The other day I was teaching a Twitter/Social Media class for the Mooreseville chamber.  For many of the small business owners in the room ( see just a few pictured here) this was their first introduction to Twitter, Facebook, Smaller Indiana and LinkedIn.  Here are just a few of the tips I shared.   What else would you tell a new Twitter user? twitterclass

Twitter Getting Started:

  • Decide if you will Tweet as “you” or your company. Some people have two identities, to keep the personal and business side separate. For me the two blend so I have one Twitter account.
  • Select a user name – Keep it short – your user name counts as part of the 140 character limit for tweets, long user names make it hard to repeat (RT) your messages – My Twitter id is Roundpeg
  • Complete your profile – If you are using a variation of your name, share your full name so people who don’t know your “twitter handle” can find you.
  • Add a picture – You wouldn’t go to a cocktail party with a bag over your head, don’t expect people to make personal connections to a blank box.
  • Tell us something about you in the short bio section.
  • Start Tweeting – Don’t wait till you have lots of followers before you add updates. People are attracted to good content. If you don’t have any they are less likely to follow you.
  • Start following others – Twitter gets interesting when you are following at least 50 people
  • Get interactive – reply to comments other people make or ReTweet (repeat) something someone else said. Use the search function to find people who are talking about things of interest to you or your company
  • Don’t Spam – While it is ok to include business information (with links to your website),, if you do it too often you will find people simply “unfollow” you. Think about your favorite TV show if they include 5 minutes of advertising 25 minutes of content the program is still enjoyable to watch.. If they shift the balance too much, you get annoyed, or stop watching. The same is true about Twitter.
  • No Rules – Twitter is new, there are no firm rules, just guidelines which seem to work. My best advice? Follow the same etiquette you would use at a cocktail party, if you wouldn’t say it there, don’t say it Twitter.
  • Be yourself, have fun, share something, learn something, sell something!

For more on this subject  Check out a 20 Step starter’s guide to using Twitter

And if you want to learn some of these skills face to face check NewAge PR – Twitter and Other Socia Media on May 14th.