Twitter; How to tweet your way into the Hearts of Complete strangers without feeling like a Total ass or seeming like a Stalker

Twitter; How to tweet your way into the Hearts of Complete strangers without feeling like a Total ass or seeming like a Stalker

Twitter~ Today is Twitter’s 5th birthday! Awww, Happy birthday little guy. This explains why I was so late to the Twitter game. Silly me, I was too busy trying to figure out this growing and giving birth to babies business to try and figure out Twitter too.I don’t think I made it to the party until late 2009, early 2010. But let’s be honest,probably like most of you, I got to the party and felt like I was on Mars. It was completely foreign to me. Facebook, I got. Facebook was, you know, a way to check in on old friends to see how fat they got and to spy on ex boyfriends to see how fat my replacement was. I’m pretty social,I can chit chat with anyone ….I know. Hell, take me to a in real life party and I’m the one flitting from person to person, saying hi and giving kisses..real ones, not those fake air ones. But Twitter was 140 characters out into the abyss. I didn’t know ANYONE in real life who was on Twitter, except for my 16 year old cousin who already told me that she was going to the mall and taking a poop via her Facebook status. I always thought to myself, thanks for alerting the world and any potential kidnappers to your whereabouts. SO,I got to Twitter and I tweeted a couple tweets and it was like throwing a pebble into a cave…crickets chirping. Of course, I had no followers and I followed….Oprah. That.Was. it! Long story short, It took me about  6 months to take another go at it and figure out what I was doing.I’m here to help you not hear those same damn Twitter crickets. This is a great piece in conjunction with How to Build a Mommy Blog Without Blowing Up the Joint or Alienating TOO many People. I’m giving you the tools to optimize your Twitter experience.

Twitter

photo courtesy of google image

Twitter

  • Open a Twitter account.Come on everybody’s doing it. Now, when you do this, choose your @name carefully, this is what the good people of Twitter will know you by.This is your handle.If you have a blog, I suggest using your blog name or pen name.Mine is @TruthfulMommy, in case you were wondering. I know you were. Choose a name that makes it easy for your blog followers to find you on Twitter. I don’t recommend choosing a kitschy name like @HarryBalls because it will not likely attract potential followers but will have a high yield return on porn spammers.Of course, if that’s what you’re into.Go on with your bad self @HarryBalls!
  • Also,DON’T put your actual address on Twitter,as anyone can see it.Unless of course you LIKE to have stalkers, then I say..go for it.
  • For the love of GOD, please upload a picture. I beg of you.NOBODY wants to follow, answer tweets, be followed by an “EGG” (this is the universally generic code for, I have no photo because I am a shady character of some sort) avatar.Don’t do it!I can’t stress this enough. This is a way to alienate people on Twitter.
  • Add something to your profile to tell us a little about yourself. This is your introduction to the party.Don’t stand there and be silent.When others are searching for people to follow, this small bio is all they have to go on. I must admit, I don’t follow people back if they have no bio. That’s like walking up to a complete stranger, who may or may not be friendly.I just move on to the next person.
  • Once you have your name, time to dip your toe in the Twitter waters. My suggestion is to start by following some of your favorite bloggers. You most likely already like them to some degree, if you read their blog. So, start there. It’s a great way to get to know them on a deeper, more spiritual level. Nah, not spiritual but definitely deeper. You will get to know them as a person. People tweet a lot more often than they blog. It’s a fact.
  • Just because you follow 757,000 celebrities, don’t expect them to follow you back or tweet with you.It is as bad as crickets. Are you a celebrity that knows these people in real life? If so, go for it. Their Twitter accounts are a great source for knowing their business but not for making friends or networking. If you want tweeting relationships, follow real people.

