Hash tag this, hash tag that, at this, at that!… At what? Twitter talk can all get a bit confusing to try and decifier what people are saying with all these little twitter codes and what they are used for so I have decided to try and help you understand what it is all about.

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Talking @ you

@ symbol is what you will find at the front of every Twitter ID and by typing this into your message you will be able to communicate directly with other twitter users in the public feed. There are two different ways you can use the @ symbol. Here they are : –

@ – used to reply or send a message to someone publicly, but will only be public in search and if the two users have shared followers. These also notify the user in their interactions section or a mobile alert if set.
.@ – completely public reply, but also tags a user. (Some brands or people use this method for a conversation to become public and invite others to join or see it more easily.

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Hash Tags

The hash tag, for those who don’t know is the symbol #. It used before a relevant keyword or phrase (no spaces) in your Tweet to categorize your Tweet and help you get found in twitter search easier. it can be quite useful to use this in a search for people who are talking about things that are intersted in the same things as you such as for me i would type #design and you may notice if you visit my twitter account ( find it in the sidebard here ) that I also have hashtags in my description to help people find me and my specialities.

To learn more about hash tags or how you can use them more effectively please read this blog post “How to use the twitter hash tags in 3 easy steps” i posted earlier

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Some abbreviations

Just like in text talk there are different little abbreviations that are commonly used in Twitter because 140 characters aren’t really very much to get your message out to your following…

Follow Fridays

FF is used on a Friday and is to suggest other people to follow to your followers. You should have built a niche market in the people you follow and that follow you so suggesting people to follow will boost relations with those you suggest building a stronger twitter link with them. Obvioiusly suggesting the less well known twitter users will be more effective than suggesting someone like Justin Bieber, suggest those who really need and add value to your twitter feed. Its all about giving your followers a little bit of respect and also a little TY.

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Here are the other common ones : –

MT – Modified Tweet

TT – Truncated Tweet

RT – Retweet

DM – If you want to send someone a direct message, they must be following you. Similar, if you want them be able to DM you, you must follow them as well.

BTW – By The Way.

YW – You’re Welcome.

IMHO – In My Honest Opinion.

YT – You There?

FML – F#*@ My Life.
GTFO – Get The F@*# Out.
NSFW – Not Safe For Work.
NSFL – Not Safe For Life.

And the most important abbreviationas manners cost nothing!

TY – Thank You.

Knowing which social media is best for your purpose can be tricky. With so many social media platforms out there it has become quite difficult to decide which ones to use for your business or personal progression. Using them all may not be as beneficial to your company as you may think. It is probably better to harness the power of one than dribble only a little bit of great information out to the public realm. In this post I will discuss various different social media tools and what type of account it is most likely to benefit.

Twitter

For B 2 B , B 2 C, fans & industry news

If used correctly, Twitter is the most broad ranging tool, that is so easy to get found for those wanting to connect with people in their industry and keep abreast of what is happening. I recommend when you start using twitter to find users that have the same interests as you so for example, i follow artists, designers, marketers, architects, gamers & spiritual people. These are my main interests and so they will also be interested in those areas of my own thoughts thus a follow back process will begin. You will then be able to exchange and share, retweet and make some virtual friends in your little old community! Nothing like meeting those with like minds ay! 🙂 This is why this is my preferred social medium.

Best time to use :

1pm to 3pm

Traffic Builds after 11am

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Facebook

B 2 C, fans, industry news & younger market

Facebook has the largest audience which you may think is probably the best social media platform to choose for any business but you would be wrong. Why? Well the majority of people who currently use Facebook are young people ( mainly women ) up the ages of 29. These are the people who have little in the way of equity  I would only recommend using this social media platform if you are confident that you are targeting the younger market generation such as music sales and awareness, gaming, fashion & other youth products. In my opinion its a bit harder to get your facebook page found without advertising.

