Twitter is a microblogging platform that connects people in real-time. Twitter has made and broken the news and changed the way we receive information. It was based on SMS messaging back in 2006 and now has 200 millions users.
Twitter is not Facebook, so don’t expect it to behave like Facebook. It’s short, sweet and instant. Your tweet is among the 200 million that is sent every day. When Beyonce announced she was pregnant at the recent MTV video music awards, 8,868 tweets were sent per second.
So, you’re ready to take the plunge into Twitter. Where do you start? Who should you follow? What’s an RT?! Here are our 10 top tips to get you started.
- Remember you only have 140 characters to get your message across, so shrink your URLs to free-up space. Use bit.ly.com, goo.gl or ow.ly. Even better, register with the above accounts to find out the stats on where people are clicking, how many people are clicking and what device they are using to view tweets.
- To see a conversation, mouse over the message; an arrow will appear on the right-hand side, click that to see the conversation.
- Twitter is about sharing. If you find an interesting tweet, retweet (RT) it. If you want to copy and paste it, or pass it on to a follower, make sure you give the original tweep credit for it by adding RT at the front of the message.
- If you want people to RT your message, make it less than 140 characters. Remember the message will start off with: RT @yourname, so leave enough space. Include a link to expand on what you are saying.
- People will follow you based on your profile, so make sure you have one. Include a link to your website.
- Same with a picture. If you leave the default egg as your profile picture, people will assume you are a spammer.
- Find people to follow using the Twitter search. Once you’ve followed a few people, look to see who they are following and follow those people you are interested in.
- Talk to your followers. Ask questions. Get involved with conversations.
- To see who is contacting you, click the @mentions tab. It seems obvious, but reply back.
- Private messages are called Direct Messages or DM. At the moment, you cannot send a DM to a user who is not following you.
- Finally, don’t use the hard sell. Instant turn off.
Social media does take time and it doesn’t provide ROI straight away. If you don’t have the time or it seems like hard work, we can help you manage your Twitter account to strengthen customer relations and engage with potential new customers. Come and speak to us.
Tweet already? What tips would you share?
