Three Ways To Join Twitter Without Looking Like A Latecomer
By Eric Corpus
Twitter shows no sign of slowing down as it spreads across the Internet 140 characters at a time. The service boasts 200 million users – including a growing cadre of Twitter celebrities, or twelebrities – and adds 460,000 users every day. If you haven’t jumped on the bandwagon, you can join the party now and still look like a cool trendsetter. Here are three ways to get you into the groove:
1. TWEET AS MUCH AS HUMANLY POSSIBLE
The best way to not look like a Twitter noob is to build up your tweet count. That way, people can’t easily tell that you signed up this morning. Twitter veterans, or tweterans, have tweet counts in the tens of thousands, so you’ve got some work to do, newbie.
Social media users like real people just like themselves, so the more day-to-day your tweets are, the better. Everyone puts their pants on one leg at a time, so be sure to tweet that.
@ericcorpus left leg into pants
@ericcorpus and in goes the right leg!
Your tweets should be relatable to your followers and followers-to-be. Tweet about things that everyone goes through, like watching TV and eating. Take bed time, for example. Everyone sleeps, and people wait with bated breath for your announcement that you’re “calling it a night.” Especially your prankster roommates who plan to tar and feather you and put it on YouTube.
@ericcorpus nite tweeps
@ericcorpus left leg into bed
@ericcorpus right leg into bed
@ericcorpus i hear giggling
If you doubt whether you should tweet a thought, just tweet it. Or at least ask your followers whether you should.
2. RETWEET JUST AS MUCH
Tweeting every moment in your life will inspire your first hundred tweets, but tweeting every moment in everyone else’s lives is the sign of a Twitter Elite and Expert User, or tweezer. This is possible through the retweet.
The retweet is essentially forwarding someone’s tweet, like you would an email. It gives them props for the profound statement they just made, while you can also add your input. It’s a great way to encourage your Twitter friends and make new ones. Simply add ‘RT’ to the front of a user’s tweet and add any comment after a //, and you have a retweet!
@ericcorpus RT @6dfslover eatin a bagel // Awesome! With cream cheese?
@ericcorpus RT @horsegurl1998 at work now // haha
@ericcorpus RT @tweetfr33k just blinked // me too!
3. ENGAGE THE TWITTER CELEBRITIES
Celebrities exist every arena of life, and Twitter is no exception. These twelebrities include movie stars, professional athletes, royalty, and social media experts.
A twelebrity can give you a Twitter Expansion of Benefits and Reputation, or Twix bar, by including your username in one of their tweets. That tweet will be seen by their hundreds of thousands of followers, many of which might start following you. You can engage these twelebrities by both tweeting at them or retweeting their tweets.
@ericcorpus @ladygaga wanna play paintball this weekend?
@ericcorpus RT @aplusk (-;
@ericcorpus @thoughtcatalog can i rite 4 u?
AND YOU’RE ON YOUR WAY
These invaluable tips are like the back door to the Twitter revolution. You’ll show up late, but no one will notice. And who knows – you too may achieve twelebrity status. Just follow this advice and think of unique ways to stand out among the crowd, much like the Minnesota League of Twitter Innovators, or Minnesota Twins.