8. Use Online Social NetworkingIf you are not using online social media yet, chances are it’s for one of two reasons – either you don’t know how to or you don’t understand why you should bother. Trust me – it’s worth overcoming them both.
Social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn allow you to keep in touch with lots of people all at once. You can keep clients, supporters, sponsors and volunteers up to date with what you’re up to, all while marketing to new stakeholders at the same time. Just like ‘real-life’ networking, social media provides an opportunity to make new contacts, share resources and develop working relationships with people you may not otherwise have the chance to meet.
How to Get Started with Twitter1. Go to www.twitter.com and click the ‘Get Started’ button. Simply follow the instructions to ‘sign up’.
2. Add a photograph or a logo, so that people know your Twitter account is for real. People want to know the conversation is genuine.
3. Make sure you fill in the one line bio, so that people can instantly tell if they want to ‘follow’ your conversation. If you don’t fill in the bio, you’ll get ignored like a wallflower at a party.
4. Search for people you would like to have a conversation with. Use key words that relate to your area of interest eg. autism, schools, social services, New Zealand. When you find people of interest click ‘follow’.
5. Write an update. To start with your updates may be simple things like ‘Learning to use Twitter. Any tips appreciated’. As you learn more, you will use your updates to have more meaningful conversations.
6. Search for Kerri Tilby and then follow. You’ll be able to follow her conversations, and get some ideas for making the most of your own Twitter account.
Once you’ve started ‘Twittering’ there are some things you will want to know…
Yes, you do only have 140 characters per update (or ‘tweet’ as they are known.) You can get around this by pasting in a link to your website or blog, so that people can click through for more information. It is a great way to drive traffic to your website.
If you want to reply to somebody’s ‘tweet’, simply hover your mouse over the right hand side of their update, and a reply button will appear. Click on reply, and then type your update as usual. Your update will appear in your own profile, as well as in the ‘@ tab’ on the other persons page.
If you are following heaps of people, it’s easy to miss comments that have been directed at you. Click on the @ tab on the right hand side of your home page, and you’ll see any ‘tweets’ that have been made with your name in it. Always acknowledge the writer – this is their way of trying to start a conversation with you.
If there is a particular ‘tweet’ you want to refer back to, click the star button and it will automatically save it into your Twitter favourites.
A ‘tweet’ with RT and then @someone is known as a ‘re-tweet’. That means the person tweeting the information is simply repeating something that someone else has said. If you provide meaningful content in your ‘tweets’, they will often be ‘re-tweeted’. It is a great way to be introduced to ‘followers’ outside of your existing circle.
