Crypto Marketing with Ty Smith
Crypto Twitter: Corporate Accounts vs Personal Accounts | Ep. 37
About this episode
Ty Smith and Liz Whiting compare running a corporate crypto Twitter account against a personal one, and where each fits into a marketing plan. Liz lays out what corporate accounts do well: customer support, distributing content, sharing media mentions, and pushing announcements, especially pre-launch. Ty makes the case for personal accounts as the better tool for networking and putting a face on a brand, pointing to how tweeting about the Bitcoin 2021 Miami conference generated real meetings.
The conversation moves into tactics: define the account's goal before posting anything, since that decision shapes content type and frequency. They debate buttoned-up, legal-approved corporate voices versus accounts with real personality, using Lolli as an example of a brand account that barely mentions its own product and grows anyway. For personal accounts, both agree that dropping the thought-leader act and showing some vulnerability, admitting what you don't know and engaging in other people's conversations, is the most reliable growth tactic.
They close with a practical recommendation for early-stage founders: run both accounts, but if resources are tight, put more weight behind the personal account first. It grows faster, and models like Morning Brew show how a personal, build-in-public voice can naturally pull the corporate account along with it, as long as the corporate account has real content behind it.
Key takeaways
- Define the specific goal of your corporate account (clients, updates, traffic) before deciding on content or posting frequency.
- Personal accounts grow faster than corporate accounts and are the better first investment for resource-strapped startups.
- Adding personality to a corporate account, even talking about topics unrelated to the product, tends to grow reach faster than a strictly professional tone.
- Use your personal account to network directly, tweeting about conferences and events can generate real meetings.
- Show vulnerability on social media instead of always playing thought leader; admitting what you don't know invites engagement.
- Grow a personal account by engaging in conversations on topics you're knowledgeable but not expert in, rather than only broadcasting.
- Back up an active personal account with real content on the corporate account, like client wins and project updates, so growth has something to convert into.
Questions this episode answers
Should a crypto startup focus on a corporate Twitter account or a personal one?
Ty and Liz both recommend running both, but putting more resources into the personal account early on, especially for resource-strapped startups. The personal account grows faster and naturally feeds into the corporate account over time, similar to how Morning Brew built in public.
What is a corporate crypto Twitter account best used for?
According to Liz Whiting, corporate accounts work best for customer support and feedback, distributing content, sharing media or influencer mentions, and pushing out company announcements. It is especially useful pre-launch for getting quick updates to the community.
What is a personal Twitter account best used for in crypto marketing?
A personal account makes a brand more approachable and is great for networking, like coordinating meetups before a conference. Ty says it puts a face on the company brand and has driven meetings just from tweeting personally about events like Bitcoin 2021 Miami.
Should a corporate crypto Twitter account be professional or have personality?
Ty argues that accounts with personality, like Lolli's, which barely talks about its product and instead posts about crypto in general, grow faster and get more reach. A fully buttoned-up, legal-approved account can still build a tight-knit, educational community, but it will likely grow slower and depend more on the product's own user base.
What is the fastest way to grow a personal Twitter account in crypto?
Ty says the fastest way is social listening: finding conversations about topics you're knowledgeable but not necessarily expert in, then engaging and leaving comments. Liz adds that showing vulnerability, admitting what you don't know and asking others to weigh in, sparks conversation and engagement.
How do you know what content to post on a corporate crypto Twitter account?
Ty says you need to define the account's goal early, whether it's getting clients, updating the community, or driving traffic, and let that goal guide content type and posting frequency. Liz adds that setting success metrics upfront helps you know if the strategy is working.
Full transcriptShow
Ty Smith0:07
Welcome to another episode of the Crypto Marketing Show. I am Ty Smith.
Liz Whiting0:09
I am Liz Whiting. Thanks for having me.
Ty Smith0:11
And today we are discussing the differences between running a corporate Twitter account and a personal Twitter account in the crypto space. So we're going to go into the purposes served by a corporate Twitter account versus the purposes of a personal account. We'll go into some tips for growing each, and we'll go into some recommendations as far as where you should start, how resources should be split between the two, and what makes sense for companies that are just starting out.
Ty Smith0:29
So let's first start with Liz. What purpose does a corporate account serve versus a personal account? Starting with corporate account, where do you feel the real goal and value is behind a corporate account in the crypto Twitter world?
Liz Whiting1:05
Yeah, I think that for a corporate account, it's really great for customer support and feedback, a means of distributing content, especially if a brand was mentioned in the media or by a popular influencer or notable name in the space, and especially company announcements as well. It's a really, really strong place if you're pre-launch and looking to get a lot of quick updates out there. That is definitely some of the highlights of a corporate account.
Liz Whiting1:27
And then for a personal account, it just makes it more approachable, great for networking. I think you have a great example with preparing for the Miami crypto conference, networking with people, asking who's going to be there, where are they staying. It just makes it much more personal but still has a professional representation and speaks to the brand that you ultimately represent.
