Web Design Resources

Getting Started

From a small business perspective I have found Twitter to be easy to setup, automate, and extend the reach of almost any small business. This is especially true when compared to other types of online marketing that can be expensive and with uncertain results. Twitter is neither of these. Multiple accounts can be easily managed by one person targeting individual keywords using 3rd party tools that integrate easily with Twitter. I’ve seen a consistent 4% click-through rate or higher on links posted to Twitter but more importantly the targeted connections you can make on Twitter could the most valueable part of marketing this way.

To start you’ll need to know some basic things about Twitter and the lingo used there.

“Tweet” – These are the messages, posts, updates or whatever you want to call them. Tweets can be up to 140 characters long and can contain links and some symbols.

“Retweet” – When Twitter users re post other Twitter users tweets it’s called a retweet. The tweet will appear exactly the same but have an RT in the front of it. Retweeting can cause a landslide of traffic and is one reason tweets should be targeted and relevant. If people start retweeting your tweets because they’re interesting, they’re basically advertising to all of their followes who could potentially retweet it again and again.

“Follow” – Following someone means you have decided to receive their tweets in your timeline. Accounts with default Twitter settings will recieve a notification email about you following them. This is the primary reason following other people on Twitter helps grow your own group of followers. You can unfollow someone just as easily as you followed them.

“Mention” – Any time another Twitter user types @yourusername it is referred to as a mention. Mentions are beneficial because they appear on the posters timelime exposing more people to you and your Twitter account.

“DM” – When somone follows you twitter will allow you to send them Direct Messages or DMs. DMs are also often automatically sent to new followers with a link or welcome message.

“Block” – Blocking somone will cause to following things to happen. You will not show up in the list of people followed by the user being blocked, your updates will not show up on their timeline, and the blocked user will not be allowed to follow you. Many people blocking one account is one reason user accounts are suspended.

“FollowFriday” – Twitter users appreciate when you mention them on twitter by typing “@theirname” and on friday everyone does it. Who you pick for your follow Friday list is up to you. I generally pick all the people that have mentioned me @effectivews throughout the week or retweet my posts. Follow Friday is like saying “Hey you should follow this guy”.