Most of this website’s blog readers are undoubtedly using Twitter, either tentatively, experimenting with it, or full speed ahead. From the time I first discussed social media over two years ago, there has been an explosion of usage and information about social media tools and Twitter in particular. There’s no need to reiterate what can be found elsewhere, but I’d like to point out some useful pointers and best practices.

Be aware that Twitter sometimes changes its rules of engagement and usage, and it’s up to the user to stay current, learn to function within the bounds or create ways to deal with the changes. One recent example is discussed in a July 12 entry at http://weiwardgirl.wordpress.com regarding how to view and who can view @ replies.

The goal of many Twitter users has been to amass a league of followers. New applications (the concept that more is better) and popularity contests like CNN’s breaking news (@cnnbrk) versus Ashton Kutcher ( @aplusk ) helped foster this approach. It is easy to err, especially if you are eager to promote your ideas or new ventures and want to gain a following and attention from the media and other audiences. However, more thoughtful approaches are gaining currency. Last week eConsultancy posted The 10 Twitter Commandments on their blog. I agree with their advice and encourage you to read the full entry (http://econsultancy.com/blog/4162-the-10-twitter-commandments). Their counsel largely focuses on what you should NOT do. Here is a quick summary:

1. Don’t use DM autoresponders unless you really understand how they work
2. Don’t solicit retweets
3. Don’t send automatic updates (autotweets)
4. Don’t send clusters of tweets in quick succession
5. Use hashtags wisely and don’t overuse them
6. Your avatar or photo should be professional and in good taste
7. Don’t oversell or overpitch
8. Don’t autofollow; only follow those with interesting things to say (quality, not quantity)
9. Don’t advertise or sell out to get a chance to win or get some compensation
10. Think before tweeting and make your tweets accurate and thoughtful

And here are some more things to think about:

1. Take the time to monitor who your followers are and block offenders.
   • Avoid spammers (haven’t personally encountered this, but many have)
   • Avoid unsavory people (followers using one sexually explicit tweet and an x-rated photo)
   • Avoid controversy (one follower has a major gripe against a well-known company and issues tweets full of vengeance)
2. Consider using a program like TweetDeck to help you monitor and control your account
3. Be aware of impersonators – make sure you’re following the real celebrity, organization or leader
4. Be extremely careful about giving out your password – many applications ask for this (although I’m not recommending any, the above-mentioned TweetDeck seems to respect your privacy)
5. Rarely use the same tweets across multiple accounts (defeats the purpose of having them)
6. If you follow a few key people or organizations, you may want to set up a separate account just to monitor them. Some recommend separate personal and business accounts.
7. If you tweet for your company or organization, make this clear.

  Feedback is welcome. Let’s start a dialogue: @patlovenhart, @MarketTrends, @ConsumersVoice.