Tips: Tweeting on Twitter

By Renée Phillips, The Artrepreneur Coach

This article is an excerpt from an article that appeared in the Art Calendar Magazine www.artcalendar.com.

Twitter is perhaps the most mystifying of all of the social media sites, as there are no real hard and fast rules of usage. In fact, while there are millions of users, including many of the top companies in the world, only recently have these users begun to formulate ideas for how to make their 140-character tweets most effective.

There is an art to Twitter, and it will take some practice. Keep in mind these helpful tips:

1. If you're tweeting about a popular subject, such as the Metropolitan Museum or Van Gogh, put a number sign (#) in front of the subject. This makes it easy for others to find your tweet through Twitter searches, and they may want to follow you.

2. Upload photos of your artwork and post them directly to Twitter by using services like Twitpic.com.

3. Set up links to your Tweets from your blog. I did this by using "site feeds" and "add a gadget" on my blog at blogger.com.

4. In addition to feeding your tweets directly to your site or blog as described above, you should also add "Follow me on Twitter" sign up link on your home page.

5. Learn about the top Twitter discussions happening in real-time by going to http://search.twitter.com/ . That way, you can tweet current topics of interest. You can also learn who's tweeting about you by searching for your name.

6. Select the option to follow only those discussion topics of primary importance. That will help you avoid e-mail overload.

7. In case you wondered, yes, it's okay to follow people you have never met. It is appropriate and common practice to do so especially if the purpose of Twitter is to connect with people who share your common interests, hobbies and professions. Use www.TwitDir.com to locate them.

8. Suffering from writer's block? Keep a computer file containing today's inspiration for your work, favorite quotes, terrific resources and links, an upcoming workshop or a fun fact that relates to art. Then, whenever you need a tweet or status update, it will be at your finger tips.

9. Spending too much time having to stop and tweet? Save time by scheduling several days of tweets in advance at http://hootsuite.com//

10. Are you frustrated by having tweets with too many characters? There are websites you can use to shrink your URL's. One is http://bit.ly/ You simply type in your URL and it shortens your link for you. For example, this page is http://www.manhattanarts.com/readingroom/ezine/CareerBusiness/Renee_Twitter.htm but when shortened it becomes http://tiny.cc/o80t0 (Ttry the link!) It also provides statistics on how many clicks your'e receiving.

6 More Twitter Tips
Advice from Audrey Chernoff, Artist and Social Media Pro

Audrey Chernoff is a technical recruiter and abstract artist based in NYC. She is the founder of Visual Artists and their Advocates, and the Bloggers’ Network. Both are excellent groups on Linkedin. Chernoff can also be found on Twitter as @audreychernoff, and is available as a consultant to help clients navigate LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Here are some of her tips for artists trying to make an impact on Twitter:

1. Connect with like-minded people. Chernoff suggests, “Find your appropriate market. To connect with people who might enjoy your work or what you have to say, go to http://search.twitter.com. Search for a keyword or phrase — for instance, abstract art. From that page, you can set up an RSS feed for the phrase you chose.”

2. To make the most of Twitter, “You can also set up e-mail alerts at http://tweetbeep.com for free. Follow the people that interest you and some will follow you back for two way networking. You can follow up to 2,000 people at first.” However, she warns us, “Don’t do this all in one day. It is called aggressive following and will affect your Twitter account.”

3. One of the best ways to grow your Twitter circle is to connect with locals, says Chernoff. “Find twitter users near you. Here is an article about how to do that: http://mashable.com/2009/06/08/twitter-local-2/. Finding people who live near you is a great way to network and even take things offline and in person.”

4. Learn the lingo. Chernoff asks, “When you are on Twitter, do you wonder what RT means? It means ‘re-tweet.’ When someone tweets something you like, it is good form to re-tweet it like this: “RT @reneephillipsny Please read the article I wrote ‘Social Networking for Artists’ at http://www.artcalendar.com.” In this way, you are giving credit to the person who originated the tweet and you are sharing the information with your network. Be sure to thank people who re-tweet your tweets.

5. How do you generate interest on Twitter? Chernoff advises, “Engage your audience.” We know this is extremely important in business relationships. Specifically, she recommends three things: First, when you add a new blog entry ask a question of your readers to inspire comments. Second, blog, comment and tweet about other people (not just yourself) to increase interest and expand your audience. Third, point readers toward an interesting article you discovered with a direct link that would be of interest to your followers.

6. Final tip from Audrey, “As much as you may be tempted to warn others about a bad experience, don’t write anything inflammatory or you will be vulnerable to a libel lawsuit.” (It has happened!)

You may also want to read Renee's article "Social Networking: Benefits for Artists"

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