments improves the buyer experience:

“This section features comments from customers who switched from the competitor. These stories highlight how they compared the two products and made their decision. We regularly update this section with real, selective insights from customers. While the content is curated, it reflects genuine customer experiences and offers valuable context for potential buyers facing similar decisions.”

The more genuine customer experiences you can add, the more objective and influential your page will be. 

Comparison pages are positioning tools 

A comparison page is an extension of your product positioning. Everything starts from your unique attributes. Nailing them lets you present a strong argument to your best-fit customers. 

But remember: these customers are also researching other options. Keep your content helpful and fair. Back up claims with genuine testimonials. Do this repeatedly and you’ll grow trust, credibility, and—crucially—conversions.

But getting results is more challenging than ever. People get so many emails that it’s tough to cut through the noise. Generic B2B emails go unopened, and anything self-promotional gets increasingly sent to the ‘promotion’ tab or spam.

‍Exit Five is bucking this trend. Its newsletter goes out to 45K+ B2B marketers (growing by the hundreds each week) and gets feedback like: 

• “One of the few newsletters I make time to read when it hits my inbox”
• “The Exit Five newsletter is the only business newsletter I read on a regular basis”

What does it take to create a newsletter people actually look forward to?

We spoke to Exit Five’s Head of Content, Danielle Messler, to break down what makes it work and how you can borrow from their playbook.

The most important part of a newsletter isn’t the news

After three years of publishing a fortnightly newsletter and growing her audience to 45K+, MarketingProfs’ Chief Content Officer, Ann Handley, realized a fundamental truth:

“The most important part of the newsletter is the letter, not the news.” 

Danielle approaches every newsletter with this philosophy. Where other B2B brands use newsletters merely as a distribution channel, pushing out links to blog posts, Exit Five’s goal is to build relationships.

For Danielle, readers come first:

“It’s important to respect your readers’ time. It matters to readers who the newsletter comes from. It matters what you’re saying. It matters that you make it worth reading.”

This strategy has helped fuel the company’s strongest growth driver: word of mouth. 

Subscribers love Exit Five’s newsletter because each one feels like it’s meant for the person reading it. You feel like it was written just for you.

The writing is conversational, fun, and honest. Danielle isn’t afraid to challenge conventions or get confessional. 

For example, here she talks about her shortcomings as a marketer:

Few newsletters talk about struggles. Which makes Danielle’s email feel infinitely more personal.

Her secret? Write with someone in mind. Not a buyer persona, but someone you actually know is reading.

“For example, today I’m writing an email for Chelsea. I know that she’ll care about this topic. Tomorrow, it’s for Amruta, who I know just started a job where she’s managing an 80-person marketing org. How? They told me.”

It’s a simple mindset shift. Create content like a salesperson, and you risk losing personality and perspective. Write like you’re talking to a friend, and you’ll show who you are and how you think in your voice: human to human. 

It’s how you make people care. And how you build relationships that drive organic growth.

Transparency creates trust

Most newsletters are like exclusive clubs. You have to sign up before you know what you’re getting.

The problem with this approach? It’s been abused so many times with irrelevant content that people are skeptical about subscribing. 

As Danielle points out:

“It’s a big ask. Our inboxes are packed with a lot of unwanted senders. To invite someone in, I think they’ve got to prove why they deserve to get in the door.”

The best way to prove value? Get rid of the protective wall and show people what they’re missing out on.

Exit Five publishes previous issues on its newsletter landing page: 

Framing the page as a publication shows potential subscribers exactly the kind of content they’ll receive. It also helps Exit Five attract the right readership: marketers who might go on to become community members.

The “try before you buy” approach adds a layer of trust and social proof. Without any extra work for writers. 

Transparency removes risk. Trust builds subscribers.

Write with a clear takeaway in mind

Danielle’s goal for every newsletter is simple:

“Make sure there’s something in your newsletter readers can learn today. Something they can implement in some way.”

Sometimes, it’s a strategic framework or tactical hack. Other times, it’s tips pulled from conversations or industry research.

