UWO Journalism Twitter Tutorial

In a Nutshell.

What is Twitter? A “micro-blogging” site… which literally means

each “tweet” is a miniature blog post.

A way to express yourself personally:

Professionally:

What is Twitter?You can ask questions:

Engage in conversation:

What is Twitter?You can share information…

And receive it…

What is Twitter? You can see what’s going

on in the world: Or in the region:

Twitter Glossary“@”: This symbol goes in front of a name.

If you use it, it will show up in the “@yourname” section of the person referenced. (e.g. @shmelanie hey!) would show up in this section:

Use this to talk to someone directly or make it a link for other people to connect with them.

Twitter Glossary “#”:the hashtag mark.

Used in ongoing “Twitter Chats” Although some hashtag

conversations may not be “active,” this tool is helpful for following conferences, events, etc., that you are unable to attend.

It is a way of marking your tweets, sort of like a filing cabinet. It makes it easier for you to find things, as well as other people.

Reference to Chicago Home and Housewares Conference

Reference to a scheduled “Twitter Chat” (#internchat)

“Filing” Tweet into “PRSSA” category on Twitter

Twitter Glossary Direct Message: Use to

send short, 140-character messages to a single person

Use when the information is personal or could be considered pointless in an “@name” Tweet[e.g. “@shmelanie, when are we going to go to the par-tay later?]

Can only be sent to people who are following you.

Twitter GlossaryFollow: The Tweets of people you follow will

show up on your homepage.

Everyone can see who you follow. So… be careful. This can be positive or negative for you.

The people you follow are notified when you follow them.

You can “unfollow” peopleat any time.

Twitter Glossary “Retweet” or “RT” :

Used to share information received through a third-party

Common uses: Sharing news articles Sharing amusing tweets Replying to a comment to

put it into context

It’s like a Tweet citation; you give credit to the person who posted it originally

Twitter Glossary Short URL: A way to condense long URLs into a smaller

format. Helpful because you only have 140 characters total.

Can use sites like: http://www.bit.ly http://www.hootsuite.com http://www.tiny.cc

Use these whenever linking.

Turns http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&source=hp&q=searching+for+the+mega+shark&aq=0&aqi=g3&aql=&oq=searching+for+the+me into http://bit.ly/cSYDPy

Getting Signed UpSelect a username. Most recommend simple

first/last name combo. Can be changed later if necessary.

Upload a photo. Helps put a face to a name and looks professional.

Insert Location & Bio: People in your area can find you based onyour bio andyour location.

Where to Start? We Follow:

http://www.wefollow.com Allows you to search and

add celebrities (guilty pleasure) as well as industry leaders.

Twellow:http://www.twellow.com The “Twitter Yellow

Pages” searches based on biography and location. Search your interests.

UWO Journalism Blog Will have updated list of

relevant Tweeters for each Journalism industry

The “followers” and “following” lists. Sort of like Amazon.com’s

recommended list… “if you liked so-and-so, you may like them…” Can be hit and miss.

ReTweets and Follow Friday. You can add people who

frequently get “RT’d” as well as people recommended in a “Follow Friday”

Twitter EtiquetteAvoid!

Posting derogatory comments

Poignant grammar mistakes

Extensive personal conversations (use Direct Messages)

Excessive “me-tweets” (e.g. what you ate for breakfast, the fact you’re still tired even though you napped, how annoyed you are at the fact you have to go to work)

Have a “protected” tweet default

Do!

Retweet valuable info

Thank people for retweeting your info

Let your personality show

Engage with others

Participate in Twitter chats

Update more than once a week

Let’s Get Startedhttp://www.twitter.com