There are hundreds (OK thousands) of posts explaining what Twitter is and how to use it. This post is NOT a tutorial about how to use Twitter. However, I still have friends and family asking how me to simplify what Twitter is and why I am using it.
I am just starting to really understand and regularly use Twitter. I shunned the poor little bird for a long time and put off learning how to use it. I’ve had some wonderful friends teach me how to use it as well as one fabulous Social Media Coach, Theresa Cifali. Now, I find myself a real Twitter convert and loving Twitter. Even as large as it is, I feel like I’m making some great connections (aka friends) on Twitter and meeting some really neat people who I wouldn’t have been able to find on Facebook. So, here is what I’m telling my friends and family and someone mentioned I should share with others that may also be asking the same questions.
Twitter is another social media platform. It is fast with each post limited to a maximum of 140 characters, so we must be more specific and concise with what we say. However, sometimes that is a good thing lately. Facebook is very social and I love being on Facebook, but sometimes I want information quick, or I want to engage with many people/companies about a specific topic or with people of similar interests. I can do this quickly on Twitter. One thing that makes this possible is the one thing that seems most confusing– ‘twitter speak’. I’m asked what those symbols mean when tweeting. The easiest way I explain it is:
# is a hash-tag – this is simply a way to create keywords. If you want to find people discussing scrapbooking, you could search #scrapbooking and find lots of posts that refer to scrapbooking.
@ is how you find and/or tag a specific tweeter. If you write a post and type @cherylswindow in the post, I will see the post, even if I’m not following you. Your followers will also see your post in which you tagged me.
RT – is a Retweet. I say it’s almost the same as clicking the “like” button on Facebook. it moves the post back up to the top of your queue and let’s me know you retweeted my post. It shares the original tweet with all of your followers.
The links shared are shortened with various url shorteners so they don’t take up so many character spaces. These still work like any hyperlink and will take you to the post or picture the tweet is referencing.
That is my explanation of Twitter in an eggshell. As I said, this is not an in-depth Twitter explanation. It’s simplifying some basic Twitter terminology that can be overwhelming to those not yet using Twitter or brand new to it. I’d love to hear your comments and connect with you on Twitter. You can find me at @cherylswindow
Thanks for stopping by today,