Twitter is a multi-purpose social media outlet that gives the opportunity to make direct contact on a day to day basis and on many levels. Twitter allows Bloggers to make contact with Brands, potential Sponsors and Affiliates. When adding Twitter to your collection of Social Media networks there are a few things that should always be considered. I want to share them with you here in Twitter 101.
Choosing Your Name:
When you choose your Twitter name as a Blogger you need to be certain that your name is as close to or as similar to your Blog Identity as you can get. I know, I know finding your name in Twitter can be like finding a needle in a haystack but you can always ad a bit of a variation while still keeping close to who you are on your Blog.
My Blog Identity is TheMrsTee when I originally joined as a Personal Account my Twitter name was TeeJay then as a Blogger I started as MrsTeeH simply because TheMrsTee was already taken. Thankfully that changed! Recently I was able to secure TheMrsTee across all my Social Media (YAY!) because I truly believe that as a Blogger there is a need to be consistent. 🙂
Picking The Right Image:
I have gone through a few images with my Twitter account since beginning to use it as a Blogger yet I always made sure that they were the same ones I used for the rest of my Social Media Presence. Why? If a Fellow Blogger, Future Follower or even possible Brand Partnership visits me on Twitter I want them to recognize and see the same person when they visit my Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, etc. Again it’s all about consistency.
As for the type of image use one which shows your face clearly and be friendly. Who would want to follow someone who looks like they’re sad? LOL There are times when your Twitter and your Image are the very first impressions of who you are perhaps even before they make it to your site. If so, you want to give them a reason to make that second click.
Starting An Interaction:
I know there are a lot of you who may feel Twitter is limited simply because you only have 140 characters (yup not words characters) to get your point across. Yet that isn’t really true. If you establish a quick connection with someone with a short but targeted Tweet you can make 1 Tweet into the beginning of an entire conversation.
Instead of thinking of a Tweet as being limited by the 140 characters think of it as the first sentence to a conversation. When you meet someone you always try to make the best impression with your first statement, right? Do the same thing with your initial Tweet with someone. It’s your first impression.
What’s A Hashtag?
Not only is Twitter a perfect way to connect with people and brands but it is also an amazing way to promote your brand, your content and your fellow bloggers. By simply including a link and a target specific hashtag you can basically give your followers directions to your site, posts and friends.
Hashtags are also able to cross over to multiple Social Media Networks. What does this mean? You can use the same hashtag you assign to your Tweets for your Google+, Facebook and even Insatagram. (there’s that consistent thing again 😉 )
A hashtag is way to place a tracker of sorts to your tweet. If you create hashtags unique to your site and content followers can always search for this and find… YOU! For instance, when I write Tweets that I want my Readers to associate with me and who I am I use the hashtag #TheMrsTee (the pattern continues). Now whenever anyone wants to see MY tweets they can search by that hashtag and find them. I’ve even including my Site specific tags within my Twitter Profile…
Finding Available Hashtags:
Finding a hashtag that isn’t being used or connect with someone else is really easy. Simply do a search for whichever hashtag you are thinking about using. If it is taken try adding a word, letter or even number to make it unique. It’s almost the same as finding an unused name. Also, try to keep your hashtags as short as possible because when you do add it to a Tweet you will subtracting from your 140 character count.
Twitter On Your Site:
The other great thing about Twitter is there are many ways to make it an integrated part of your site and posts. You can include a Twitter Widget to add to your side bar which will give your readers a Live Feed of your Tweets as well as the option to follow you directly from your page.
There are even a few great plug ins that allow you to give your Readers the option of tweeting not only from within a post but also to simply say that they are a part of your Hop or LinkUp. The plug ins tend to vary depending on your site host (Blogger vs. WordPress) but I use TweetThis for my post.
[tweetthis]I just got an ‘A’ in Twitter 101 With TheMrsTee of TheMrsTee.com #TheMrsTee #BlogTips[/tweetthis]
Busy? PreTweet!