Best time to use :

1pm to 4pm

Wednesday at 3pm is the best traffic time

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LinkedIn

B 2 B, Industry news & Job Hunting

LinkedIn is a great tool for those who do a lot of business with other businesses such as those that offer services. Consultancy firms, building maintenance, builders, engineers & such like would find this very beneficial. It is the social network for professionals to create links. It is also a fantastic place to find work. When you enter your skills to your profile LinkedIn use these tagged keywords to bring you jobs that match your ability and to jobs local to where you live! Could you ask for anything better?! If you ever get tired of your job you will never have far to look even in this terrible economic climate.

You can also show how competent you are in your profession by joining groups & answering  questions, posing questions & more! You will make new connections & start to become a recognised voice that obviously loves their industry that way.

Traffic is always best before working hours and just after 5pm Tue – Thu . Mon & Fri aren’t as good for traffic

Best time to use :

7am -9am & 5pm – 6pm

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Pinterest

B 2 C, fans, great for e commerce

The majority of Pinterest users are female living in rural areas with middle to high incomes. It is a social networking platform initially set up to find inspiration to for your next major project but it can also be a great place to showcase products particularly if you are an e commerce owner selling things like jewellery, artworks, fashion or gifts. What is also interesting about pinterest is that out of the current users 50% have children. Sell something children might like? Pinterest is the place for you to be!

Best time to use :

 8pm – 1am & 2pm – 4pm

Traffic is highest of a Saturday morning

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There are many more platforms for social media ( of which i know quite a few for creatives ). I will be sharing them in the very near future on this blog so don’t forget to check back shortly for more tips and tricks on using social media.

The hash tag for many has proven to be quite an elusive tool for most to understand. I often hear people say “what is it for?” or “should i use it in my tweets?” and even “how do i use it?”. Hash tagging in your tweets can really help you use twitter more effectively and in this blog post I will tell you just how you can make the most of the hash.

Don’t make a hash of it

1. Hash tag relevant keywords

If you are not very familiar with internet search engine optimisation you may not know what a keyword is ( sorry web gurus just helping everyone out! ). A keyword is basically how you get something found by a major search engine. So for example you may target “plumbing” if you are in the building trade. So when you write a tweet…study it! What keyword might really stand out to your potential consumers. Who do you want to find you on twitter?

Here is an example of one of my tweets with the use of hashtags : –

Great #marketing & #gamification Article worth a read by @market_gravity – marketgravity.com/blog-item/4-de…

— Identity Creator (@JAWilsonDesign) April 22, 2013

 

I was tweeting about a really interesting marketing article by market gravity. The two keywords I have selected here are marketing and gamification so if anyone use the discover tool and types in either of these keywords then they may appear in the results for people searching.

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2. Be hip with the hash

Twitter does you a little wee favour and informs you on the homepage of what is currently trending ( another words what most people are looking for and also talking about ). if you can inco-operate this into your own tweets then  you may reach a larger audience with your tweet.

3.Experiment & make it 2nd nature

Once you get the hang of spotting keywords in your tweet it will become second nature to you to do this every time you tweet. Just try experimenting, maybe look over your tweet once or twice before posting, replacing any word with the important keyword or a word you may think is more likely to be searched for. Really Twitter is meant to be enjoyed, a place to share your thoughts without any judgement and connect with those who think similiar to you.

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Do you think the hash tag has much worth? Do you use it ? what are your tips to using it more effectively? Please feel free to share in the comment box below and keep on hashing!

As my Twitter following has slowly increased from a few to many I keep getting people ask me to buy some followers. Okay so I could feel really important and popular online, i could look like i have 10,000 genuinely interested people in my thoughts which would surely be a great way to boost any marketing we need to do but at the end of it all is it really worth it?
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Zombie Tweeters

You may as well be tweeting out to a bunch of zombies if you pay for most of your following! Those you pay for are going to be inactive or just after a large following themselves so once they have your refollow they will more than likely stop following you after a short while, they won’t truly be interested in what you have to say. They are all vying for twitter following brains, only these zombies don’t eat brains they eat your businesses marketing cash!