Twitter, I Heart You So

  • After you’ve secured some people that you follow, you will see their tweets. *Tweets, in case you don’t already know, are short 140 character messages that allow people to say something..anything….everything.
  • Next, this is crucial, say something ;ENGAGE your Twitter followers. Come on! Don’t be shy. They say something that you find funny, interesting, relate-able, whatever the case may be, comment. Just be yourself and be real. Nobody likes a phony baloney.Believe me, no one wants to hear those damn twitter crickets..unless of course they ARE @Oprah who has 5,395,627 followersand tweets once every other week. She’s busy, normally that’s not the case. Most people tweet because they want someone to tweet back.You tweet , they will tweet back and likely..you will have earned your first Twitter follower.
  • Do NOT constantly tweet at one particular person,unless it’s your Mama and even then, don’t do it.This is not to say that you should comment on every single thing something one particular person says, unless you’ve already developed some sort of rapport, unless you want to find yourself blocked as a Twitter stalker. The only exception is celebrities, and this is only the case because they are most likely NOT responding to most tweets. Plus, they are used to dealing with paparazzi so a little twitter stalker is probably harmless in comparison.
  • Think about why you are tweeting and who you want your audience to be.You’ve got your account, name, and photo. You are following some real people. Interacting.Engaging. You have earned some followers. Now, it’s time to get your Twitter frame of mind on. Why are you tweeting? Friends? Networking for business? Spying on celebrities? Once you make this decision, then you might start to look for either like minded folks or people in the industry that you are trying to network. Believe me.I have thoroughly convinced myself that Twitter was made for 30 something and up Mommies and Daddies to get advice, gossip, make friends and network. THAT is my Twitterverse.Now, pretend you are at a party and make the rounds. Jump in and say hello. Introduce yourself. Don’t be afraid to shine. They don’t know that you are sitting there in your PJs. Start a conversation, say something controversial, ask for advice, compliment someone.This is how you get started on using and growing your twitter acquaintances. Remember, if you don’t speak up..no one even knows you’re there.
  • After you get the hang of this, the possibilities are limitless. I have met fabulous people who I would NEVER have met if left to my limited geographical devices. I have learned a lot from some great people.I’ve made great friendships.I’ve networked myself into the good graces of some wonderful opportunities that would otherwise have not existed if I hadn’t joined Twitter. DO it. Don’t be afraid.It’s only awkward for a minute. I promise. And you can always follow @TruthfulMommy and I’ll walk you through it:)
  • Be aware of the conversation.If you butt into a conversation, which we all do on Twitter, be sure to know what was being said before you got there or at least have some idea of the context. It can be embarrassing if not and some people REALLY don’t like it.
  • NO AUTO DMS! They should be OUTLAWED. They are rude and everybody hates them. Even the sick bastards who use them..HATE THEM!
  • Use DM if nature of tweet is private.If you have something personal or sensitive to say to someone, DM them.DO NOT tweet it. My husband is a newbie and guilty of this.THANK GOD I have his password and can delete before he embarrasses me to badly:)
  • Don’t over tweet your posts or keep saying the same thing over and over again.You will bore people and they will leave.It’s not about tweeting often, it’s about having something to say in your tweets.If not, don’t expect a load of tweets back.It is perfectly acceptable to use your Twitter to promote your posts and yourself, just be aware of your time frame.No one wants just YOU ambushing their tread.
  • Don’t get all crazy if someone doesn’t tweet back on something you tweet.Some people have huge treads and can’t possibly read every tweet. And some people, myself included, leave Twitter open…even when away from computer. So, I may not actually be on twitter. I know, it’s crazy but sometimes I actually have to leave the house and play with the kids, clean the house, buy groceries, rule the world.
  • Retweet what you think is worthy.If you read a funny, interesting tweet that someone else wrote or feel their tweet contained a piece of information, post, or message that needs to be shared, retweet(RT) it . They will appreciate it and so might your followers. But be aware, you may have followers who you know nothing about and a simple RT can be grounds for a Twitter attack and subsequent Divorce. We mustn’t forget the Justin Bieber situation?
  • Don’t be a numbers whore. I know we all get excited about getting a lot of followers. It’s about quality of Twitter relationships not quantity. I myself am guilty of this. I Love having loads of tweeps ( Twitter peeps) to engage and interact with so I’ve gotten a little crazy on numbers before. I’m sure most of you remember New Years Eve of 2010, when I gained almost 100 followers in a matter of about 20 minutes with the help of my #wineparty friends. It was exciting and I love my #wineparty tweeps like nobody’s business, #Wineparty is hosted by @Blogdangerously every Friday night at 9 pm EST. You basically follow the hashtag (#, used to keep tweets on a particular topic together and easily found) and we all drink and tweet.Lots of fun and a great way to get to know people on Twitter.
  • Beware of Twitter jail. I know that you think I am yanking your chain, but I assure you that I am NOT. I know this because I ,myself, have spent time in the Twitter joint. *GASP* I know, the gall. Apparently, if you have a big Twitter mouth ( as I do) and tweet more than 100 tweets in an hour, you will most certainly do not pass go and be put into Twitter jail. This means you lose all tweeting rights and capabilities for an hour.But , be not afraid young Twitter Jedis, you can still DM!FTW!! You just can not shut me up!
  • Last but not least, Be your true authentic self  and have fun.Don’t be a Twitter snob. If you’re not there to make friends or network, to engage, then you should probably stay away from the Twitter party.