Don’t have the time to sit and Tweet throughout the day? No problem. You can pre-schedule your Tweets. There are several ways to schedule out your Tweets at peak times during the day including Buffer, Hootsuite and even Triberr.
Buffer allows you to share the content of some of your favorite Bloggers as well as your own! Simply create a Buffer account and from there you can install the Google Chrome App and whenever you visit a Blog with a post you love you can ‘buffer’ it out. Promote it throughout the Social Media Networks of your choice (including Twitter) at set times and days. Once you set up your Buffered content they do the rest!
Hootsuite is a tool we have all used during Twitter Parties and Chats but did you realize you can also use it to simply remain present among your Twitter Followers without the need to be attached to your phone or laptop? Much like Buffer you can pre-schedule your Tweets at specific times throughout the day.
Lastly there is Triberr, unlike Buffer and Hootsuite you can’t really write your own content but you are able to schedule out Tweets for other members of your Tribe and their content as well as promote from within your own Feed.
Twitter To Go:
Twitter is perfectly mobile. You can use it on your phone through an App which allows you full access to your account and profile. You can Tweet, Reply, ReTweet, Follow and even Unfollow.
Class Dismissed!
Congratulations! You just passed Twitter 101 with MrsTee. If you don’t have a Twitter…Get One! Twitter is truly one of the best ways to connect, share and promote Your Brand, Your Posts and Your Fellow Bloggers 140 Characters at a time.
How often do you post on Twitter?
What’s your favorite Social Media Network?
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44 thoughts on “Twitter 101 – Connect, Share & Promote”
Really helpful, thank you! Still trying to get the hang of utilsing Twitter properly and this really helped 🙂
Frenchy xx
My blog – <a href="http://www.frenchysfancies.com” target=”_blank”>www.frenchysfancies.com
So happy it was helpful…thanks so much for coming by!
Thanks for the tips! Favorite one is how to use hashtags more effectively. I recently started using a plugin that enables me to tweet old blog posts but I never thought about having my recent posts being scheduled for throughout the day. Thanks, again!
#SITSSharefest
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Your Welcome! I use a similar plugin but if you have WordPress you can have your New Posts tweeted automatically upon publishing…it really helps with promotion and bringing traffic directly to your site because it will automatically include your WP Shortlink 😀 Thanks so much for coming by!
Some great tips. I'm still learning to use Twitter as took ages before I joined. Now I wish I'd done it from day one.
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Thanks! It’s definitely an amazing tool for Bloggers and worth the time… 😀
I have been working on my twitter this week trying to decide how many times a day to tweet to be effective. Thanks for this post.
That’s great. There are a lot of different sources that give peak hours. I usually try to be sure when promoting a post or event that I post at least 3 times during the morning hours and 3 in the evening with 2 scheduled for the middle of the night (after Midnight). This way I can reach early risers, later risers, after work and late owls… 😀
This is a great post and really helpful for ALL Tweeters!
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Thanks Bonnie and thanks do much for coming by!
Great points, I love Twitter too!!
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Isn\’t it the best? Definitely a great asset to any Blogger…Thanks for coming by Jennifer 🙂
Awesome refresher with important tips 🙂 Stopping by from Monday Mommy Blog Hop.
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Hi Kristen!! Thanks…happy to have you be a part of making #MondayForMoms !!
Ok, so you've convinced me I need to do some work on my twitter presence. I have been using it for my social media for some time now to promote my writing, but I haven't done as much as I could be because the limited character thing really intimidated me. I liked your point about it just being the first sentence of a longer conversation. Takes the pressure off. I also am pinning this for some of your tips on building consistency through all our social media areas. I have some work to do!
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Hi Paula-
I’m glad this is giving you a nudge. I can’t wait to see you around Twitter more often and stay a few conversations with you 😀
THese are GREAT tips for a newbie or also really good reminders for an already regular Twitter-user. THat's why your post caught my attention from the SITS sharefest – It's always good to go back to 101 to remember the basics. Consistency is what I am for most. THanks!