Take this breakdown of Mutiny CEO Jaleh Rezaei’s growth strategy:

Rather than write about what makes the strategy great, Danielle shows how it works and how to use it today to improve your results:

It’s this kind of actionable content that makes you want to open next week’s email.

But how do you keep coming up with worthwhile ideas so every newsletter has that golden nugget?

First, turn to your audience. Exit Five taps into its community to find topics B2B marketers care about. You can do the same by talking (and listening) to your customers:

• What common challenges do customers share on customer service channels? 
• Which conversations are trending on social media?
• What matters to people in your industry right now?

Next, look at your existing content. If something has resonated with your audience on a different channel, repurposing it as a newsletter can expand its reach and impact.

Founder Dave Gerhardt labels it Exit Five’s “content flywheel:”

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How it works: A LinkedIn post sparks conversation, inspiring a newsletter. Replies to the newsletter guide future content like podcasts, webinars, or community events—restarting the cycle.

Danielle regularly uses the Exit Five podcast for inspiration, turning interviews into tactical plays:

Not repurposing timeless content is doing it a disservice. However, Danielle doesn’t serve up lazy recaps. Instead, she reframes content for depth:

“It is content repurposing in a way, but I avoid regurgitating information. For example, rather than say: ‘Here are three takeaways from the podcast’ in vague terms, I’ll add narrative and a new angle: ‘Dave talked with this person. Here’s what they said about making sure your positioning is clear instead of broad, and here’s how to do it.’”

The takeaway: repurposing isn’t republishing. Find a hook relevant to your newsletter audience, then use it to bring lessons into the present.

Writing to a large audience? Creating more than one newsletter might be a good idea

Exit Five newsletter subscribers get two newsletters a week(ish):

• The Exit Five Weekly Newsletter: Strategic, long-form insights every Tuesday
• Marketing Snack: Bite-size tactics (almost) every Thursday

Both newsletters go out to the same list, are written in the same tone, and have the same relationship-building goal—not dumping content.

So why bother? It makes sense to set up multiple newsletters to optimize for different goals or audiences (e.g., educating one list and upselling to another), but targeting one list with similar content seems like a lot of extra work. 

It comes back to value.

Subscribers get two lots of expertly curated insights for the price of one email address. If one of these emails was promotional, that’s not what people signed up for. You risk losing trust and subscribers. When both are packed with actionable tips, it’s another reason to engage.

Using different formats is a great way to appeal to different reading styles. It also keeps content fresh. 

Subscribers who gravitate towards one newsletter still get the value they expect. Your open rates are still healthy, ensuring you keep a large audience happy.

Plus, you get more data to understand your audience and create meaningful content.

Tracking open rates and CTRs is good, but replies are even better

Open rates and click-through rates (CTR) are core metrics for any B2B marketer, but they don’t tell you much about the person reading.

Replies, however, do.

Danielle values email replies above other key performance indicators for two reasons:

1. From the strategy side, replies boost deliverability. They tell email clients that recipients want you in their inbox.

2. They drive genuine conversation and connection. Exactly what you want when trying to build relationships. 

How do you get people to reply? Ask them.

Danielle does this with value-led P.S. 

For example, in the email below, she asks readers for their thoughts on the topic. Encouraging subscribers to get involved in the conversation helps them feel valued: 

Adding a P.S. captures the attention of readers who may have skimmed through your email. Those extra thoughts or calls to action stand out.

Exit Five’s newsletters get as many as 30–40 replies. Numbers that are almost unheard of in B2B marketing.

However, there’s another crucial reason why Danielle’s tactic works. Dave Gerhardt nails it in a LinkedIn post about how Danielle’s writing is “super unscalable:”

Danielle reads and replies to every email. How’s that for value?

Automation helps streamline transactional emails. But for newsletters, there’s no beating genuine human connections.

Focus on building relationships with the few users who reply to your emails. They’ll become loyal fans who help grow your platform. 

If you want people to open your emails, build curiosity

Most people aren’t looking out for your newsletter when they check their inboxes. Research from Zero Bounce shows they’re more interested in emails from work, friends, and family or brand discounts:

This is what you’re up against. Your emails have to work hard to grab attention.

