It would take a lot more than 280 characters to cover all the ways selling on X (formerly Twitter) is different from selling on other social media platforms.
While brands like @Wendys have famously managed to leverage the platform for brand awareness and community building, X was mostly built for conversations—not conversions. But that’s no longer the case, thanks to updated social commerce features that take the friction out of selling your products on X.
Whether you have a following on X that you want to monetize with a product, or you think your product’s target audience is on the platform, here’s how to turn X into a lucrative sales channel.
Why sell on X?
With 586 million monthly active users, X’s user base on the surface pales in comparison to giants like TikTok or Facebook.
Yet X’s influence on culture and politics can’t be ignored when screenshots of tweets circulate on Reddit and Instagram. World leaders, journalists, investors, founders, and industry thought leaders use the platform to share ideas, connect with others, and engage in conversation.
X is unique in the sense that ecommerce business owners can use it to:
- Find and build communities. X is a true social network. You can start and join conversations freely with other people and brands.
- Run advanced searches. X arguably has the most robust built-in search features for social listening among social media channels. Easily filter search by factors such as keyword, location, or even the amount of engagement a tweet gets in order to find the most relevant people to engage with.
- Post more frequently. X moves at a faster pace than other social networks. While a post a day is considered enough on Instagram, posting two to a dozen or more times a day is normal on X.
- Network into partnerships and press. Many journalists, business owners, and celebrities of all sizes use X, and you always have the potential to catch their attention by engaging them with a public tweet or a private direct message. This can land you free media coverage or help you build brand partnerships.
What can you sell on X?
You can sell almost anything on X that you’d be able to sell on other social media channels, including:
- Your own products, like watches or hot sauces
- Digital products, like courses or downloadable templates
- Professional services, like design or accounting
- Affiliate products, through services like ClickBank or ShareASale
- Other people’s products, through dropshipping or print on demand
Productivity, wellness, humor/memes, technology, and business are popular niches given X’s big focus on sharing ideas, laughs, and self-improvement tips and journeys.
For example, Visualize Value is a masterclass in making money on X. Founder Jack Butcher uses his personal X account to sell a diversified offering of physical products, digital templates, courses, and consulting services.
Butcher uses the platform to bridge the gap between his personal brand and his business to help knowledge workers divorce their time from their money.
How to sell on X in 7 steps
Effectively monetizing X as a sales channel means setting up your profile to convert profile visitors into sales, driving attention to your profile, and nurturing relationships between yourself and members of your community.
Let’s break down some of the actions you can take to start making sales on X.
1. Check you meet the requirements to sell on X
X has a strict set of policies that entrepreneurs must meet before they can start selling on the platform:
- Your business must be located in the US, not a stated affiliated media entity, or subject to US trade sanctions.
- You must be over the age of 18.
- You must have an X Professional Account that’s set to public.
- Your online store must have clear and accurate contact information, a return and shipping policy, and secure checkout.
- Your product can’t fall within one of X’s prohibited merchandise categories. This includes (but isn’t limited to) alcohol, health and wellness supplements, and regulated medical devices.
Businesses are also expected to meet “conduct standards” if they want to sell on X. Most of these are obvious and applicable across other social media platforms—like not infringing on another brand’s intellectual property or publishing inappropriate content.
If you’ve been using your X account for personal use, it’s worth combing through your history to do a quick clean up before you start selling on X. It’s important to make sure that anything you put out there is aligned with your brand identity.
2. Set up your X profile
Marketing on X requires regular monitoring and manual work. You can’t just tweet and hope the algorithm serves your post to the right audience.
You’ll be spending most of your time proactively going to where the relevant conversations are. You can get the most out of that effort, however, by optimizing your profile to make every profile visit count.
Nail these key elements of your X profile to amplify the impact of the rest of the tactics in this guide:
- Cover photo. Feature your brand or product prominently to make the first impression you want. For the highest resolution X profile photo, use the recommended dimensions 1500 pixels by 500 pixels.
- Bio. Describe exactly what your brand is about and what you sell within 160 characters. Be clear and communicate your unique selling proposition. For example, Tentree’s X bio is: “Earth-first lifestyle apparel. You buy one item, we plant ten trees.”
- URL. Promote a LinkPop on your profile—to your website, a specific page, or highest priority links and products.
- Pinned tweet. Tap the “…” on any of your tweets and then choose “Pin to profile” to feature the tweet. Make a great first impression with a shoutout from a customer, a new product drop, an announcement, or a sample of your best tweet to convince people you’re worth following.
3. Upload your product catalog to X
If you have a compatible online store, X can help put your products front and center using the X Shopping Manager.
Luckily, if you’re using Shopify, it’s as simple as installing the X sales channel and syncing your products. You must be based in the US, sell physical products, and switch your account to a free X Professional Account.
If you meet those requirements, all you have to do is:
- Install the X sales channel from the Shopify App Store.
- Create your first Product Set and add products to it.
- Choose how you want to display your products.
- Publish it to your profile.