Ty Smith2:11
Yeah, for as far as personal accounts, I do feel personal accounts need to be exactly that, which is personal. It should definitely be a reflection of the person behind it. So my Twitter account, for example, a lot of it is crypto marketing related, obviously, because that's what I spend 99% of my life doing and talking about. But there also is some things regarding surfing and personal hobbies. It definitely helps to put a face on the Coinbound brand. And to touch on what you said regarding the conference, we have the Miami Bitcoin 2021 conference coming up. Just kind of tweeting about that a bunch, I've found to be incredibly helpful. We have so many meetings set up, just all from Twitter. So the saying is, "Your network is your net worth." Twitter makes it so much easier from a personal account to be able to build those relationships with people.
Ty Smith3:13
As far as the corporate account goes, that's where things get a little more confusing in my opinion, because every corporate, every brand really has a different goal behind what they want to do with their brand account. If you're a media company, for example, it's a great place to just push out news or podcasts or whatever content it is that you're creating. If you're not a media company, say you're a DeFi platform or an ICO or whatever, it's a great place for just getting the community information quickly in a short-form kind of way rather than writing a full long Medium post about the specifics of whatever protocol it is that you're implementing or whatever it might be. You could very quickly update, "This is coming along nicely," whatever it is, and kind of serve as that point of contact between major announcements and just keep the community engaged.
Ty Smith4:10
So let's go into some tips for growing a corporate account. In my opinion, you definitely need to, like I said, understand what the goal is behind the corporate account early. Liz, you and I both are very goal-oriented, especially when it comes to social media, in the sense that we're not going to go and just create an account for the sake of creating it. There has to be a goal and it has to tie in with the greater marketing plan. I would say anyone that's going to be spending any amount of time on building a corporate account in the crypto Twitter world needs to understand what the goal is behind that. And again, that's going to change very much depending on what the company is doing. But I would say the earlier you can figure that out, the better. And that's going to determine a lot of things, especially as far as what type of content is getting posted, the frequency of the content. You definitely don't want to have a Twitter account just for the sake of having a Twitter account. A lot of people kind of look at corporate accounts as just kind of checking a box that needs to be done so people can find the place. Not to say that's wrong, it's just not going to get the most value out of that. But as far as growing a corporate account, definitely just understand what the goal is with that. Is it getting more clients? Is it serving as a means of updating existing community members? Understand that early and then don't deviate from that.
Liz Whiting5:20
Yeah, and also are you using it to drive traffic? Are you using it for growth? Are you using it mostly for updates for people in your audience? I think that, just to jump on what you're saying, it's so important to outline what you want to see out of the account before you dive into it. And you can always tweak from there, but knowing what you're getting into and how to establish those success metrics around it as well is really key in building that out.
Ty Smith6:14
And just as far as the tips, so a lot of people have kind of different perceptions of what a corporate Twitter account should look like. Some want it to be very, very professional and buttoned up. That's fine. I would say just understand that if that is the route that you're going to go, expect it to possibly take longer to grow it, or at least the growth of that Twitter channel is going to be more fueled by the product and user base of the company rather than people following you because they are getting good content out of it. Whereas if you're going to go the route of, like Lolly, for example, whose announcements and whose tweets have very little to do with the actual product, it's just kind of about crypto in general, they've created an account that is worth following without even using the product, anything. If you're going to go the route of kind of having a personality behind the brand, you'll have a much easier time growing that. That said, though, it's not necessarily the right option for everyone. Some people don't, especially people that are B2B and want really kind of a buttoned-up appearance on social media, that might not be the best way to go. But you will have an easier time having a personality behind the brand.
Liz Whiting7:24
Yeah, I absolutely agree. And then there are people who have to go through legal to get a lot of copy approved and make sure that everything that they're putting on their Twitter is okay and an accurate representation of the brand. And people are going to have, I think, in my opinion, you're going to have a little bit of a tighter-knit community because it's people that you're already speaking to that may know about the product, and they're going to be able to have a much more educational approach for people looking for that kind of information. So it really depends what the goal is and how that brand wants to be perceived. That's how you're going to structure those tweets and have a personality or a little bit less, be a little bit more buttoned up. It's all about developing that tone and brand voice and then sticking with it to make sure that that's what you're going to be known for.
Ty Smith8:27
Do you agree with me on the point of a corporate account with a little bit of a personality and a little bit more of a fun voice will have an easier time building a user base than a buttoned-up one?
Liz Whiting8:34
Oh, absolutely. I mean, when you can share memes and be a little bit more approachable, more people are going to want to approach you and share your content. When it's specifically things that are educational and home to the brand, you're not going to get as much reach there because it's just not something everyone can approach or understand. It's more for people who are already there or willing to learn about it. But I think having a really healthy mix of content, if your brand allows for that, is going to be a really good strategy to have. But yeah, Lolly is a great example of how they interact. They barely talk about the product. It's mostly something that is there for people to be a part of, especially for more mainstream and new users.
