Why Do People Favorite a Tweet?

Why Do People Favorite a Tweet?

by: Bryan Shaw

As I started using my Twitter account more frequently, I noticed a number of followers favoriting my tweets. The more this happened I really began to wonder why do people do this. I decided to do some research and here is what I found.

What does it mean and how do people use it?

Are you saying “I kind of like your post, but not enough to retweet it or to reply to it”? According to Twitter, favoriting a tweet can let the original poster know that you liked their tweet, or so you can save the tweet for later.

Top reasons for favoriting a tweet:

1) Bookmarking

Since as many as 60% of Twitter users access the feed on their phones or other mobile device, which means most don’t have the time and a big-enough screen to read lengthy articles.

 

2) Attract New Followers

Some users favorite a post to grab the attention of a user whose interest they are trying to capture. This is a good way to get noticed and could work with influencers of your industry, for example, as it gets you in their radar and they might take a look at your profile and follow you.

3) Say Thanks

When tweeters are sharing a user’s content. It might be a bit much to actually type out a ‘thanks’ response to every single one of them, so favoriting is quite common to show gratitude.

4) Testimonials

Brands might favorite a tweet that provide any kind of positive feedback or a user recommending their products or services.

5) Twitter’s “Like” Button

And finally there are those who simply favorite any particular tweet they like – a favorite tweet.

While retweeting might be a way of showing interest and engagement, favoriting actually helps you keep a better track of all tweets you liked, as it saves them all together, preventing them from getting lost in all the other tweets you post daily.

 

What about you? How do you decide whether to reply/retweet/favorite on Twitter?