From there, you can manage the products you want to feature from within Shopify.
4. Post organically to build an audience on X
Posting regular tweets is a great way to build a following on X.
The platform is unique because of its fast pace—you can post several times per day without overwhelming your followers’ news feed. Treat this as an opportunity to experiment with the types of content you post on X.
Content to post organically on X could include:
- Product promotions, reviews from happy customers, or memes designed to go viral on X.
- Content formats, such as native videos, GIFs, and text-only posts.
- Thread styles, which break longer posts down into a series of linked tweets.
- Reposts, which share another user’s tweet with your audience. (These are ideal for things like customer reviews, endorsements, or unboxing videos.)
The key to effective social selling is to focus on being helpful, funny, or generous—to provide value—and let your profile do the actual selling for the most part.
“I think the best education is education that people don’t know that they’re actually learning from,” says Aliyah Marandiz, founder of Sugardoh. “They’re watching a video because they’re sucked into that satisfying element, or they’re sucked into the noises, the ASMR element, and then at the end of the video, they’re like, wait, what? I just learned how to sugar. That’s awesome.”
5. Find potential customers using X’s powerful search features
A common mistake brands will make on X—and why so many write it off—is taking a broadcast-only approach to the platform.
Almost 50% of users are lurkers who tweet fewer than five times a month, but the ones who participate on X share their thoughts and updates flippantly. It’s considered a “micro-blogging” site after all.
That’s great for brands, since X has tools that few other social media sites have for monitoring the conversations that matter most to you, making it easy to engage with tweets that mention:
- Your product category
- Problems you can solve
- Complaints about your competitors (or your own products)
- Requests for product recommendations
- An industry event
- A specific location
X’s advanced search filters let you include or exclude specific keywords, user accounts, hashtags, and timeframes.
Let’s say you sell hot sauce. All you have to do is run a search for “best hot sauce” to find tweets from users you can follow or engage with. You can even filter results to only show tweets with a minimum of 100 likes to jump onto an active conversation.
Finding customers on X can be a manual and time-consuming process, but depending on what you sell and who your target customer is, you may consider investing in a social listening tool to monitor multiple conversations at once. You can also hire a community manager to own the strategy, grow your following, and engage with customers on X.
6. Build lists to keep tabs on X users
Lists let you create curated feeds of tweets from a select group of users. You can use them to keep tabs on your most valuable customers, competitors, potential customers, influencers and affiliates, or brands you want to partner with.
Let’s say you build templates for the project management software Notion. You might create a private X list that lets you monitor key productivity experts who regularly tweet about Notion. You can then retweet or reply to their tweets and participate in their communities, hopefully attracting a few people to your own following in the process.
7. Run X Ads to promote your products
Like all social media channels, X has its own advertising platform you can use to promote your products to a specific audience.
What works in ads on other platforms may not work here though, as X Ads are typically viewed as better for brand building and not as effective for direct response ad campaigns. To that end, you’ll get more out of X Ads by focusing on campaign objectives that generate awareness, followers, or engagement, instead of direct conversions. You can then let your optimized profile do the work of converting people who visit it or follow but aren’t ready to buy yet.
According to a recent study, you can expect to pay anywhere between 26¢ and $1.50 per each first action on your X ads. (“First action” refers to post engagements such as comments or retweets.) If your campaign is optimized to build an audience on X, you can expect to pay up to $4 per follow.
Here are some tips for getting the most out of your X Ads:
- Choose the right audience. X has a unique advertising model that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to build custom audience lists. However, you can specify key traits that your target market shares, such as their location, age, and gender.
- Use a visual that grabs the eye right away. Text layered onto an image or video can have that effect.
- Don’t create unnecessary distractions with hashtags and mentions. Even though X arguably invented the hashtag, it’s rare that you actually need to use them (unless you want to collect a specific conversation under a specific hashtag).
- Communicate what matters before the click. Instead of focusing on getting the viewer to click through to learn more, tell them what they need to know upfront.
- Get creative with how you generate engagement. Focus on what people on X are likely to react to, such as a joke, a meme, exciting industry news, supporting a cause, complaining about a problem, or entering a contest.
It also helps to optimize the landing page you’re sending users to. If it’s a product page, clearly communicate the product’s unique selling proposition and highlight any social proof—be that reviews, celebrity endorsements, or certifications. Make the website quick to load and showcase trust signals, such as a secure checkout process, to convince customers to buy.
5 strategies and tips for selling on X
Millions of brands have developed their own social media marketing strategy. As you work on building your own strategy, here are five unique tips to stand out and make X a consistent driver of new customers.
1. Jump on trending topics
X is a hotspot for trending conversations. It was one of the first social media platforms to obviously highlight what other users were talking about through its “Trending” section. Online store owners can use this to reach new audiences who are talking about the same trend.
It’s also worth creating a social media calendar with important dates throughout the year. You might share products commonly bought as a gift for new moms using the hashtag #MothersDay, or go a bit more niche and chat all things four-legged on #NationalPetDay.