Ty Smith9:32
So let's go into now some tips for growing personal accounts on the other side of that. Like I said, I think not being overly professional in general on social media is sort of a growth hack in itself. A lot of people, I think, really overthink the content they're posting on social media. You're going to spell check everything, make sure they have proper grammar, and really think things just too much. I think you kind of have to have fun with your own social media accounts, especially a personal one. I think it should definitely be a reflection of the person behind it. You had said, we had had an offline conversation recently, Liz, regarding thought leaders sometimes going overboard with trying to always be thought leaders and not necessarily giving themselves the freedom to be just a person that uses social media and not always have the answers figured out. I think there is a growth hack in vulnerability on social media.
Liz Whiting10:31
Absolutely.
Ty Smith10:32
And on the topic of our last podcast episode, social listening, and just the perks of being able to kind of insert yourself in conversations and engage with others, I think that is probably the fastest way to grow a personal account is just finding something that you're not necessarily an expert on but really knowledgeable on, find people that are talking about that, and then just engage with them. Just leave some comments, just kind of insert yourself in that conversation. And over time, that is just, in my opinion, the most proven, sure-fire way of growing a personal account.
Liz Whiting10:56
I completely agree. And people, everyone in crypto is still learning, and that is a huge, that's just a huge thing in the space is that there's so much new, there's so many new projects coming to light. People don't know everything. Not everyone is going to have all the answers. And so when you're in that learning phase, people can really gravitate toward that. And it helps stimulate conversation. Everyone is always looking to share their opinions. They want to share the knowledge that they have. It's very much a crowd-sourced situation. And so I think when you have that level of vulnerability on social media to say, "Hey, I'm really knowledgeable in these few areas, but I would love to learn more about this. Who can help me?" So many people are going to come and raise their hands, and they want to be that point of knowledge. They want to be that point of authority there, and it really helps engage people and create conversation. And that's the whole point is creating that conversation.
Ty Smith11:57
So as far as what you think is easier to grow and sort of where companies that are just starting out should probably focus their resources on, what do you think?
Liz Whiting12:28
I think that focusing on, again, it really depends on the goals. I do want to just say that right out the gate. But I do think that there should be a focus on the individual personal account. It's just going to grow faster. It's going to get more reach. People are going to feel more comfortable interacting. And you can still have a really aggressive approach for your brand account or for your corporate account. But I do really think that building out that personal account, especially if you are a front-facing brand or if you're media, that's going to be really important to have someone who's relatable and approachable to people and someone they can more easily interact with rather than just posting information and having it be a little bit more educational. You want it to be more conversational, and you can naturally more, you can more naturally have a conversation with a person than with a brand. Unless that person is really known for being a part of that brand and they have a similar voice. But I do really think it's going to be easier to grow a personal brand. Or if you're looking to have that exponential growth for your corporate account, make it more personal. Make it more fun if you can, if you don't have those legal red tape. I think that it's really important to be as approachable as possible, especially if you're trying to reach a more mainstream audience.
Ty Smith13:52
Yeah, I agree 100%. We've experienced it ourselves in growing my own personal Twitter account versus Coinbound's Twitter account. It's just significantly easier to grow a personal account in my opinion. For beginners that are just starting out, I would say have both, if you're a founder of a company that's just getting started and you're kind of starting from zero. I would say definitely have both. Have a corporate account as well as having a personal one. I would probably recommend, especially for startups that are kind of resource-strapped and don't have millions of dollars to hire a full-time social media person, I would say spend more time on the personal account, and that will, in a way, just feed into the corporate account. Because people like, especially if the personal account is like, I mean, we've seen it work so well for companies like Morning Brew where they just build in public, and it's really being led more by the personal accounts than it is the corporate accounts. But they're just so frequently talking about what they're building that it just naturally progresses from the personal account into the corporate account. I think that is just such a beautiful, effective model for doing anything as far as growing an account on social media.
Liz Whiting15:01
Absolutely. And then make sure the corporate account does have content to back that up. That's always my biggest recommendation, too, is when you are building those accounts, make sure that there's some meat there. We do a lot of retweeting of clients and showing their projects and how we're able to help them grow. I think that that's the whole goal of what we do for Coinbound. And if you can feed that goal as we're doing with your personal account, I think that that's a really good strategy and something that really works.
Ty Smith15:47
Yeah. All right. So I think that is it for today, unless you have anything else to add, Liz.
Liz Whiting15:51
No, that's all on my end.
Ty Smith15:52
All right. So that will be it for today. Be sure to, on the topic of social media and corporate versus personal, be sure to follow me @TyDanielSmith on Twitter, as well as Coinbound on Twitter. We are @Coinbound_io. Liz, what is your Twitter handle?
Liz Whiting16:01
@thatsbusy
Ty Smith16:03
thatsbusy. All right, cool. Yeah, and remember to rate, review, and recommend this podcast if you found any value in it. It definitely goes a long way as far as helping us know what type of content to continue to create, especially if it is helpful. All right, that will be it for today. We will catch you guys on the next one. Bye.