Alright, this is my hard earned knowledge that I have to share today about Twitter.Happy Birthday Twitter!I’ll give you your present later. And now that you have the power, I hope you will all join me at the Twitter party and I look forward to tweeting with you and getting to know you better:) Happy Tweeting! And if you do follow me, say hi @TruthfulMommy  on Twitter so I know you are there!

Twitter

Comments

comments

User Rating: 0 (0 votes)

43 Comments

  1. A Mommy in the City  /  2011/03/21, 4:12 pm Reply

    Great tips! And if it weren’t for twitter, I wouldn’t have “met” you! ;)
    A Mommy in the City recently posted..Stroller Security

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/22, 12:12 am Reply

      Aww, I know. I would definitely have been missing out if I had not met you on Twitter. I will always remember your sweet encouraging words when I was having such a rough time with the whole commuter marriage thing. You rock and I won;t forget that!XO mama

  2. ZenaliciousMom  /  2011/03/21, 4:54 pm Reply

    Fantastic post! Wish I had this when I was a twitter newbie (like a few months ago…lol!)

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/22, 12:10 am Reply

      I know, I wish it was for me too. I figure if we get the logistics taken care of, we can commence with the fun part..tweeting and socializing!

  3. Jessica  /  2011/03/21, 5:09 pm Reply

    I had heard of Twitter Jail before but I had no idea what it meant. Thanks for clearing that up for me. Your list is of how to act on Twitter is good, especially the part about speaking up. When I first got on The Twitter I was very shy because I had no idea what was going on. Now, I am not as shy and I try to talk to new people as often as possible.
    Jessica recently posted..The daughter speaks

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/22, 12:07 am Reply

      Good for you! There is no reason to be shy on Twitter, we don’t bite. Well, most of us don’t. Some might but I think there is a special section for THOSE tweeters. :) Happy Tweeting.

  4. Crystal  /  2011/03/21, 5:44 pm Reply

    Aw. Thanks for the info! Loads of help for me, the newbie.

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/22, 12:06 am Reply

      You are welcome! Now, go forth and tweet!

  5. XLMIC  /  2011/03/21, 5:47 pm Reply

    Bookmarking… again! Thanks for educating me :) I am still a little scared of Twitter. Why would anyone be afraid of something called “twitter”? It sounds so harmless and cute. I am, though. But maybe by the end of the day I’ll have the balls to take it on… or something like that ;-)
    XLMIC recently posted..Taking It On

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/22, 12:06 am Reply

      Aww that is so sweet!Don;t be afraid of Twitter. Twitter is your friend. ANd Like I said, follow me and you will find all kinds of awesome tweeps and I’ll help explain anything that gives you issues!

  6. Mommy Nani Booboo  /  2011/03/21, 6:10 pm Reply

    Yay! I love Twitter posts! Good advice for newbies. And I’m surprised people still don’t get that auto DMs are the most annoying thing on the planet. I got three today… and three baby pandas died because of their thoughtlessness.
    Mommy Nani Booboo recently posted..Big Love- leaving a Big Mark on the landscape of television… and a Big Hole in my life

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/22, 12:01 am Reply

      Damn fuckers killing baby pandas!Yes, I absolutely LOATHE Auto DMs!!! With a a deep burning passion.Every time I get one…I unfollow! Seriously! And if I get them in my email…I BLOCK. I hate them that much.Auto DMs pretty much hurt my bloggy heart!*sniff*Sniff*

  7. Allie  /  2011/03/21, 6:24 pm Reply

    Dang! How did you tweet over 100 tweets in 1 hour!? Don’t answer that, hee hee.

    I actually came in on the #wineparty a few months back midway and made a fool of myself by saying I was just drinking Diet Pepsi. Duh! It’s called the “wineparty” for a reason! I hopefully redeemed myself by suggesting a great local Merlot. :-)

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/21, 11:59 pm Reply

      You didn’t make a fool of yourself. Girl, you can drink anything You want at #wineparty. THere have been many nights I have not made it to my drink because I was too busy socializing and getting thrown in the pokey:) Come back and give it another try. Im sure all your favorite peeps are there!