Do things the right way and create a great network

Twitter, if used correctly can be a great marketing platform to connect with like minds to keep you informed of what is going on in your industry, allow your customers to see your latest news and increase your brand awareness to others who may not have even known you existed before Twitter!

I have mentioned before in my blog about justunfollow.com. Not only can you discover people who unfollow you but you can also follow people that are also interested in things you are. So for instance I follow photoshop…this is a hugely followed twitter account by other digital artists and such like.

Look at the info you can find out with this great tool! Oooooooo Lovely!
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If you copy followers of the Twitter accounts you find influential those followers are also likely to be interested in what you have to say. Who knows, if they need an extra pair of hands or advice they may just come to you for a little bit of help which will in turn boost your business turnover.

Build some Kred

Doing things properly will give you a better standing in your digital social society but how do you know how well you are doing socially if you have no way to measure things other than how many followers you have?

Kred.

Kred is a fantastic little tool that gives you an insight into how you are seen across the three major social platforms, Facebook, Twitter & LinkedIn. You see how you are being talked about, where in the world you are most influential, as well as various other features ( see image below ). If you do sign up to this great tool please give me some kred for recommending it :D.

Kred

So tell me again why shouldn’t I buy Twitter Followers?

Even if your account has 10,000 Twitter followers if they are not relevant they will not retweet your message, they will not make anything go viral, they are not powerful marketing and they will not generate new leads or revenue, it will just become an ego boosting excercise for yourself even though you know they are fake friends…might as well call them your “imaginary friends”.

Anyway don’t be a Twit and spend money you don’t need to, be a tweeter!

More tools on how to use Twitter more effectively

Want some more twitter related websites to boost your super tweeting powers? Check out some of these websites. They offer some fantastic features to enhance your usability of social media platforms.
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Social Bro

Brings into clear focus your target audience of clients, customers and influencers and helps you to define the right people to engage with, at the right time, a great little tool with big talent. This is my personal favourite at the moment.

[button url=”http://www.socialbro.com” target=”_blank”]Visit Site[/button]

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Crowd Booster

Crowdbooster helps you achieve an effective presence on Twitter and Facebook. We show you analytics that aren’t based on abstract scores but numbers that are connected to your business and your social media strategies: impressions, total reach, engagement, and more. We then give you the tools and recommendations you need to take action and improve each one of these metrics.

[button url=”http://www.crowdbooster.com” target=”_blank”]Visit Site[/button]

Not so long ago I wrote a blog post about how to use twitter more effectively to promote your business and create a bit more awareness amongst your industry. This is the second installation of more tricks and tips that I have discovered along the tweeting path. If I repeat myself from a previous post, please forgive as I am only human 🙂

5 tips to become a twitter super power

Reply to tweets that catch you eye.

I know I have already mentioned to retweet tweets that you find really interesting as your following will more than likely also find it of particular interest to them but try commenting on a tweet too. Talking to your fellow tweeters can start a good relationship with like minded souls and promote positivity between you and others. As BT say, its good to talk. Just be careful not to spam as 10 comments in a row may be too many on someones twitter feed…just 2 in the morning, 2 for lunch and 2 for dinner will be plenty :-).

To be or not to be
Asking questions to your followers can be an effective way of starting communication if it is thought provoking enough or your followers feel they have something to add. I know some tweeters are a bit afraid of talking to other tweeters, its almost like a code…don’t talk to me I’m tweeting! But come on people, this IS social media!! The key word being social. Causing debate is a great tool for increasing your following.

Don’t follow people who are invisible or talk an awful lot.

Following people who are too lazy to even upload a photo on their profile picture are more than likely spammers or not using twitter correctly. If you  follow someone who tweets about 10 tweets every 20 minutes you are going to miss a lot of tweets from your other followers and some of them tweets may be gold dust! So don’t follow people who are tweeting more than they retweet..no one likes a self centered tweeter.

Spread the word for your followers

Admiring the work of your fellow tweeters, promoting competitions or special offers of one of your tweeters it won’t go unnoticed by your followers and will give you a stronger bond ( if only electronically ) with that particular follower as they know you are co-operating with them not only to boost your own place in the industry but you also want to help others.

