Using Twitter as a Tool for National Recruitment and Retention

Day 936, 14:40 • Published in USA USA • by Zeutheir

I promised that I'd be trying to write some other new sort of articles, and I'm hoping this one might also be helpful. It's an idea I've had for a bit that I've been looking into more recently that I think might help the eUSA recruit, and we all know we need all the help we can get.

The reason I'm posting this here is because I think this is a tool anyone can pick up and run with on top of a nationally-implemented plan. ANY individual can do it to help with bringing in new citizens, and then the nation can use it to keep players informed and retained.

I definitely don't mean to step on any toes, here. I'm just trying to offer up an idea and hope some people run with it. I've been trying this out, but I'm only one person.

The Tool



In my other life, I'm fairly active on the microblogging Web site Twitter. Now, I'm highly aware that Twitter has something of a stigma surround it for many people. Many see it as mindless, annoying and superfluous. I recognize that. But I think we can use it to our advantage, and I hope to talk about some of the ways we could use it in this article.

Using Twitter also has several advantages over using facebook: you can use targeted methods, signing up and getting started is quick and easy, and you retain your privacy by not having to use a personal account.

There are two ways I can see Twitter being used for the eUS: for recruitment and for retention through unity and activity. And two groups who should do it: individuals and the government.

Recruitment

Tons of gamers use Twitter. It's a strong online social media community. Over 7000 people follow World of Warcraft news using Twitter. Thousands follow MMORPG.com. I -- of all people -- have 250 people following me, and I'm just a starving law student in Louisiana. Hell, Ashton Kutcher has over 5 MILLION people following him. I'm positive that at least three of these four accounts have many followers who would be interested in eRepublik. And it's so easy to find them...

Targeted Searching

You can use Twitter to search for what people are tweeting about. This is how we can do targeted recruitment. Here's an example of how a search might work:



See how you just punch in a search term and it feeds back anyone who has tweeted about that subject? Imagine searching for "browser-based game" or "political game" or "online game" or similar variations.

Maybe you'll find this tweet: "@Beardguy87: Man, I miss Planetarion. I wish there were a cool browser-based game I could get into."

You'd notice three things about this person: First, they have a firm grasp on the subjective tense, which is rare on the Internet. Second, they are old enough to have played Planetarion and enjoyed its grandeur back in its hayday. Third, and most importantly, you'd know that they are looking for a game like eRepublik into which to sink their teeth.

All you have to do from this point is reply to them. You start your tweet with his username (including the @) and it will show up on his screen. So, tell him: "@Beardguy87 Hey, I play this game eRepublik. Check it out and let me know if you have any questions." Attach your referral link, and that took you about 30 seconds to recruit a new player.

If a national account did this, it could (and should) also link to new player help articles.

This is one way we can target gamers who might be looking for something like this. Brainstorm your own search terms and have a blast. Another method might be...

Follow and Hope

This is how most annoying Twitter advertisers do their business. They follow any profile that expresses interest in the company and hopes they follow them back to see their tweets. You can look through followers of similar games' accounts or search for profile that express the right kinds of interests in the bio, etc.

This will also involve keeping up a steady stream of non-targeted tweets, which takes me to the other way one could use Twitter . . .

Retention Through Unity and Activity

I envision this aspect of using Twitter to be executed mainly by an official national account of the eUS government, hopefully run by the up-and-coming REACH program, which looks incredibly promising. I know they are working on other non-conventional media projects right now and have an incredible workload, but I hope this guide can help bud another one.

This account could post non-targeted tweets that would be seen by anyone who would follow the account (rea😛 every eUS citizen should follow this account). That account would be a great Pony Express-style tool that could get people to vote up linked articles, post the DoD orders, talk up a coming big event, etc. It would help keep people excited and be an easy way for the Government to put out announcements to reign in previously-active players as well as interested newbies.

I don't presume to be able to draw up an entire policy on how a nation might use Twitter, and I think there are people in the Government who would be much better with that than I, but I'm just throwing out some budding ideas and hoping they grow.

Conclusion

Does this look like extra work? Are you saying to yourself, "But Z, I don't like Twitterrrrrrrrr. It's weird!" Well, guess what, it's a tool we can use to reach thousands if not tens of thousands of people, and that might turn up a good many new players if we keep it active.

Remember why we do it, friends:



Because we are the City on the Hill who should be on the forefront of eTechnology. Because we love freedom and liberty. Because we love our country.

Thanks for all the support on my last article, everyone. I hope to get to know more of you personally soon. Feel free to drop me a line on IRC, as I like to be on there often.

My best,


Z