How to Start a Twitter Space

Thinking about hosting your first live audio conversation on X (formerly Twitter)? Twitter Spaces are one of the most powerful tools available for building community, sharing expertise, and connecting directly with your audience in real time. This guide will walk you through everything you need to know, from initial prep work and scheduling to hosting an engaging conversation and repurposing your content after you go offline.

What is a Twitter Space (and Why Should You Care)?

A Twitter Space is a live, audio-only chat room that you can host directly on the platform. Think of it as a live podcast or a virtual panel discussion where anyone on X can tune in to listen, and you, as the host, can invite people "on stage" to speak. It’s an intimate and direct way to communicate without the pressure of being on camera.

So, why add Spaces to your social media strategy? Because they build genuine connections. In a world of carefully curated feeds, live audio feels authentic and unscripted. It allows your audience to hear the real you - your tone, your passion, and your personality. You can use Spaces for a ton of different purposes:

• Community Q&As and AMAs ("Ask Me Anything"): Let your followers ask you questions directly. This is a fantastic way to build trust and transparency.
• Panel Discussions: Bring together industry experts to discuss a trending topic. This elevates your brand and provides massive value to listeners.
• Live Podcast Recordings: Record your podcast episode in front of a live audience for an interactive experience.
• Product Launches or Announcements: Build hype and answer questions about a new offering in real time.
• Workshop or Mini-Training: Share your knowledge and teach your audience a new skill.
• Casual Community Hangouts: Sometimes, the goal is just connection. Host relaxed "office hours" or a fun chat to engage with your most loyal followers.

Spaces place you directly in your audience’s ear, creating a focused experience where you have their undivided attention - a rare commodity on a fast-moving platform like X.

The Pre-Flight Checklist: What to Prepare Before You Go Live

The most successful Twitter Spaces are born from good preparation, not spontaneity. Going live without a plan is a recipe for awkward silences and a disengaged audience. Here's a checklist to run through before you even think about hitting the "start" button.

1. Define Your Goal and Topic

First things first: what are you trying to achieve? Is it brand awareness, lead generation, or community building? Your goal will inform your topic. Choose a topic that is both interesting to your target audience and something you can speak about knowledgeably. Get specific. Instead of "Talking About Marketing," try "5 Common Mistakes Startups Make with Their First Facebook Ads." A clear, focused topic attracts the right listeners.

2. Choose Your Format

Decide on the structure of your Space ahead of time. This helps you stay on track and manage expectations for your listeners.

• Solo Presentation: You are the only speaker, delivering a talk or a lesson.
• Interview: You host a single guest and ask them questions.
• Panel Discussion: You moderate a conversation between two or more guest speakers.
• Open Q&A: You open the floor to any listener who wants to come up and ask a question.

3. Create a Perfect Title

Your title is your first and only advertisement. It needs to be compelling and clear. A good title tells people exactly what they'll get by tuning in. Include keywords related to your topic so your Space is discoverable. You can also use emojis to make it stand out on the timeline.

Good title example: 🔥 Live Social Media Audit: I'm Reviewing Your Profiles & Giving Tips!

Bad title example: Marketing Chat

4. Schedule and Promote Your Space

While you can start a Space instantly, scheduling it gives you a huge advantage. It builds anticipation and gives you time to promote it properly. X allows you to schedule a Space up to 30 days in advance. Once you schedule it, a unique link is generated that you can share.

Here’s how to promote your upcoming Space:

• Announce It on Your Timeline: As soon as you schedule your Space, post about it. Pin this post to your profile so it's the first thing visitors see.
• Create Visuals: Design a simple graphic with the title, date, time, and photos of any guests. Posts with images almost always perform better.
• Cross-Promote on Other Channels: Share the link to your scheduled Space on Instagram Stories, in your email newsletter, on LinkedIn, or in your Discord/Slack community.
• Tag Your Guests: If you have co-hosts or panelists, tag them in all your promotional posts and encourage them to share the link with their audiences too.
• Post Reminders: Post a "going live in 1 hour" reminder and another "we're live now, join us!" post with the link once you've started.