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Thanks Meredith and thanks for coming by. Happy SITSSharefest
Stopping by from SITS Sharefest! I couldn't agree more that Twitter is my favorite social media outlet…love the tips!
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Hi!! Thanks so much for coming by!!! I definitely HEART Twitter 😀
Thanks for sharing this information. I was not able to understand Twitter for the longest time. Visiting from #sitssharefest.
You’re Welcome!! I’ve loved Twitter from the start but I know i can be a lo a ones o get used to. Happy to have you come by 🙂
Super awesome Twitter tips right there MrsTee! Coming from SITS 🙂 I'd also love to invite you to link up to my EPIC FRIDAY linky party (every Friday) – hope you can join in and link this up! .
Hi! Happy SITSSharefest … thanks so much for coming by! I’ll be check out Epic Friday first chance I get 🙂
Love this…. Just really got into Twitter a couple of months ago when I started blogging, and have made several good blog connections from around the world. Thanks for the hints, going to put twitter on my sidebar….. Visiting from SITSgirls ShareFest. Have a great day.
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Thanks Ray…Twitter has definitely helped me make some great connections, partnerships and friendships. Yay! I can’t wait to stop by and see it 😀 Happy SITSSharefest!
great lesson / refresher! Twitter took a long time for me to get into. As a blogger I just cannot live without it. Plus, I've had a couple celebrities and TV personalities follow me or re-tweet me and that's pretty exciting!
Thanks!! Yes getting acknowledge or followed (Whoa) by a celeb or even a major brand is awesome. The day Starbucks followed me I almost lost it!!! 😀
Great set of tips lady! You are for sure a Twitter maven. I'm pretty sure that's where we came across each other! I've been on Twitter for years, but only really started using it to connect when I started blogging. It can be a powerful tool!
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Thanks Lovie!! I do believe that\’s where we first connected as well 😉 It\’s an awesome asset to all Bloggers.
Thanks for the tips! I am so bad at twitter! 🙁
Anytime! If you have any questions I didn\’t cover feel free to drop me a line… Tweet Ya Later! 🙂
This was such great information Tiffany! Here's where I get stuck…scheduling tweets. It seems so generic!? I thought twitter was more for conversations, and having tweets go out when I am not there to respond feels weird. I haven't used anything to schedule tweets, but I know I need to figure that whole gig out. I just like making it more personal if I am going to tweet something. Does that makes sense?
You are so amazingly wise. How did you get so far so fast?!!! Seriously- you are like a blogging NINJA!!!! 🙂
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Thanks Chris!
I get what you mean, I used to think the same thing, like they are pre-fab in a way. Then I started playing around with the different options. You can actually schedule different versions of tweets for the same post or link; just changes the times accordingly and be sure they don\’t run on top of each other. Many people would even realize my tweets are pre-scheduled unless I pointed out which ones they are. Hootsuite can be a bit more difficult but Buffer makes it really easy to change your wording and approach throughout the day.
LOL…Long nights and a lot of Google! 😀 Thanks so much…I\’m just glad anything I\’ve learned can help someone else.
I love this! But I still struggle with starting a conversation on Twitter, which is weird since in real life, I have no problem.
Thanks! It can a bit daunting in some ways but the best things is to be yourself…after all you are the best you out there 😉
This is awesome – I'm pretty worthless at Twitter. I want to do more but never have gotten the hang of it!!
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It\’s such a great resource for Bloggers to connect …if you need anything or have questions I didn\’t cover feel tee to ask.
Great post and thank you so much for sharing! I'm just starting with Twitter and this is all very helpful.
Thanks! I\’m happy it\’s helpful…there are so many possible connections and opportunities accessible through Twitter. Let me know if you have any other questions I didn\’t cover.
Hey Mrs. Tee, thanks for the Twitter classs. I learnd a lot (this needs to be featured on SITS). Now it’s time for me to some homework. 🙂
Thanks So Much! I tried to cover as much of everything as I could 😀 See you in Twitterville!
You know I love Twitter! Great advice here Tiffany!
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I think it will always be my 1st love. Thanks Michelle.