Twitter Tip Sheet
What is Twitter?
Twitter is a free social messaging utility for staying connected in real-time.
Wikipedia describes it this way:
Twitter is a free social networking and micro-blogging service, that allows its users
to send and read other users’ updates (otherwise known as tweets), which are
text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length.
How to Set Up a Twitter Account
Step 1: Go to http://www.twitter.com
When you get to Twitter.com, you’ll see this page:
For more information about unlocking the potential of Twitter call 01305 755609 or visit
http://www.keymultimedia.co.uk
Step 2: Click the Join the conversation! Sign up now
This page will appear:
Step 3: Create a Username.
If you are using this twitter account for brand management for your business, I’d
recommend using your domain name minus the dot com/net/etc. (i.e.
http://twitter.com/keymultimedia) If it’s just for fun or personal use, use
whatever you want as the username.
Add your email address, personal or business.
Type in the security code then click “I accept, Create my Account” (if you want,
you can read the Terms of Service too).
For more information about unlocking the potential of Twitter call 01305 755609 or visit
http://www.keymultimedia.co.uk
Step 4: Start connecting!
As you can see by the picture below, Twitter asks for your email information. They
anywhere.
state very clearly that they don’t use or share your information anywhere
I get plenty of spam in my email inbox, but I’ve never tracked it back to Twitter so
don’t worry about giving up “personal info” (this is just my advice, not legal
jumbo
mumbo-jumbo so don’t blame me if you get your identity stolen or something )
lly
If you’re really concerned, set up a new Gmail email account that’s just for your
I wasting
twitter account (I feel like you’d be wasting lots of time doing this).
Here’s what the next page will look like:
For more information about unlocking the potential of Twitter call 01305 755609 or visit
http://www.keymultimedia.co.uk
see
What’s cool is that Twitter goes through all your email addresses to se who is
already registered with a Twitter account. You can hand pick which of your new
“Twitter Friends” you want to add.
non-Twitter
There’s also an option where you can invite non Twitter users to set up Twitter
accounts – it looks like this:
witter
If you plan to use Twitter for business and you already have a pretty big database
of names and emails, this could be a great opportunity to show your clients you
care by connecting with them in a new way. Twitter can be a great way to
communicate and deal with Customer Care issues too!
Step 5: You’re now an official Twitter User!
:
One of the most important things to establish now is what you are going to use
Twitter for?
help
Coming up with a series of objectives will help you use Twitter effectively.
Step 6: Amending Your Profile
Ok, you probably thought that was it. Well, you are nearly there. Before you start
tweeting don’t forget to amend your profile. Twitter automatically creates a
default profile for you – but there are some extra fields that will help you get the
most out of Twitter.
ttings
Click on the Settings link and you will find an extra series of boxes to complete.
The most important pieces of information to add are : :-
• Website URL
• Brief Biography
• And your Location
• Upload a picture and put a face to your tweets
For more information about unlocking the potential of Twitter call 01305 755609 or visit
http://www.keymultimedia.co.uk
Filling in your profile information will help people find you on Twitter. For
example, you'll be more likely to turn up in a Twitter search if you've added your
location or your real name.
For more information about unlocking the potential of Twitter call 01305 755609 or visit
http://www.keymultimedia.co.uk
Getting Started with Twitter
The easiest way to get started with Twitter is by interacting with people you
already know – use your email list and see who’s already using Twitter.
Step 6: Finding People to Follow
Use the “Find People” search tool at the top of the page to find people who are
already using Twitter. Search for other by name, invite your colleagues and friends
using their emails addresses (not you can cut and paste from Outlook etc.) or
Twitter will even suggest a set of Twitter users to follow.
If you have friends or colleagues that have a lot of experience “tweeting”, they
can give you tips, tricks, and even connections that will help you grow your
reputation on Twitter.
For more information about unlocking the potential of Twitter call 01305 755609 or visit
http://www.keymultimedia.co.uk
Step: 7 Making your first Tweet
Your first tweet can be quite a daunting experience. What will you say? Can you
delete it if you make a mistake?
