5 Simple Steps to Become a Twitter Pro

When it comes to using Social Media, especially twitter, there is no need to worry. It is a lot easier than you think. If you follow these 5 simple steps, you can become a twitter professional in no time.

1) Create an Account

Go to www.twitter.com, and create a free account by clicking the ‘Sign Up’ button in the top right of the page. Enter your name, phone number or email, and password in the space provided. Then, chose a user name which will become your twitter handle. (See definitions below.)

2) Finish Your  Profile

• After you have created your account, you will be prompted to add your areas of interest. The areas you choose will then be complied into suggestions for whom you could follow. You may either choose to follow all, some, or none of these accounts.
• Next, you can upload a photo of yourself to your profile.
• Afterwards, ‘People you may know’ appear as more suggestions for people to follow. This list is compiled from contacts from your email or phone address book.

3) Learn the Twitter Lingo

• Follower – You “follow” other users to see their updates on your home page, and they can follow you to see yours.
• Handle – A “handle” is your twitter username. This is the name people will identify you as. (Example: @power4patients)
• Hashtag(#) – A “hashtag” is used in front of keywords to provide context, and to make them easily searchable for people looking for information on a specific topic. (Example: #PowerfulPatients)
• Mentions(@) – You use the “@” sign directly in front of someone’s user name/handle to direct your tweet towards them. It will also appear in their “@Mentions” section on their Twitter account. (Example: Hey! @power4patients check this out!)
• Retweet (RT) – When you come across a tweet you like and want to share with your followers, you can click the “retweet” button
• Tweet – A tweet is the message you send out to your followers. Each tweet must be 140 characters or less
• Tweetchats – Tweetchats are arranged meetings often occurring regularly on a specific time/date. A moderator oversees the conversation and focuses it on a specific topic. You can follow these chats or participate by searching or tweeting with the designated hashtag.
• Reply – A reply is a response to another user’s Tweet that begins with the @username of the person you’re replying to. You can reply by clicking the Reply button on a Tweet.
• Like – Likes are represented by a small heart. They are commonly used to show appreciation for a Tweet. You can see someone’s likes by visiting their profile, and your likes are also visible on your profile.

4) Composing Your First Tweet

A tweet may contain photos, videos, links, and up to 140 characters of text. You begin by clicking the icon button or typing directly into the ‘What’s happening?’ text bar. Don’t forget to use hashtags (#) to provide context or mentions (@) if you directing a tweet towards someone.

You can also shares articles you find on your favorite sites, such as New York Times by clicking on the Twitter icon. When you click the icon, a tweet will automatically generate making it easy to share with your followers.

5) Search

Using the ‘Search Twitter’ feature in the top right of your homepage allows you to look for specific tweets, users, or ongoing conversations.

References

www.sproutsocial.com/insights/twitter-term-definitions

www.support.twitter.com