Exit Five’s newsletter open rate is consistently above the industry average, so they’re winning the battle. 

Sending value-packed newsletters every week is a major factor. Zero Bounce suggests relevancy as the top reason people open brand emails. The next-biggest factor is subject lines: 

To get clicks, Danielle uses a tried-and-trusted storytelling tactic in her subject lines:

“The art of storytelling is withholding information, but you also want to give them just enough that they know it’s valuable.”

Copyhackers founder Joanna Wiebe calls this the “curiosity gap:”

“Your prospects want to fill the information gap. Your job as a copywriter or marketer is to delay filling the gap for as long as you can—without introducing too much discomfort—in order to keep your visitors engaged.”

Consider this subject line from a recent Exit Five newsletter:

• “Here’s what to do when you’re not the subject matter expert”

If you’re not a subject matter expert, you’ll want to know what’s inside that can help you improve your marketing skillset. If you are a subject matter expert, the “here’s what to do” part piques curiosity enough to want to read more.

Here’s another of Danielle’s subject lines:

• “The mindset shift that helps marketing leaders move faster”

What mindset shift? You immediately want to click to find out.

Use the curiosity gap to make your emails enticing. However, be careful not to mislead readers. 

Exit Five’s subject lines work because they never feel like clickbait. They’re relevant to the content. Each email follows through on the small amount of information it introduces.

Rewarding people for their curiosity makes them more likely to open your next email. 

The best way to practice this kind of headline? 

Look at your own inbox. Find subject lines that make you click, and adapt them to your content. 

Tracking open rates over time will help you spot the kinds of hooks your audience engages with.

The perfect time to start a newsletter is now

Email newsletters as a marketing tool are in a good place. Beehiiv’s State of Email Newsletters report shows that newsletters sent on its platform increased by 96.2% year over year in 2024.

You might see that as a sign you’re entering an overcrowded market. Still, revenue and core engagement are healthy, and spam remains low across various industries. 

The appetite for good newsletters is here to stay. 

But when Danielle says the best time to start a newsletter is now, she means not waiting around for perfection. 

“You’ve got to get at least 10 newsletters in before you actually know what the format is going to be and what works, and get into a good rhythm.”

“I’ve done this a ton of times—giving up because I don’t have the perfect format from the beginning. No one’s really going to care if you change it by issue 10.”

Iteration is part of the email marketing process. You can tweak and improve every element over time. 

Start small, experiment, and don’t be afraid to go against the grain.

Will you lose subscribers? People unsubscribe for all kinds of reasons. As Danielle says:

“Don’t take it personally. Just keep getting the reps in.”

A B2B newsletter is the product

A good B2B newsletter isn’t a tool to sell. It’s a product that should offer readers value in a way your competitors can’t.

Focus on what matters to your audience, and show up like a human (flaws and all) with something relevant and helpful to say. Doing this consistently will build trust, grow your following, and ultimately boost business revenue.

Done right, you can build an engaged audience of loyal fans and customers. The trick is to: 

• Post valuable content consistently—both single tweets and threads 
• Interact with your audience in the comments, rather than scheduling posts and walking away

This strategy will help you build an audience and brand awareness at speed while attracting new leads and users who have problems you can solve.

Here’s why investing in your Twitter presence is effective for growth and lead generation, and how to write content that generates reach, engagement, and leads.

Why Twitter is an audience and revenue-generating machine

When you build a community around your brand (both business and personal), your credibility compounds and improves your brand equity because people see you as a human rather than a faceless entity.

This awareness helps you attract fans that are eager to pay attention to what you have to say because your content resonates with them. 

As you consistently provide helpful content, you’ll build authority and credibility—just like you would from any other content marketing channel. 

The key is to stop thinking of Twitter as a repurposing platform and start thinking about it as a  channel to create original content. It’s a content platform with its own ecosystem and search engine. It’s more than a digital billboard for your latest article, event, or announcement—a mindset that severely undermines its potential for attracting your audience.

