“It’s so annoying” “I can’t keep track of everyone” “People use it for pointless 140-character updates” – I am sure you have heard some of this before. Perhaps you yourself have said some of these things, but I am here to tell you why Twitter can be a productive, informative social media tool and how I can make you see that. Ultimately its a social platform, much like Facebook – if you don’t use the medium in an effective way that you find beneficial, you will find yourself resenting it.
I am not going to give you detailed instruction on how to use Twitter. Mashable has put together a great “Twitter Guide” for you if that is what you need. I am here to tell you the beneficial uses of Twitter that will enable you to consume and create excellent content heavy tweets that are branded for your interests.

1. Follow Tweeps with Similar Interests

Finding those to follow and keep following doesn’t happen instantly. I thought following “Snooki” from the hit MTV show Jersey Shore would be an interesting follow – FAIL. I found her tweets to be exactly what some people describe it: “pointless 140 characters of empty content”. A week later I unfollowed.

Find those who initially you would want to follow: facebook friends, celebrities, family, professors, news etc. Watch their tweets for about a week, if you aren’t receiving the type of information or entertainment you are looking for unfollow. Having these “duds” in your following list can cause frustration and annoyance. Something that I personally use is “Manage Flitter”. It’s easy to weed out some of those inactive, or “annoying” tweeps. It is also a great tool to manage who is/isn’t following you back.

2. Follow Credible Sources

It NEVER hurts to have a few good news handles to follow. My preferences “Globe & Mail, USA Today, Mashable, Daily Mail Online etc.” I knew about some major events this past year before it was even on the television or radio because of Twitter. It is one of the most instant social media tools major news rooms are using. It just gets to us faster.

News aside, you can always follow bloggers, professors, and close friends to ensure a more credible source. I remember when the rumours on April fools day a while back about Justin Bieber being, what was it, 30 years old? 35? A lot of people believed it, but my Tweeps kept me in the know, the RIGHT know because they were credible in identifying it was all just a gag. Be sure to keep those credible Tweeps in your feed.

3. 140 Characters Keeps Information Precise

Facebook feeds, News articles – all can be too much information for our time sensitive lives. We live in a digitally social era where time is scarce and our attention spans are limited, so 140 characters are more of a blessing. When the people you follow, and you yourself, keep it short, sweet and to the point, you can easily depict what is worth your time or not in your feed. I personally love when someone I follow puts an attractive message in their tweet and posts a link to an external source (whether that be an image, video, news article, website, blog etc.).  I like to call these “Full Tweets”. It has everything there for me to make a confident decision if I want to read it or not.  Precise is a good thing, if its too long to fit all the info, shorten it and place the link for a further read.

4. Twitter Lists Keep It Organized

Twitter lists are extremely useful when you begin to have a larger following. You can divide out all of the people you follow into lists, such as “Tech Guys, Family, Friends, Professors, News”. It is helps with all the fast overflowing of tweets in your twitter feed. Just select a category/list that categorized certain tweeps in, and your list will be a little more calm.

5. Keeping it Friendly without Being Too Personal

Twitter can be a great way to interact with people that you don’t necessarily know on a personal level. A quote I remember reading that has always stuck with me is that “Facebook is where you follow your friends, and Twitter is where you follow people you want to be friends with.” I personally have been offered a couple appealing jobs, trials, etc from some of my followers. Its a way to be “personably professional” without being TOO personal with last nights pub pictures, or pictures of your sister acting odd in your family christmas photo – much like Facebook. Now this may or may not apply to you depending on what your career path is, but a lot of employers are reviewing your social presence online. So Twitter could make it or break it for you , and you may not even know it is happening.

So if you were always so skeptical or unsure of how Twitter could be of benefit or worth your time, I hope that I have cleared some of the fog for most of you. If you have any more questions leave a comment or send me an email! Let’s connect!

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iambrodyy 

@brodyhatch