11 Twitter Commandments: The Basics

by Rachel Sterne    November 18, 2009

Using Twitter to promote a startup or brand? Here are the basics.

1. Every tweet should have a link.

(Instead of 'We just published our 500th post!' Try 'We just published our 500th post! Check it out: http://bit.ly/a8Du7')

2. Every link should be a shortened link (via http://bit.ly, http://tinyurl.com, etc). This is so that links don't get broken in retweets or aggregators.

3. When possible, every tweet should have a call-to-action or 'ask.'

4. References to people or groups on Twitter should include their @username.

5. Engage with anyone who references the brand.  If it's a negative tweet say @soandso Sorry to hear that! How can we help?

6. Every tweet should leave enough characters that it can be effortlessly retreated PLUS your username.

7. Save searches for your brand, username, space and scan frequently.

8. Create lists that underscore your authority on a space or industry.

9. Pick an "Information Function" and stay consistent.

10. Try not to tweet more frequently than every 20 minutes.

11. Try not to tweet less frequently than half a day.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

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