You wouldn’t post a blog that says “We wrote a new thread on quality content so go check it out on Twitter” with a link. Yet, that’s exactly what some businesses use Twitter to do. This strategy doesn’t work because it’s outdated, cumbersome, and neglects how people want to digest information on the platform.

Users want content served to them directly on the platforms they’re logged into. Non-native content disrupts the intended user experience and breaks a pattern. Unless given a compelling reason to click away, they want platform-specific content.

Amanda Natividad, VP of Marketing at SparkToro, coined the term zero-click content to describe that, now more than ever, people crave in-platform content without needing to interrupt their consumption habits.

SparkToro’s data (as well as our own) show that platforms and algorithms favor in-platform content: 

It’s obvious why algorithms prefer it; they want to keep people on their platforms. 

But people also expressly favor high-quality native content because it allows them to:

• Engage with brands where they already are (clicking away can feel cumbersome)
• Experience non-intrusive messaging (CTAs and external links can feel out of place)
• Actually read what’s put in front of them (links are often overlooked or not read)

On that last point, the data is fascinating. A study from Columbia University found that 59% of social media links shared by news domains aren’t clicked on at all.

Furthermore, HubSpot looked at 2.7 million link-containing tweets and found that there is no correlation between retweets and clicks. This means that people will retweet something without even reading it, which aligns with the Columbia findings.

The data makes our jobs as marketers seem bleak, but that's only true if you treat Twitter like a place to simply distribute content. When you tack a link onto the tail end of platform-specific content it will only drive traffic if:

• You’ve spent time sharing native content without links and built an engaged audience on the platform
• You do it sparingly (the 80/20 rule is a good true north for articles)

Not all links are created equal, so the 80/20 rule doesn’t always apply. A link to a blog post is different from a link to a newsletter signup form, for example. The former requires a decent time commitment while the latter is a quick action. 

As such, newsletter CTAs or forms can be tacked onto most posts, preferably a few hours after you share them. This works to:

• Bring your post to the top of people’s feeds again (additional tweets in a thread can trigger the algorithm to ‘reshare’ it)
• Provide a key window of time for native-only content to be consumed 

For example, I created native content almost exclusively in my first four months on Twitter and grew my audience from ~500 to ~14k. 

Because of this, by the time I promoted an article, people were eager to not only click but spend time reading it. In 24 hours, we generated::

• 233 pageviews
• 214 unique pageviews
• 4:48 average time on page

My goal was to build my credibility to a point where people believed me when I said “read this: it's worth your time.” This experiment proved successful and my links now generate clicks, leads, and new clients.

Both threads and single tweets are critical to growth

Single tweets are important and should be incorporated into your content strategy. But love them or hate them, threads tend to have a bigger reach (and impact).

Use threads to expand organic reach

Check out the difference in impressions between a single tweet of mine vs. a thread with only 100 more likes (the higher the like count, the less impactful differences of hundreds become):

These were posted one day apart, which means I was reaching a similar audience. 

While the thread only got 100 more likes, it received ~65,000 more impressions, was shared ~2x more times, and got ~2x more engagement.

Threads generally perform better because they’re educational in nature and help people solve problems. Whether you’re teaching people how to do something or telling a story of success or failure, your audience is learning as they read and taking notes on how to apply the tips to their own circumstances. 

Because of this, your audience will likely be more engaged and keen to retweet and share with their network. Twitter rewards engagement (i.e. comments and retweets), meaning reach compounds.

Think of threads like long-form articles for Twitter, written with a blend of copywriting and content writing styles.

Let’s return to the thread I mentioned earlier that linked to our Quality Content Marketing Matters article at the end and break down why it was successful.

Here are the analytics:

Over 100k impressions and 2k+ engagements is a great result and led directly to that spike in pageviews and time on page referenced above.

I repromoted the same article a few days later in a single tweet with a link and it got 100+ likes but generated nearly 100K fewer impressions than the thread:

The thread drove more engagement, and more readers to my article, generated several leads, and expanded my personal (and subsequently Grizzle’s) brand awareness.

Use single tweets to bolster engagement and show your personality

As for single tweet formats, quick tips, pieces of expertise, or questions to your audience can drum up tons of engagement even if the reach isn’t always as impressive. 