  8. parenting ad absurdum  /  2011/03/21, 6:49 pm Reply

    Great info!! You are a twitter star. I am a twitter slacker. Sorry I haven’t been around – I miss you! I hope to get back on soon…big hugs, xop
    parenting ad absurdum recently posted..How Different Are Your Kids

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/21, 11:58 pm Reply

      I miss you too! I am assuming you’ve been busy with this upcoming move. How are the boys? How is everything? If you need to chat or vent or rave, you have my email or we can chat on FB:)XO

  9. Krysta MacGray  /  2011/03/21, 7:05 pm Reply

    Oh. My. Goodness. My eyes have been opened. Seriously, you have helped tremendously! I have something to go off of. Thank you, thank you!
    Krysta MacGray recently posted..Spring Risotto with Asparagus- Artichoke and Shiitakes

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/21, 11:56 pm Reply

      I know, the hardest part is figuring it out. Tweeting is easy. Hope this has helped.I’d love to see ya on Twitter more.I think YOU would LOVE #wineparty:)

  10. Perfect Dad  /  2011/03/21, 7:17 pm Reply

    I’m still at your stage #1: What is twitter good for? I guess I’ll take your advice and participate. Thanks. It sure must be fun if you can tweet 100 times per hour!
    Perfect Dad recently posted..Perfect Activities- How to Make a Cool Kids Magic Show

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/21, 11:55 pm Reply

      It is a great tool fro networking. You will meet some amazing colleagues, fellow fathers and mothers, bloggers, writers, the sky is the limit. Twitter can be whatever you want it to be. If you have a hobby,an interest, a point of discussion you can find a group and have a conversation which is invaluable when you are surrounded by little people all day long.

  11. Carri  /  2011/03/21, 8:45 pm Reply

    I think I may be the mayor of Twitter Jail, but only on Friday nights. #WINEPARTY!
    Carri recently posted..Seinfeld of The Blogosphere

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/21, 11:53 pm Reply

      All hail the mayor!LOL! Has @Beeswithhoney been thrown in the pokey yet? Certainly that little Twitter monster has made me proud by going to the Twitter pokey:)

  12. Natalie  /  2011/03/21, 9:45 pm Reply

    I too have been in Twitter Jail a time or two, and it usually is at #wineparty. For you newbies, definitely check out the Wine Party because it is a blast and a great way to get to know people and spend a Friday evening.

    I’m working on a Twitter post too, and have both don’t be an egg and never, ever, EVER auto DM.

    Great post!
    Natalie recently posted..Monster Mommy Moment – Helene Style

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/21, 11:52 pm Reply

      Thanks Nat. Yes, Twitter jail always seems to happen in the middle of some fantastically deep conversation during #wineparty:) Drives me bonkers, it’s always mid way thru a rant:( Oh yes, AUTO DM IS the WORST!!!!ARGH!

      • Dany  /  2011/08/16, 1:05 pm Reply

        It’s much eaiser to understand when you put it that way!

  13. Kris  /  2011/03/21, 10:29 pm Reply

    This post would have been all kinds of useful a little more than a year ago when I first joined Twitter.

    I believe I harassed my two followers endlessly until one of them starting RT’ing my tweets just to get me off her back.

    Ahem.

    I had to learn all of this stuff the hard way . . . I do hope someone new is reading this and is saved some aggravation.

    So nice of you to organize all of this information!

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/21, 11:50 pm Reply

      I am a giver!I was pretty pissed when I tweeted that I had headache and fucking Oprah didn’t even care. Bitch didn’t even offer me an advil!LOL

  14. Christina  /  2011/03/21, 11:54 pm Reply

    Well said! I shall retweet this worthy content.

    Also, flipblog rocks!
    Christina recently posted..waiting

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/22, 12:20 am Reply

      Thank you for the RT! ANd yes, Flipblog does rock:)LOL! I see we share the same tastes.I love the blue on yours!

      • Christina  /  2011/03/22, 12:24 am Reply

        Yours is way more customized than mine. I’m still playing with it. I have no idea how you’ve done all this but it’s awesome!

        I am also working on my logo. I have come to the conclusions that logos making just plain sucks!
        Christina recently posted..waiting

  15. Alicia @MommyDelicious  /  2011/03/22, 1:42 am Reply

    Great tips. I owe it to Twitter for introducing me to so many great people/bloggers, like you :-)

    Ditto on the bio thing. I totally won’t follow someone back if they don’t have a bio. And those auto DM’s… they need to DIE!
    Alicia @MommyDelicious recently posted..Guest Post- Dealing With Debt

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/22, 10:23 am Reply

      LOL! Awww,t hat is so sweet.I have met some of my favorite people and bloggers via Twitter:) ANd yes, AUTO DMs SUCK!