5. Prepare Your Talking Points

You don't need a word-for-word script, but you absolutely need an outline. Jot down key talking points for your introduction, a few main topics to cover, and a closing statement. If you have guests, share the outline with them so everyone is on the same page. This structure is your safety net - it prevents the conversation from stalling and keeps you on topic.

The Step-by-Step Guide: How to Start a Twitter Space

Starting a Space is technically very simple. All the magic happens on the mobile app. Here's how to do it.

1. On your iOS or Android device, long-press the Compose button (the plus icon with a feather) in the bottom-right corner of your screen.
2. Tap the Spaces icon (the purple circle with multiple dots).
3. Name your Space. Remember the tips from before - make it descriptive and compelling! You can also select up to three topics to help people discover it.
4. Choose between 'Start now' or 'Schedule for later.' If you schedule, you’ll be prompted to pick a date and time.
5. When you’re ready, tap 'Start your Space.' X will ask for microphone access, make sure you grant it. Your Space is now live!

Once live, you can invite co-hosts (up to 2) and speakers (up to 10). Co-hosts have moderation privileges, like being able to invite or remove speakers. All you have to do is tap on a listener's profile picture from within the Space and invite them to co-host or speak.

You're Live! How to Host a Killer Space

You've done the prep, and you’re officially live. Now it's about delivering a great experience for your listeners.

• Start with a Warm Welcome: As soon as you start, greet your audience. Briefly introduce yourself, your guests, and the topic. Give people a minute or two to trickle in before diving deep into the content.
• Manage Your Speakers: Keep an eye on speaker requests. You can see these in the 'People' tab of your Space. It's your job as the host to bring people on stage, guide the conversation, and mute anyone who has disruptive background noise. Don’t be afraid to take control of the flow.
• Engage with Listeners: A Space is a two-way street. Acknowledge listeners as they join, shout out people you know, and encourage them to use the emoji reactions to share their feelings. You can directly ask questions like, "React with a ❤️ emoji if you agree with that."
• Pin Relevant Tweets: You can pin a tweet to the top of your Space. This is incredibly useful for sharing a link to a resource, posing a question for discussion, or linking to a product profile your guests are talking about.
• Keep an Eye on the Clock: Respect your audience's time. If you said the Space would be an hour, try to stick to it. Give a 5-minute warning before you wrap up, providing a chance for final questions.
• End with a Call to Action: Before you sign off, tell your audience what you want them to do next. Should they follow your guests? Sign up for your newsletter? Check out your website? Make your CTA clear and direct.

After the Mic Drops: What to Do Post-Space

Your work isn't done after you hit "End Space." By default, all Spaces are recorded and publicly available for replay, which opens up amazing opportunities for content repurposing.

Share the Replay: As soon as your Space ends, a permanent post with the full recording is created. Share this post on your timeline with a comment summarizing the key takeaways of your Space. A lot of people won’t catch your session live, but they will happily listen to the replay.

Repurpose the Audio: Your recording is a goldmine of content waiting to happen. You can:

• Download the audio and pull out short, impactful snippets (15-60 seconds) to create audiograms - static images with an animated sound wave - and post them as videos.
• Transcribe the entire conversation and turn it into a blog post.
• Pull out the best quotes and turn them into a carousel post for Instagram or LinkedIn.
• Summarize the key takeaways in a concise X thread, linking back to the full replay.

By repurposing your Space, you extend its reach far beyond the original live audience and maximize the return on your time investment.

Final Thoughts

Hosting a Twitter Space is an accessible, effective way to engage your community, build authority, and have authentic conversations on social media. With thoughtful preparation, clear moderation, and smart post-event promotion, you can turn a simple audio chat into a valuable asset for your brand.

Successfully promoting your Space beforehand and repurposing the content afterward involves creating even more social media posts. Keeping your complete content plan - from announcements to audiograms - organized can make all the difference. That's why we built Postbase to simplify our own workflows. Having a visual calendar helps us map out our entire promotional strategy at a glance, ensuring we schedule every reminder and repurpose every valuable snippet without missing a beat.