For example, this single tweet asking a question about writing and editing sitting vs. standing got ~14k impressions and generated 67 comments:

And this tweet listing my article writing process (that ended with a question to inspire engagement) drummed up over 1,000 likes and 60+ comments:

We recommend replying to most comments because it shows your audience that you’re a real person and not some unreachable entity. 

This is key for both personal and business brands: when you engage and respond, you personalize the experience and build deeper connections. The deeper your connections, the more loyal your audience will be. 

Critically, they’ll also feel more motivated to learn about the business you run or represent and consider becoming a customer. Meaningful connections through personal interactions build trust, and Twitter is a touchpoint along the customer journey (both before and after an initial purchase). 

The more valued people feel, the more likely they are to add you to the consideration set and feel motivated to explore a purchase. As long as you’re delivering value, consistently publishing tweets and threads will generate awareness, leads, and new business.

As for a posting cadence, we recommend the following: 

• 2x threads a week to teach and bolster engagement
• At least 2x single tweets a day to remain consistent and please the algorithm (which rewards daily activity)

Note that if you do miss a day or two you’ll be fine. Quality wins over quantity, and we’ve not seen notable drops in engagement because of it.

How to write valuable Twitter posts that build compounding credibility 

Twitter content isn’t the same as blog articles, emails, landing pages, or ebooks. It’s also not the same as other social platforms like LinkedIn or Instagram. 

You only have 280 characters to work with, so it’s uniquely concise and people scroll and skim at lightning paces.

Let’s look at how to craft engaging threads first.

The most valuable threads capture and hold attention

A great thread starts with a great hook. People want to know:

• Why they should bother reading
• How it will help them solve a problem
• What they will learn

If you don't answer these questions, they won't care or feel motivated to click into it and read.

A great way to capture attention is to poke at a pain point, add credibility via quantifiable proof (numbers perform well), get specific with outcomes, and end with a cliffhanger:

• Poking at the pain lights up emotions and gives readers something to relate to, e.g. “Most people get this wrong” or “I was struggling and wish I had a playbook to follow”. 
• Adding credibility acts as social proof and gives people a reason to care or trust what you’re saying, e.g. “I’ve edited 3M+ words” or “We’ve spent 7 years building systems that have netted $5,000,000 revenue”. 
• Getting specific with outcomes allows readers to picture what they can accomplish themselves by reading, e.g. “ensure your new employee stays at your organization” or “3x conversions in 90 days”.
• Leaving a cliffhanger encourages people to click to find out what’s next. This is especially key if your thread is a listicle. For example, if the crux is “8 ways to X”, don’t include what those are in the hook—make the reader click more to see more.

A bad hook makes it all about you and doesn’t leave anything up to the imagination. 

Here are a few examples of strong hook formats:

1. [Opinionated state of play]. [Data]. [Poke at pain]. What to do? [Opinionated solution]. Here's how:

2. As a/an [personalized descriptor] I [pain point] with [trend]. So, I did [descriptor of event] to learn [outcome]. Here are X takeaways:

3. Hot take. [Thought-provoking opinion on trend]. I've [take on future of trend]:

4. [State of play]. But [pain point]. Why (and what to do instead):

5. [Opinion]. Stance on [bad take]. I’ve spent [social proof + timeframe] to achieve [outcome]. The playbook:

These hooks are intriguing, specific, and open a loop that makes you curious about what’s inside.

Once you capture people’s attention, you need to keep it and make the juice worth the squeeze.

You want readers to:

• Easily understand your points
• Experience zero friction
• Stay interested throughout

To do that: 

• Share unique insights
• Add the "why" and "how"
• Get creative
• Pay attention to structure

Strong content marketing principles apply to thread writing. The best threads set context, add examples, include prescriptive tips, tell a great story, give the reader instructions on how to do something themselves, and leave them with an action item (e.g. click this link, follow me, and/or retweet to share).

On Twitter, white space is critical—especially when using a listicle format that has dedicated headers. Still, even bold, opinionated, and storytelling content benefits from white space on Twitter.

