How to Come Up With Twitter Parody Account Ideas

Use these tips to become a Twitter parody pro

Twitter parody accounts have dominated the social networking platform for years. These accounts are hilarious, have thousands of followers, and know how to get users to follow or retweet them. These accounts have figured out how to rack up followers better than anyone else (except for major celebrities).

So now you might be thinking, "I want to do that! Where do I start?" Here's everything you need to know.

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Read the Twitter Parody Account Rules

Parody accounts are such a big trend that Twitter has an official rules page specifically for these types of accounts. Twitter has two main rules:

  • Inform followers that the account is a parody in your bio. All you do is type "parody account" somewhere in your bio to follow this rule.
  • Do not use the exact same account name (first and last) as the person or subject being parodied. This is different from the @username. For example, if you're parodying Lionel Richie, you can't put the first and last name as Lionel Richie on the parody account.

Strategy #1: Check Out Trending Topics

Coming up with a unique parody account idea that hasn't been done before isn't as easy as some of the successful ones make it look. Likewise, taking an idea that seems funny to you might be offensive to others (often expected with parody accounts and can get out of hand fast).

If you draw a blank but want to have a go at perfecting the art of Twitter parody humor and fame, check out trending topics to see what everyone is already talking about. If people are talking about something (such as a current event, a celebrity, or a meme), they're more likely to be interested in your tweets.

One downside of using trending topics as the inspiration for a parody account is that the account may stop attracting followers. As the trending topic runs its course and becomes old news, so will the parody account.

Strategy #2: Make a List of the Most Ordinary Things You Do or People You See Every Day

Successful parody accounts are based on relatable activities, situations, and problems. Accounts like @Average_Goals are based around people or ideas that almost everyone can say they've seen, heard, or experienced in their lives.

Anything as simple as having breakfast after waking up or getting on the bus can be included. The more things you can add to your list, the better chance you'll have of coming up with a great parody account idea.

Write Down Any Emotions You Feel Beside Each List Entry

Aim for a list of about 20 to 30 ordinary, everyday life activities, problems, situations, or people. Beside each entry, imagine yourself experiencing it and jot down the emotions you feel.

Do you feel tired? Angry? Hungry? Uncomfortable? Bored? Write them all down, even if you feel several different emotions for one entry on your list.

Experiment and Exaggerate

Parody is all about exaggeration. Take a list item, characterized by an emotion, then exaggerate everything about it.

For example, suppose you walk by a big oak tree on your way to work every day and you included that on your list. You might say you feel humbled or at peace every time you walk by that tree.

To exaggerate that situation and the emotions associated with it, give the oak tree a personality—maybe one that's wise, earthy, and mystical. You could set up a Twitter account, call it @CommonOakTree and start tweeting wise life advice from an oak tree's perspective.

It's not the greatest parody account idea, but it's a start. And it could work well depending on how much time you put into tweeting and growing followers.

Tips for Tweeting

After you choose something for your parody account, start tweeting. The benefit of picking something ordinary and relatable to anyone is that it doesn't require a ton of knowledge on a specific topic or person.

You have the freedom to develop your parody account's style and personality. When you get stuck, do some research on the topic you based your account around. Sticking with the common oak tree theme, you might want to look up more details about where oak trees are located, how long they live, how tall they grow, or anything else you could work into your exaggerated tweets.

The sky's the limit. Some parody accounts perform better than others because of emerging trends or demographic target audience, so consider these situations when choosing an idea.

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