Lots of Twitter guides tell you what you should do, but rarely explain how it should be done.
When joining Twitter, finding a "tweeting", or messaging, balance will be rocky at first. Don’t worry, that’s expected and we’ve all been through it. Don’t give up. If you’re taking any of the thousands of tips out there and you’re still not seeing good results, try tweaking your Twitter habits with this guide.
But I’m Doing What They Said!
The rules and tips for getting started on Twitter need better clarification. Some of these tips are right, but are being done wrong. Here are three of the most common tips that could use some clarification:
- Follow a lot of people
- Reply back to everyone
- "Tweet" a lot
Clarification On: Follow A Lot Of People
Following a lot of people does help you get more involved with Twitter. That’s the point of Twitter. However, don’t do it all at one time. This is the worst advice to give a new Twitter user without any type of clarification on how to do it.
When you first start Twitter, you should build up your stream first. Send out about 20 messages that actually mean something. Talk about your interest, something cool that you like, or something you found out about today. This way, people can get a better feel for how beneficial you’d be to them if they followed you in return. After about 20+ messages, start following about 10 people. For every 20+ messages, follow 10 more people.
Ease your way into following a lot of people. DON’T follow a lot of people (30+) at one time, with no way for them to connect with you by looking at your stream of Twitter messages, also known as "tweets".
Clarification On: Reply Back To Everyone
Please don’t reply back to everyone when you first join Twitter. That isn’t how you should begin using Twitter. Would you really want to follow a new Twitter user that’s using Twitter like it’s AIM/MSN/Yahoo Messenger?
If you’re going to reply back to everyone, wait a few minutes before replying, especially for messages that don’t require an immediate response. Streams full of @ replies are a turn off to more established Twitter users that you may be trying to befriend.
Mix up your tweets with replies, general tweets, and throw in some links every now and then.
Clarification On: "Tweet" A Lot
As a new Twitter user, it’s hard to find a balanced way to build up your stream. Unless you have a reason to tweet a lot, don’t! This is the quickest way to be classified as a spammer.
As you’re following/followers builds up, your twittering habits will naturally follow suit. Sending out 10-20 messages a day on Twitter is fine. It’s even perfect for some of your followers. Keep these numbers in mind when you first join Twitter.
Find Your Tweeting Balance (Twalance?)
There are thousands of articles being written to help those that are just hopping on the Twitter bandwagon. Those that are new to Twitter will take them to heart and apply these suggestions as best as they can. Lately, some of them have been following me, but I’m hesitant to follow back. I know I’m not the only one and these users may be wondering why. Now you know, and hopefully these suggestions can help you get better results with getting your followings to follow you back.
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