Afterwards mention it to them on Twitter and they’ll be very grateful, they most likely tweet about it too.

I remember when i first set up my twitter account and put my first couple of tweets together, I was thinking…”what the hell is this?!” and “how is this going to benefit me?”. What I have realized 520 tweets and 537  followers later, the amount of useful information that people share is undeniably brilliant! Not only this but it allows your website content to reach a wider “relevant” audience that are interested in what you have to say!

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In this post I plan to give you a few little tips to make sure you are using twitter as effectively as you possibly can to generate brand awareness, develop your own standing in the profession of your choice  & start generating a buzz around your business.

What to tweet

That first step, your twitter account has no tweets. What do you tweet? What you eat for you dinner? What time you finished work? The hot girl you saw across the street? Of course not!

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Consider your audience, do you really think they want to read about that? If like me you are a designer/artist then I am more likely to find something interesting such as artworks, how to do things on Photoshop or illustrator. Alternatively if you are selling a product like cream that benefits people with eczema I would probably be interested in reading about eczema suffering groups and other relevant content such as that.

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Basically the message here is always keep your audience in mind when tweeting and make it relevant. ( Check my twitter account out for some general ideas ), just be genuinely interested in your industry.

Following people you are truly interested in

So you’ve started tweeting some really relevant industry tweets, best get following others that you are interested in. Don’t just follow people for the sake of it, i mean…when do you need a funeral director? Unless you are part of the Italian mafia with a regular need to dispose of bodies this twitter user is not necessarily going to benefit from your tweets and you certainly won’t benefit from theirs.

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Follow your industry professionals and start linking to tweeters that are going to help build a strong influential twitter following. Remember…not everyone will follow you back but a lot will, particularly if they are industry relevant.

Retweeting

Do you often see something interesting written by someone you follow? It’s more than likely the people following you will also find it interesting. After all they have the same interests as you.

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Sharing is caring, show what is interesting you and it will benefit your little fan base too…plus if you want to look it up again just check your twitter feed out for reference. Double bonus!

Conversation

Twitter is a “social” media platform and to be social is to talk. Try commenting on some of your followings feeds, you might start a conversation and create a stronger bond with them as well as generate business.

#Hashtags

A hash tag makes it easier for people to find your tweets with the “discover” tool. So for instance “hey check out my latest #art piece. here – http://www.url.com” okay so you notice that i put a hash tag next to art? so if anyone types art into the discover tool they may just discover your tweet and wallah! New followers.

Tweet every day

The last tip and one of the most important, tweet regularly or your followers may think you are inactive are unfollow you. Even try and tweet 3 to 5 times a day, throughout the day, juts make sure to keep it relevant.

Useful Twitter Apps

Lastly 2 useful Twitter apps that every Twitter user should be using : –

wefollow

Gather more followers using this great app, see how much influence you have in your particular industry keyword too!

 Justunfollow

Are you noticing your twitter account keeps loosing followers even though you are twittering often ( how rude! :O ) ? Find out who is unfollowing you and return the favor ( unless of course they are highly influential with lots of great tweets that will benefit you! ).

Before we talk about the Twitter profile picture size, I’d like to clarify what  the profile picture is. It’s the image that appears in the top left corner of your Twitter profile page and next to every tweet you make.

Note : If you are looking for the latest 2014 profile sizes and some tips on how to make you Twitter profile stand out then follow the link here.

Having a Twitter Profile Picture helps people take you more seriously, (If someone follows me and they don’t have one I usually block them).  Your profile picture should reflect your brand, both from your website, your corporate stationary and business identity. Continue “Twitter Profile Picture Size”

1) Twitter Backgrounds are left-aligned.

If you look at my twitter background you can see that my icon is to the left. When designing keep in mind that it will be JUST the left side of your tweets that will be being branded. important background content on the left of the screen. Continue “Creating a branded Twitter Background”