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As of October 2017, around 330 million people around the world use Twitter, according to CNN. Twitter doesn’t have the billions of users that Facebook does. And, it isn’t seeing the explosive growth Instagram is experiencing. But, it’s still a worthwhile platform for brands that want to reach a particular audience. That’s especially true for those who leverage Twitter Influencer tools.

Even though Twitter is smaller than other social platforms, finding the right influencers on it can still be a challenge. After all, there are still hundreds of millions of accounts to sift through. Among those accounts are several genuine influencers. But there’s also plenty of fakes or people who made an account one day and quickly forgot all about it.

Using a Twitter influencer tool can help you sort through the millions of users on Twitter. And they can help you find the influencer (or influencers) who will be an excellent fit for your brand.

What Do Twitter Influencer Tools Do?

It seems like there are as many different types of Twitter influencer tools out there as there are Twitter users. The tools vary in terms of quality and what they offer. But, you can generally expect an influencer tool for Twitter to do one or more of the following:

Measure follower count

Generic Twitter influencer tools let you know how many followers a user has (which you can check simply by looking at someone’s profile). But, the more advanced tools also show how quickly they gain or lose followers. A tool such as SocialBlade shows you a live graph with total followers that updates every few seconds.

Measure follower authenticity

Fake followers are very much a thing. Whether an influencer buys them or just has a bunch of spam accounts following them, it’s a problem. A tool like TwitterAudit analyzes user account and displays the number of fake or spam followers a person has.

Measure overall influence/reach

Followers are one thing, and for some brands, they might not matter much. What’s even more important is to see who’s engaging with an influencer and what their overall reach is. Do people actually respond to an influencer’s posts or not? Twitter influencer tools that measure reach, such as Klout, gives you a better image of what a person’s actual influence is.

Measure interactions

Sometimes, it’s worthwhile to measure your brand’s interactions with users or influencers on Twitter. A tool such as Commun.it shows you who’s sent you a message, liked a tweet, or followed you, and reminds you to follow back, reply, or otherwise connect with your followers. Often, the best influencers on Twitter are the ones that seek out your brand on their own, so it’s worth paying attention to who’s engaging with you, and how.

3 Benefits of Twitter Influencer Tools

Find Influencers Quickly

One of the biggest benefits of using a Twitter influencer tool is that doing so can help you find the right influencer for your brand more quickly. Occasionally, an influencer can look like the perfect fit for you, but a look behind the scenes reveals that they don’t have a genuine followers list, or that they’ve tweeted things that your brand doesn’t want to be associated with.

Analyze Social Data

Another benefit of using an influencer tool to find people on Twitter is that doing so helps you make sense of the data. Every active Twitter user has heaps of data about themselves — including follower counts, likes, retweets, and so on. It’ll take forever to sort through all that data on your own, but using a tool streamlines the process.

Discover Niche Influencers

Finally, using an influencer tool can help you discover influencers that you would otherwise overlook. When you’re able to see who’s actively engaging with your brand and who has a fair amount of reach, you’re going to be more likely to pick the right person to work with.

How to Choose Twitter Influencer Tools

With so many Twitter tools on the market, not to mention other influencer marketing tools that include the option of searching for Twitter users, choosing the right one can seem tricky.

Here’s what to keep in mind when picking out the right tool for your brand:

Features

Do you want a feature-rich Twitter influencer tool, or will a tool that does one thing and does it really well suffice?

Influencers included

Some tools analyze and sort every Twitter user, while others are limited to people who sign up or ask to be included.

Cost

Many influencer tools for Twitter are free or offer a free version with limited features. Others are available on a pay-as-you-go or monthly fee basis. Look at your budget before deciding which one is right for you.

Other platforms

Are you only going to work with Twitter influencers, or do you want the option of finding people on other social media platforms, too?

User-friendliness

How easy is it to get started with the tool, or to navigate around its interface? Is there a help and support team standing by to help you if you need assistance?

Start With Twitter Influencer Tools

How you get started with a Twitter influencer tool really depends on the type of tool you’re going to try out. If you’re going to give a free tool a go, then all you need to do is follow the instructions to download it or make an account.

But if you’re considering a free tool or a tool that performs a variety of functions, such as a full influencer marketing software package, it’s a good idea to get a demo and “try before you buy.” That way, you can gauge whether or not the tool does what you want and meets your needs before you sign up for a multi-month or year-long contract.

Want to learn the ins and outs of Twitter Influencer Marketing?

Download your free copy of the Twitter Influencer Marketing Guide today!