Who doesn’t love a good party and a great conversation? Twitter allows all of that to happen virtually. We’ve been doing Twitter parties (or chats) since we opened our doors in 2009, and let’s just say – the themes are endless! Though they’re not a new concept, they continue to be a valuable way for brands to create conversations with their audience, and in our experience at Everywhere Agency, influencers play a huge role in their success.

But first, let’s recap what a Twitter party is. It’s essentially a conversation focused on a particular topic that takes place on Twitter over a fixed period of time – usually an hour – using a designated hashtag that allows you to participate and follow along. The host will tweet out questions or conversation-starters that participants then reply to. While Twitter parties are used by different groups and for various reasons, we usually run them for brands to drive discussion and build a community around their products or services.

Here’s how anyone can become the Martha Stewart of Twitter party co-hosting with a brand:

1. Rally Your Followers

A good invite can go a long way in getting people excited! It’s your job as co-host to rally your crowd and get the word out ahead of time. It’s usually a good idea to promote the Twitter party across all your social channels (not just Twitter) so you’re reaching as much of your audience as possible. Most likely, you’ll be given exact social share requirements that you’ll need to fulfill.

2. Being Prepared Isn’t Just for Boy Scouts

You can’t throw a good party without doing some prep work! Arm yourself with the right hashtags and handles before the party gets going. Accuracy is important for brands to be able to gauge the success of the Twitter party. Plus, it’s downright embarrassing as a co-host to be using a misspelled hashtag or tagging the wrong brand! Often, you’ll be given the script ahead of time. Use it to schedule your tweets in response to the brand, freeing you up to really dive into engaging with others during the chat

3. Reply, Retweet, Repeat

There’s nothing worse than a dead party. The objective of a Twitter party is to drive discussion, and the brand is depending on you to help them achieve that goal. Make sure you’re engaging with other participants by liking, re-tweeting, and most importantly, replying to their tweets. In super busy Twitter chats, the brand isn’t able to engage with every tweet, so they rely on you to help pick up some of the slack to make sure everyone feels welcome and included.

4. Don’t Just Use Your Words

Every good host has a few tricks up their sleeve! Visuals are a great way to spice up your contributions to the conversation (and get noticed by the brand). Think of them as party favors. It’s important not to go overboard, but tweeting out a few relevant personal pictures or a good meme or two can up your Twitter party game.

5. Be Yourself

Lastly, don’t be afraid to put your party hat on and show some personality! Brands are expecting you to weave your voice into the topic. In fact, that’s why you were hired! Inject some humor into the conversation. Share your personal stories. In short, be yourself.

This simple five-step recipe will ensure that you’re the hostess with the mostest any time a brand asks you to collaborate on a Twitter chat.