💡Remember: Not all trends will make sense for your business to converse in. Stick to those with the most relevance to your products. Honing in on relevant trends can make your content feel more engaging and help you carve out a stronger, more authentic presence in your niche.
2. Get verified on X
It’s no longer just celebrities or household-name brands that can get verified on X. The platform opened its monetization program to allow anyone to get the blue check next to their name as part of its X Premium subscription, provided you meet its monetization eligibility criteria. Plans start at $3 per month.
Verification makes your account look more credible—most users recognize the blue tick as a trust symbol on the platform. This can go a long way when selling on X since trust plays a major role in any purchase decision.
Aside from the infamous blue tick, the X Premium subscription also unlocks a handful of other features that make it easier to sell on X, such as:
- The ability to post longer videos and tweets (up to 25,000 characters instead of the usual 280 character limit) and edit posts after you’ve published them
- Formatting tools such as bold, italicized, or underlined text
- Reply prioritization—ideal when chatting to VIP customers or prospective buyers on X
- The option to create a community of people with similar interests
- Two-factor authentication to protect your account
3. Explore other monetization features
Selling products isn’t the only way to make money on X. The social media platform offers a plethora of monetization tools to help creators earn a living on the platform. Most of these require an X Premium subscription.
These include:
- X Creator Revenue Sharing Program. If you have more than 500 followers and create content that’s amassed over five million organic impressions over three months, you can receive a cut of the revenue X makes from inserting ads around your tweets.
- Subscriptions. Build a paid community around your X account. For instance, a cosmetics brand could create an X subscription that shares interviews with makeup artists, exclusive product demonstrations, and subscriber-only discounts with its paid community.
- Influencer marketing. If you’re posting from a personal account and have amassed an engaged audience, brands are willing to pay to tap into it through sponsored content. You could earn around $2 for every 1,000 followers you have.
4. Repost user-generated content on X
Because X is such a fast-paced platform, you can quickly exhaust your content ideas list and run out of things to share. But the onus doesn’t always have to be on you or your team to create new content.
User-generated content (UGC) describes any content that’s created by someone else—whether that’s a happy customer, an influencer, or an employee. Reposting it on X lets you scale your content output while leveraging the social proof of an unbiased post.
Tip: Shopify Collabs offers an easy way to connect with creators who can create UGC for your social media calendars. Use it to find creators in your niche, send out free product samples, and track affiliate commission—all from your Shopify dashboard.
5. Regularly check social media analytics
It takes time to figure out what your audience responds to, which products sell best, and which influencers (if any) drive conversions. X has its own analytics feature, previously known as Twitter Analytics, to help you uncover these insights.
Use X Analytics to monitor metrics such as:
- Impressions: how many people saw your tweet.
- Engagements: how many likes, comments, replies, clicks, views, or shares your tweet got.
- Engagement rate: typically calculated as the number of engagements divided by the number of impressions.
- Click-through rate: the percentage of users who saw your tweet and clicked the link.
- Top tweets: content with the most engagement during the reporting period.
If you find that video tweets tend to have the highest engagement rates, for example, prioritize this type of content going forward. If click-through rates are lower on links to specific categories, share items from a more popular collection to keep your X audience engaged.
Start using X to sell your products online
If Reddit is the front page of the internet, X is often considered its public square.
Treat it like Instagram and Facebook, where the focus is on scaling reach and sales, and you won’t find much traction. But take it for what it is and you’ll have better luck selling your products.
X is where conversations happen out in the open for anyone to jump in. The best way to sell on X is to participate, use your voice, and treat it like a big party where you can meet new people who might need your products too.
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How to sell on X FAQ
Can you make money selling products on X?
You can make money selling products on X, either through organic posts that promote a product or paid advertising. For the best results, connect your product catalog with the X Shopping Manager through Shopify.
Do I need a huge following on X to make money?
You don’t need a huge following to make money on X. What’s more important is that your followers are engaged. That said, some monetization features—including the X Creator Revenue Sharing Program—require a minimum of 500 followers.
What kinds of products sell best on X?
Trending products that you could sell on X include:
- Cosmetics
- Coats and jackets
- Bicycles
- Drinkware
- Bedsheets
- Posters and artwork
- Journals
- Digital products
- Bath and body items
- Candles
How do I start selling products on X?
Follow these steps to start selling on X:
- Check you meet the requirements to sell on X.
- Set up your business profile.
- Upload your product catalog.
- Post organically to build an audience.
- Find potential customers with advanced search.
- Build X Lists to engage your followers.
- Run X Ads to promote products.
What are the best times to post for selling on X?
Research shows that the best times to post on X are weekday mornings. However, keep in mind that timing could vary depending on your audience’s habits, so you may need to test out different posting times before you find your brand’s ideal schedule.
Do I need a business account to sell on X?
You need a Professional account to sell on X and your account must be public. If you’re currently using a personal profile, you can upgrade it to a Professional account through your X settings.
