Twitter has become an important part of social networking, not just because of the easy way to share but also the way it has become integrated in to the web. Just about every web site now has a Twitter button to allow you to share what you have just read.
For those who are still unfamiliar with Twitter…
When you tweet (the act of sending out a message), people who follow you can read what you have written. They in turn can send messages to you. You can even send private messages that no one else can see.
People who read your tweets are followers, they can be friends, family or anyone who is interested in what you are writing. You can allow them to follow or block them, you have control.
It has been said that Twitter is full of boring people chatting about their personal habits. That may be true and certainly was at the beginning, however you choose who you follow and if they are boring then just don’t follow them any more.
For a business point of view, Twitter has a lot to offer. If you send out tweets about your product or services then you may well be followed by future customers and current clients. A great way to communicate with them and perhaps close a few deals on the way.
Registering with Twitter
Registering an account with Twitter takes only a few minutes.
Once you hit the ‘create my account’ button, you will the be sent a confirmation email to the account you chose. Click the link and you will be taken to a page so you can send your first tweet and choose followers. Here is a screen shot of that, I created a test account and selected to follow myself using the simple search.
Choosing a profile picture
It is important to upload a picture but which picture you use depends on weather you are using it for business or personal use.
For business, you can upload your logo but if you are the business (a blogger or one man band) then consider using a picture of yourself.
For private use, use a picture of yourself, or something relevant.
Profile settings for web link
If you are going to tweet on behalf of your business then consider having a personal twitter account as well. It is a very good idea to keep the two sides seperate.
With that in mind, you can now add a website to your profile page. For a business, I would highly recommend a dedicated page just for twitter users who follow the link. You can find mine here, Welcome Twitter Friend!
