It’s How I Tweet: Guidelines for Beginner Twitter Users

A friend in my real life just joined twitter. I haven’t seen her tweet much since she joined. She tweeted today and lamented that she did not “get twitter.” My list of tips to her morphed in to a post.

When you are new to twitter, it may help to do the following:

Started by finding people to follow. I scrolled through the twitter timeline & followed moms/writers/interesting people. I made the mistake of being a little indiscriminate in who I followed at first. I would follow everyone who had a twulse. Now I am more discerning.
If you like what a person writes on twitter, follow them.
If you notice that a person is tweeting to other people, follow the other people. Chances are you will like what these people tweet about. Sometimes you can end up following an entire group of people through following one person
Use search to find people in your area/town/state. I did a search to find tweeps in Manchester, England, my home town.
Read other people’s tweets to see what is going on in twitterland. I found groups to join, networks to be involved with, freebies and giveaways. On twitter there is something for everyone.
Don’t wait for someone to talk to you — talk to them. I will read a tweet on a topic that I know something about. I respond to the person. This approach has led to some great twitter friendships — both online and offline.
If you see someone ask a question, jump in with the answer.
Twitter is great for a nosy person like myself. I can read conversations.

Twitter terms

Tweet = message you send on twitter

Tweeps = people on twitter

RT= resending tweet

Programs that make twitter easier to use:

https://www.tweetgrid.com/ — allows you to follow the conversations of 2, 3, or more people. Plus follow #hashtags for giveaways.

https://www.tweetdeck.com/ — shows the twitter stream, replies to you, direct messages, searches, and groups. You can choose who you want in a group — local tweeps, PR people.

https://www.tweetchat.com/ — isolates only the conversations pertaining to a particular #hashtag

Any more twitter tips, just leave a comment!