Twitter Considerations

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1 Twitter background Twitter is the fastest, simplest way to stay close to everything you care about [Twitter, Twitter about Section (2011)] and this is what Twitter prides itself on. Twitter in the simplest terms is an information network. Twitter is a realtime information network that connects you to the latest stories, ideas, opinions and news about what you find interesting At the heart of Twitter are very, very small snippets of information called Tweets. Each Tweet is 140 characters long, but don t let the small size fool you it can be a challenge but a lot of information can be squeezed into those characters. You can see photos, videos and conversations directly in Tweets to get the whole story at a glance, and all in one place Twitter was founded in San Francisco, but it's used by people in nearly every country in the world. The service is available in more than 20 languages, and every day Twitter researchers are adding more and more. However in recent months Twitter broke the record of millions of people breaking a super injunction as imposed in the High Court (what was that footballers name again!). It was also at the heart of the London riots with Blackberry messenger as people organised the riots over the network. However this is a minority. Twitter is the world s online promotion of freedom of speech. If it means something to you, if it is an issue that affects you then Tweet. Twitter say the following:- Tell your followers, tell your networks and tell the world. With over 300 million users as of 2011, who generate a staggering 300 million tweets and handle over 1.6 billion search queries it has been described as the SMS of the Internet. Instant, useful and free.

2 140 Characters Twitter Considerations When you really want to say something, you can normally go on for ages, but with twitter that is impossible. You only have 140 characters an See it is hard, that is 140 characters, but as I was saying you only have 140 characters to write what you need to get across. This may seem just near impossible but you can do it. Just be straight to the point when writing a tweet, don t be long winded and don t forget any hashtags and people tags such and #paidwithrespect all count to your character count. Tag Subjects When writing a Tweet you need to bear in mind the following: Do you want it to trend? 1 The subject you re writing about, is it trending? If you want it to trend, or have a chance then add a tag using #yoursubjecthere but without any spaces. Have a look on the twitter home page and see what subjects are trending. Right now the below are trending. 1 Trends is when a subject is popular on Twitter. This means that a lot of people are talking about it.

3 As you can see, things that are on TV and certain people are trending. There are millions of people trying to get things trending each day. So make your tag unique and get everyone to use it. GwirVol s is #paidwithrespect Tagging followers If you re at an event then tag where you are, if you have them on Twitter, tag the people you re with and take photos to accompany Tweets. Tagging 2 People means that you if you have 300 followers each, then that s 900 people seeing that one Tweet. Remember never tag more than 3 people unless you re doing follow Friday #FF 2, which is a way of boosting your followers by telling others who followed you. Sending the Perfect Tweet Is there such a thing as a perfect Tweet? Actually yes there is. For example if I am writing about GwirVol grants I would do the grant is still open. Got project? Why not apply now #paidwithrespect I have tagged two people, I have been very to the point and asked my followers a question and I have used one hashtag. When you add more than one hashtag it does not count towards trends and may not come up in searches. If you follow this then you can t go far wrong. 2 Follow Friday is when you promote your new followers to your existing volunteers.

4 With Twitter all you have to do is be careful and use common sense, everything you do is and will be logged by Twitter. Your Tweets and online actions are in cyber space for longer than you think. So remember to think carefully before you post and if in doubt don t post! Finding your way around Twitter You probably already have a Twitter account but haven t fully delved into all its features yet right? Did you know there is a Twitter tour? Sometimes explaining things on paper is useless as you have to see if for yourself. The Twitter tour will take you through the following. 1. Say hello to your homepage 2. Post your own tweets 3. Track your interactions 4. Monitor your mentions 5. Discover what s happening 6. Keep tabs on what others are doing 7. Follow interesting accounts 8. Search to discover even more 9. Check out your profile page 10. Send and receive direct messages You can view the tour here If you want the quick way to find out what is what and who is who then this quick but very detailed tour is for you. If like me you are a more Kinetic learner, by this I mean you learn by doing things then create an account and off you go. Have a play about with your page take a look around and see what everyone else is doing.

5 Conclusion As you can see there is not much guidance for Twitter but it should still be used with caution like the rest of the social media sites. Remember each site is what you make out of it. Twitter is Tweets of information which are instant and very short, did i mention that already. Just go on, Tweet to your heart is content. If Stephen Fry can tweet about going to a show then so can you. Actually if you want to see what you could do with your Twitter take a look at Stephen Fry s exemplary Twitter page, and yes he actually Tweets himself. Well what are you waiting for? Take a look