There is no getting around the importance of building a strong professional network. I have said this quite a few times on this blog, and I am sure that by now, everyone is familiar with social networking. Most people take their first steps into the world of social networking by using a site like Facebook. Then, for professionals and those in the job market, it is a natural progression to Linkedin. Then there is Twitter. Twitter is one of those wonderful social networking tools that allow users to share information in real time. Because of the 140 character limit, it is easy to have Tweets delivered to your mobile phone, even if you don't have the latest smart phone.
Twitter is a cost-effective marketing tool and it can help you to establish relationships with potential customers and peers in the industry. In fact, many companies (for example: Zappos) actually require their employees to be active within the Twitter culture. It has become a way to connect with others using the internet in a way that feels casual and personal.
Over the past two years, Twitter has grown into its own world, with a culture and society rules. For someone just entering that world, it can seem a bit overwhelming. So, if you are new to Twitter or just haven't gotten that involved with it yet, here are some Twitter etiquette rules you should keep in mind:
- Don't be a lurker – If you don't tweet or get involved, you can't expect people to find you or find you interesting enough to follow. Search for friends, family and even businesses and get started talking.
- Keep it short – Of course, with the 140 character limit, it is hard to ramble. But still, try to keep things simple. If you need to share something complex, consider other formats.
- Be careful what you say – Tweets are available for anyone to see. Once you send it, it is out there forever. So, be careful what you say because one mistake could cause you to lose some friends, fight with your loved ones and can even cost you a job.
- Don't Tweet 24/7 – I know it is hard at first, but you really need to find a balance between not using Twitter and Tweeting every few minutes. If you send out too many senseless Tweets, people will stop following you because your tweets keep clogging up their time-lines. So, talk some, listen more.
- Don't go “follow crazy” - At first, you will want to search for people you know and follow them. But, once you get the basics covered, you should strive for balance between how many people you follow vs. how many follow you. If you follow many, many more people than follow you, you will run the risk of being mistaken for a spam-bot.
- Don't feed the trolls – Just like any other public internet forum, you are going to have those who don't like what you have to say. Understand that you can't control those people and try to recognize trolling when it happens. A troll's primary objective is to get you riled up and get a rise out of you. If you are in a fight with a troll, you can't win, so don't even rise to the bait. The sad thing is, most of the time, they don't really care about what you are saying, they just want to see how far they can push you.
- Clean your list – Every once in awhile, you should look over your list of followers and people who follow you. If there are people you don't find interesting or helpful, feel free to un-follow them.
- Re-tweet – Don't just talk about yourself all of the time. Use the re-tweet feature to share information from people you follow with those who follow you. Also, look for opportunities to participate in events like #FollowFriday to help others grow their networks.
- No Drunk Tweeting – Just like drunk dialing or drunk texting, drunk tweeting is always a no-no. It is so tempting to tweet under the influence, but just don't. You will probably regret it in the morning.
- Rude is rude – Ignore the people who are Twitter-snobs, and be sure that you don't treat anyone rudely. If you have a problem with someone, just block them and move on. This is not the place to wage a war.
- Don't give out personal information – Your friends might not like it very much if you published their number and address when you are invited to their party. It is so easy to get lured into the feeling of privacy, but Twitter is anything but private.
- Ditch the tie – Even when you are using your Twitter account for professional purposes, remember that Twitter is a casual platform. So relax and be yourself. Leave the stuffiness at the office.
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By Melissa Kennedy- Melissa is a 9 year blog veteran and a freelance writer, along with helping others find the job of their dreams, she enjoys computer geekery, raising a teenager, supporting her local library, writing about herself in the third person and working on her next novel.
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