Generally, this format works best:

• Header: Set the stage
• Subheader: Answer “the why”
• Body: Supplement your argument and answer “how”
• Takeaway: Empower them to follow your advice and give them a reason why it will help them help themselves.

Here’s how this format looks with white space separators:

Here’s a meta example of how you could use this format to explain why this advice will help people write stronger Tweets:

• Header: “Answer intent right away”
• Subheader: “This way, the reader understands why what they're about to read matters.”
• Body: “Include data points or personal anecdotes so the reader can picture themselves doing what you’re describing.”
• Takeaway: “Small tweaks like this make a big impact on flow and drive engagement.”

And here’s a simplified version of how we could format a tweet when giving the advice “break up long walls of text”:

• Header: “Break up long walls of text” 
• Subheader: “White space helps skimmers and makes content easier to digest & navigate.” 
• Body: “Try to limit paragraphs to 2-3 sentences max.”
• Takeaway: “The reading experience matters as much as the words on the page.” 

Add your CTA to the final tweet in the thread. Here’s what my thread CTA looked like when I promoted the Quality Content Marketing article referenced above:

This only worked because it was tacked onto original content, formatted for Twitter, and referenced themes discussed in the article.

Here’s the hook I used:

Nothing was copy/pasted. The best-performing repurposed content on Twitter doesn’t feel repurposed—it feels tailored to the unique Twitter experience.

Here’s an example of a body tweet from this thread where I explain what editorial goals are:

Here’s how we talk about editorial goals in the article itself:

Notice how the examples I picked are completely different. In the article, our target audience is marketers that would benefit from seeing what a relevant content goal looks like.

On Twitter, my audience is a mix of content marketers, writers, and editors looking to improve their written communication skills.

I tailored each example to the audience at hand and structured the content to the format at play. It’s not repurposed; it's reimagined.

Interestingly, I chose to include a second hook in this thread:

And it got 3x more likes than every other body tweet:

That’s because frontloading value, credibility, and getting ahead of objections works well on Twitter. 

In my first hook, I argue that quality content is important but I don’t explain why. To get ahead of objections and prove my point, I used the second tweet to prove:

• I know what I’m talking about
• Here are all the reasons why quality matters
• I’m about to back this up with specifics so keep reading

If the reader wasn’t entirely hooked after reading tweet 1, they certainly are after tweet 2.

This second hook is also a perfect single tweet. Here’s why.

How to write single tweets that drive engagement

The reason why the second hook above performed so well is because it teaches and is uniquely structured for the platform.

Notice how the sentence length cascades from long to short as you read from top to bottom. This is visually engrossing and works to capture attention.

But not every tweet needs to be so obviously structured for the platform. 

This quick tip performed well because it poked at a common pain point (everybody wants to make it big, fast), gave advice backed by years of experience, and spoke truth to unrealistic expectations:

Humorous responses to industry trends or new data are also a great way to start a conversation and let your personality shine through:

What B2B marketer hasn’t seen that infographic by now? It’s relatable and makes you want to run to leave a comment.

In general, single tweets give you a chance to demonstrate your personality. They also challenge you to share valuable advice in a short format—which is excellent practice for cutting fluff and redundancy from your writing.

There’s no “perfect” format for single tweets, nor should there be. As long as they’re tailored towards your target audience, you can get creative, share opinions, ask engaging questions, and have a little fun:

The more relatable and resonating, the bigger chance you’ll strengthen existing connections and attract new followers (that may turn into customers one day).

Ignore Twitter and leave relationships on the table

Since joining Twitter we’ve attracted and converted more leads at Grizzle in a shorter period of time than ever before.

All through organic posts and zero targeted outreach.

Posting daily and providing value has shown potential clients that we know how to create quality content. 

If you’re sleeping on Twitter or annoyed by how clickbaity and regurgitated content there can feel, you’re ignoring its massive potential. When you mute the noise and focus on your personal and business growth, you build strong relationships that lead to new business opportunities. 

Of course, if the idea of doing it yourself is too painful or you don’t have time, you can also work with experts to write social content for you.