The first thing to remember is that Twitter is a social networking tool, and just
like plucking up the courage to start a conversation with someone at a party,
everyone has to start somewhere!
Start by posting your tweets from the box at the top of the page that asks “What’s
happening?”
Notice that while you type your post, the character counter (the number above
that box, to the right) keeps track of how many characters you have left. When
done, click the “Update” button - and your post goes live on Twitter!
Don’t forget you have 140 characters to play with, which include spaces and full
stops. If you want to add a web address you might want to shorten it using some of
the URL Shortening tools like www.tinyurl.com or http://bit.ly/ (you may have
wondered what these funny looking web addresses were!!
Alternatively, some of the Twitter tools such as Tweet deck or HootSuite will
automatically shorten URLs for you as you add them.
If you do make a mistake once you have made your tweet don’t worry. Hover next
to the tweet and a little Delete button appears – phew!!
For more information about unlocking the potential of Twitter call 01305 755609 or visit
http://www.keymultimedia.co.uk
Step 8: Twitter Basics
• Give people a chance to talk and interact with you
• Ask questions
• Let some of your personality shine through
• Have a reasonable mix of tweets, links, and re-tweets
• Don’t spam
As soon as you post your message it will appear in the timeline on your Twitter
page. New tweets appear at the top of the timeline and older tweets scroll down
off the bottom.
Refresh the page to see the next set of tweets.
Follow: When you follow someone on Twitter, that means you elect to see their
post in your timeline.
Followers: are the people who you follow (get updates from). Twitter lists this in
your profile as your “following” statistic
For more information about unlocking the potential of Twitter call 01305 755609 or visit
http://www.keymultimedia.co.uk
A user’s personal page displays their Twitter statistics. Generally, the more
followers someone has, the more influential they are.
TIP: You can click on any user’s stats to see who they follow and who follows
them. This provides perhaps the best way to find people to follow: When you find
a particularly interesting or relevant Twitter user, go to their personal page and
click to see who they’re following. You can then choose to follow some of the
same people directly from that list.
Step 9: Retweets, Replies and Direct Messages
Retweets: Retweeting is an integral part of the Twitter experience. The retweet
(or “RT”) allows Twitter users to share the best links, tweets, and gems they find
from others using the service.
Copy and paste the original tweet and send it out. To give credit to the original
person, users usually put “RT” plus the originator’s username at the beginning of
the tweet. Here’s an example:
- The Twitter user @benparr tweets: I just heard that Apple is releasing new iPods
in July!
- You retweet by posting RT @benparr I just heard that Apple is releasing new
iPods in July!
@ Replies: When you want to reply to someone’s tweet, or when you simply want
to try to get a specific user’s attention on Twitter, you should include in your
tweet their username preceded by the @ symbol.
For example, to get my attention on Twitter, simply include @davidlakins at the
beginning of your message. That will make your tweet show up in my “replies”
timeline on Twitter.
For more information about unlocking the potential of Twitter call 01305 755609 or visit
http://www.keymultimedia.co.uk
CAUTION: Using @ replies to get someone’s attention isn’t completely reliable.
Users can configure their account to see @ replies from no one at all, only from
their friends (people they’re following), or from anyone.
Direct (private) messages, sometimes abbreviated to “DM.” You can send private
messages on Twitter that are visible only to you and the recipient. However, you
cannot direct-message just any Twitter user - only people who follow you.
This means that you cannot direct-message the people you follow (your “friends”)
unless they also happen to be following you. This restriction helps prevent
spamming.
To send a private message to one of your followers, begin your tweet with d
[space] username.
TIP: I recommend using direct messages both to maintain privacy for sensitive
information, and to reduce clutter for your Twitter followers. For instance, if you
need to say something that is relevant to only one of your followers, consider
sending a direct message so you’re not cluttering up everyone’s timeline with
irrelevant tweets.
For more information about unlocking the potential of Twitter call 01305 755609 or visit
http://www.keymultimedia.co.uk