Twitter is an absolutely great tool and I love the simplicity and effectiveness of it. 140 characters. Get straight to the point.
Using Twitter is also a must for businesses, non-profit organizations and people seeking to build their brands or community online. It’s quickly becoming a badge of credibility.
The flip side is you have to understand the rules and ideas behind it. Much has already been written about how to use Twitter so I’ll not regurgitate that information, but I will share some “rules of thumb” I’ve adapted I feel are beneficial.
Rule #1: Turn It Off.
Yes, I really said that! I don’t mean to not use it but to avoid killing your productivity. Turn off those nagging alerts or apps on your desktop that draw you away from work. Twitter can be a huge time suck if you leave it up throughout the day.
Rule #2: Quality over Quantity.
Sometimes I think Twitter is like high school…a popularity contest. We all want to have fans, friends, or followers and it can make us feel great to have thousands, but let’s be honest – how many real friends can you really have? Sure, follow if you want but I prefer a stronger, tight knit community who really cares for me. Wouldn’t you?
Rule #3: Maybe I’ll Follow, Maybe I Won’t.
I don’t intend to be mean but I am not one of those people who will follow everyone who follows me (see above). I do check out every one who does follow me and will keep my eye on them before welcoming them to my family. I also block people who are shady or love spam.
Rule #4: If You Sell Fruitcake You Are Done!
It’s the gift most people don’t want. On Twitter these are the people whose only goal is to promote, get followers, or tell you a bunch of crap. If you machine gun tweets I’ll bazooka you! It’s OK to promote and share your services or products but just do it tastefully.
Remember there are common courtesies and rules that all Tweeples generally adhere to but there are also some practices you will have to decide for yourself. Use the tried and true and adapt the others to work for you.
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[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Sharon Higbee, Sharon Higbee. Sharon Higbee said: My Rules for Twitter | James Dalman http://bit.ly/6FyVm1 [...]
Couldn’t agree more on numero 3 and 4.
If I see someones ugly mug in my stream (even on follow friday-which annoy me btw) a bunch of times in a row = unfollow. I may keep them in Google Reader RSS but not on the Tweeter.
Bryce, thanks for the feedback. When a person machine guns their tweets I just feel like it’s a violation of personal space – like the person who thinks they need to be three inches from your face when they talk to you. Not cool!