How To Tweet

f you're new to Twitter, the whole thing can be a mind-boggling experience, when first you start trying to follow, tweet, and join the Social Networking revolution via Twitter. Here are some basic functions every effective Twitter user should know.

Difficulty:
Easy

Instructions
things you'll need:

* A Twitter account

1.
* 1
You Can Do Better ThanThis!

Profiles in Twittering. Before you even attempt to dive into the Tweet pool, take a moment or three to set up your profile. It's easy and effective for letting others know that you are a serious Twitter user. Profiles with no personal info kind of scream SPAMMER! Make sure you add a picture of yourself (for best results), or at least something you like. Leaving the Brown o_OAvatar up for display screams Twitter BOT! Type up a lil mini bio...list something interesting about yourself or a favorite quote. Add a link to your blog, your eHow profile, your website-anything that can connect others to you will bring about positive results!
* 2
Mapping Out Your Agenda

Do you have an agenda? Why are you taking the Twitter plunge? Do youwant to meet and connect with others on a social or business level? Do you want to find those who work in the same field as you? People who live in your city or state? These are important things to consider, when beginning with Twitter, and can help you locate others to follow and with whom to connect.
* 3

Kiss your momma with that mouth? When joining Twitter, no matter yourage, you may want to consider how you behave in public. Don't be rude. Don't tweet utterly useless, degrading or incendiary things, unless of course your sole purpose is to be ignored. Follow the adage: "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything"
* 4

Now for just HOW you can start tweeting effectively. You need to learn the basics in Twittercommunication. You've got 140 characters or less in which to communicate one thought. This means you will need to become practiced in the art of brevity. Abbreviating words, substituting words with numbers (.ie to=2, for=4, etc.), and policing your verbosity will aid you in effective tweeting!
* 5
Click Here To Reply

Once you begin to tweet, you'll see tweets that you'dlike to comment on, directly to the person who spoke. When doing so, you need to use the Reply arrow, located to the right of that person's tweet (see pic). This brings up an @ symbol, plus their username in your Tweet Box. Use this space to reply directly to what they said. When doing this, it connects your response to theirs, and lets them know exactly what you are responding to, because theycan then click on the link included in your response that says "in reply to Username". This keeps conversation flowing, and eliminates lots of "Huh, what do you mean" or "What are you talking about" tweets!
* 6
Tagging

As for other spiffy tricks, you can use the # symbol + a keyword, if you want people to find your tweets when they are using the searchfunction. You can also conduct Twitter searches yourself, using the Search link at the bottom of your page. Type in the # symbol and keyword you are looking for, hit search, and you will be provided with a list of Tweets that match your terms. See Helen Bradley's Tags in Twitter article in the resource section for more in depth guidance on tags.
* 7

Say you find a Tweet that youwant to share with your friends and followers. The coolest and most Twitter-friendly method for sharing tasty Tweets is to RETWEET. Contrary to how it sounds, you will not be running away screaming....you will be sharing someone else's ideas and links with your followers and the general Twitter population. How to Retweet? Simply type RT then space then @---then copy the body of the person's...