Five Tips For Being A Good Twitizen

Twitter is part of our lives forever now, for better and for worse. (Similar to a marriage, or so I’m told). So it’s important to use it well and act like upstanding members of society, especially if you are using it for professional or brand purposes. Here are five tips for being a good Twitizen over the long haul:

English: Tweeting bird, derived from the initial ‘t’ of Twitter Deutsch: Twitschervogel, entwickelt aus dem Anfangs-‘t’ von Twitter (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Interaction. Twitter (and social media as a whole) is about connecting and interacting. For example, if a question is tweeted to an ice cream company about a favorite flavor disappearing from shelves, a response is expected. The person did not just tweet for sheer pleasure of hitting that send button. If said company fails to respond, they have missed an opportunity to engage a loyal customer (and possibly direct them to another flavor). Brands should not be one-way communicators. Don’t just flood your follower’s feeds with news about you; pose questions, retweet, and respond.
Transparency. Who is tweeting? When it comes to big brands, it can be help to put in the description who is tweeting. Reminding followers that they are dealing with actual people is a great way to humanize your handle.
Crediting. When you write something, don’t you like credit for it? If your answer is yes (why wouldn’t it be?), then be sure to credit the source in your tweets when linking to outside articles. Citing your sources makes you seem more legitimate and it is a great way to cultivate a relationship with customers, influencers, and others in your field.
Politeness. Please. Thank you (more on that later). You’re welcome. These are the basics of being polite. On Twitter, interact cordially and never say anything you wouldn’t say in person. Also keep in mind that once you put something out on social media, it’s probably there to stay. Even if you delete an offensive tweet, there is a chance that someone has taken a screenshot.
Thanking. Just like your parents taught you do as a kid, thank people. If someone retweets you or puts you on their #FF list, just pop out a quick thank you tweet. If you don’t want your gratitude to be visible, you can also direct message a quick thanks.

Twitter is fascinating because it is both simple and complex. With 140 characters you can build a strong following or damage a brand’s reputation. You can influence thousands, or seriously impact the future of your career.

Do you have any other tips for being a good “Twitizen?”