What is Twitter?
In short, Twitter is a way to update your friends or ‘followers’ with short messages or links to web pages, photos or videos; a bit like Facebook, but more pithy and concise. You’re limited to just 140 characters (including spaces) with each ‘Tweet’. Twitter describes itself as, “The best way to discover what’s new in your world” by simply answering the question “What’s happening?”. It’s a platform for sharing your life (or parts of it), and finding out what’s happening in others.
A new (ish) language
There are many Twitter related terms and symbols which need explaining. Here’s a brief glossary of the key ones:
- The @ Symbol The name of a Twitter user is always preceded by an @ symbol. For example, Worldview Media has the Twitter name @worldviewmedia. You choose your name (or handle) when you sign up.
- Re-Tweet (RT) This is where a Tweet from someone has been posted again (usually in its entirety), with Twitter adding the letters RT before it, to show it’s been Re-Tweeted. Useful to help spread a message, gain kudos with the original Tweeter, or simply because you find the Tweet interesting.
- Hashtags (#) To make it easier to search for a topic people often put a short word or words into the Tweet which are preceded by the # symbol. This also helps when you want to see what topics are trending.
- Trending With so many Tweets flying around (over 110 million a day, from over 200 million accounts), it’s hard to keep track. So what is everyone talking/Tweeting about? Often it’s related to something in the news, or a Tweet from a celebrity. It’s simply an aggregate of the most common hashtagged words in Tweets.
- Friends, Followers, and Connections On Twitter the people that choose to follow your Tweets are called Followers. However, if you decide to follow them too, then they are called Friends – that’s termed a Connection. (There’s no such distinction on Facebook, as you can’t follow someone in the same way, if you’re not Facebook Friends.)
How can I make the most of Twitter?
Twitter can be a great way to build relationships with your customers. You can get quick feedback and interaction on a new product or campaign. Your followers may even spread your message for you, by Re-Tweeting. It can help drive traffic to your site, if you post links to your content, which are then Re-Tweeted. With a little ground work, it can help you build your brand much quicker and cheaper than traditional marketing strategies. On the downside, it can take up time to manage a good account, find the followers you want, and build relationships. And if you get something wrong, you’ll know about it – fast. So will your competitors.
What tools can I use to help me?
There are a range of tools available to help you make the most of the Twitter experience. Web-based applications like Hootsuite and TweetDeck are popular, as are mobile-based interfaces where you can update or follow Tweets on your smartphone. The advantage of using tools like these is that you can take more control of Twitter. You can schedule your Tweets to output at a time of your choosing (good for campaigns). You can also have access to a range of analytical tools which tell you everything from how your Tweets are being Re-Tweeted, to in depth details of how topics important to you are trending.
Tips on maximising Twitter:
- Follow more people. By following more, it increases the likelihood of reciprocity.
- Find the key movers and shakers (your peers) who blog on topics like you, and follow them. If they then follow you, and retweet your blog links it can vastly maximize your reach. You should also retweet them, if you like what you see. That also helps to boost your profile.
- Vary your tweets. So not just blog links, but also random, interesting observations and humour can give you a fuller, more rounded profile.
- Be quick to respond to breaking news, events or topics of interest. And if a story is developing then tweet regularly with updates. Tweeting about live events fits Twitter like a glove.
- Use a desktop or smartphone app to display your twitter timeline or a chosen list. Examples include TweetDeck (free) or Hootsuite (not free, but allows good functionality, like analytics and scheduled tweets).
In summary, you do reap what you sow with Twitter. The more active you are in engaging with it and cultivating relationships with your friends and followers, the more you will get out of it.
Twitter quotes
‘Personality on Twitter is a good thing. Twitter is a conversation; it’s not about shouting “me, me, me.” It’s about engaging people virtually, and people who are interesting and funny are more likeable than those who lack these qualities.’
Gina Masullo Chen, veteran newspaper journalist. @GinaMChen
‘The qualities that make Twitter seem inane and half-baked are what makes it so powerful.’
Jonathan Zittrain, Professor of Internet law at Harvard Law School. @zittrain
(For more guidance on using Twitter, Worldview Media recommends www.mashable.com/guidebook/twitter)