  16. MommaKiss  /  2011/03/22, 9:58 am Reply

    I saw a couple of posts about twittering the right way. am i missing something? are people being twitter assholes or something? maybe i’m not paying attention. i do agree with your post, though! Especially the auto DMs. *wishing i was @hairyballs
    MommaKiss recently posted..The state of things

    • Truthful Mommy  /  2011/03/22, 10:22 am Reply

      I did the how to tweet in conjunction with my how to write a blog:) The only reason I wrote it was because a load of people I know don;t tweet because they don;t really “get” it, so I was trying to make it easier for them to maneuver.ALso, yesterday was Twitter’s 5th birthday so that may have been the reason fro the influx. LOL maybe you should make your twitter jail account be @hairyballs, that way when you get thrown in the Twitter slammer you can reemerge in that time out hour as @hairyballs:)

  17. Sonora  /  2011/03/22, 10:35 am Reply

    Great post! I laughed so hard at the part about facebook. I had no idea about the 100 tweets in an hour thing. Of course, I am still in the awkward twitter, hearing crickets phase, so I don’t tweet that much. Thanks for the tips!

  18. Jess@Straight Talk  /  2011/03/23, 12:17 pm Reply

    I so agree! The whole number whore thing is silly. And talk to me if you want me to follow you. Why follow and then say nothing?

    um, I don’t stalk you, right mamacita? Lol
    Jess@Straight Talk recently posted..Who Are You

  19. January  /  2011/03/23, 8:32 pm Reply

    OMG. I was reading this sitting next to my husband and he had to listen to me guffaw consistently for the few minutes I took to read this. This is not only totally informative (although still nervous about taking the twitter plunge) but HIL-AR-I-OUS.

    Thanks…for the info and the great laugh.
    January recently posted..Eleven years ago

  20. Social Media Works; SoapBox does not  /  2011/12/06, 5:46 pm Reply

    [...] preached at or commercial-ed to death. We don’t respond well to SoapBox media. It’s social media 101, you have to be engaged to engage others. You are not the almighty OZ and we already have a brain. [...]

  21. [...] Don’t be afraid to network. To get love, you’ve got to give love. Be yourself and make some comments. Meet some people. Jump into some conversations.Like some fan pages. Make some friends. Get to know some fellow mommy bloggers. Your biggest asset to building your following is your networking skills.You can’t just write to the abyss and expect hoards of people to find you. You are the face of your brand.No one’s buying if it’s not out there on the shelf! Remember that. Write it down!I’ve met most of the wonderful people I know, and learned a lot in the process, from networking on social media sites. It’s very important to know how to utilize sites like Twitter. [...]

  22. [...] to decode it for you.I figured since I already spilled the beans on how to write a Mommy blog and how to navigate Twitter, the next logical step is how to write media kit for your blog. Above is a screenshot of my current [...]

  23. [...] The class Twitter account has 89 followers, most of them parents, the rest of them pedophiles ( probably). If the preschoolers insist on maintaining this account, at least read this post about how to responsibly use Twitter. [...]

  24. [...] The class Twitter account has 89 followers, most of them parents, the rest of them pedophiles ( probably). If the preschoolers insist on maintaining this account, at least read this post about how to responsibly use Twitter. [...]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

CommentLuv badge
http://www.motherhoodthetruth.com/twitter-how-to-tweet/
www.motherhoodthetruth.com
crawl=CC-MAIN-2013-20
191392
application/http; msgtype=response
sha1:I32IEDM4DMVOZOV237KBPSUFVESHTFNZ
<urn:uuid:2439c023-a064-4780-a110-95e5a47010ae>
2013-05-21T04:08:39Z
72.47.224.85
sha1:FHFKV4MKCRJDDPYLNPH4IIS4OZJV27WK
<urn:uuid:4de9852e-bde7-4bdb-9fc8-a33209163fa1>
http://www.motherhoodthetruth.com/twitter-how-to-tweet/
response
<urn:uuid:e9531986-2194-4cf7-a909-3b4b17bbeef9>
robots: classic
hostname: ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal
software: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0
isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2013-20
operator: CommonCrawl Admin
description: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for Spring 2013
publisher: CommonCrawl
format: WARC File Format 1.0
conformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf