A Beginner’s Guide to Twitter

So, you’ve just created a Twitter account. Before you jump in with both feet, here are some very basic tips on how to use the Twitter lingo.

1. Remember that every one of your tweets are public. Do not participate in personal conversations that you do not want the world to read. Utilize the Direct Message feature.

2. Whenever you are speaking directly to or about someone that has a Twitter username, use the “@” symbol directly in front of the username with no space in between. (@joshuacox or @jack_schaap) A sample tweet utilizing this tip would be the following: @dustonmoore You are the man…at least that’s what @mindymoore said! This means I was talking TO Duston Moore, and I mentioned Mindy Moore in the tweet.

3. When sending a direct message via text message, begin your tweet with a “D,” then a space, then the username of the person you are messaging.

4. If you see someone else’s tweet that you think is worth of “re-tweeting,” simply copy and paste the tweet placing an “RT @username” in front of the tweet.

5. When referring to an issue that could be a search word, place a “#” symbol in front of the word (ie. #Lakers).

I hope these tips help several people. When people do not use Twitter properly, it is humorous and sometimes embarrassing to them.

Have fun, Twitts!