Get Started with Twitter: Six tips for new users

With some 230 million users and a growing cultural influence, Twitter has become a social media platform hard to ignore.

At its most basic, Twitter is a micro-blogging service that offers users up to 140 characters to express their thoughts as well as share links and photos. Users follow each other to develop a newsfeed featuring all the content tweeted by people they choose to follow – these include celebrities, friends, journalists, websites and organizations like FASNY (www.twitter.com/FASNY).

Here’s what you need to know about getting started on this popular social networking platform:

  1. While Twitter is a great vehicle for conversation, there’s no need to tweet. You may prefer to use your account strictly as a newsfeed, where you’ll get the latest updates from your favorite sources.
  2. If you do choose to tweet, hashtags (#) are the most effective way to engage other like-minded users. Think of hashtags as a message board where multiple people contribute. Simply click on a hashtag, which are automatically linked, or use the search bar to find a conversation.
  3. Use #FASNY to follow our conversations and contribute thoughts and photos from events, including the Winter Games and Convention.
  4. Twitter is extremely smartphone-friendly. The iPhone has Twitter integrated into its standard software. You can also find numerous free third-party apps in your Google or Apple store.
  5. Twitter accounts are 100 percent free. All you need is an email. Visit www.twitter.com to get started.
  6. Follow us at www.twitter.com/FASNY and #FASNY! You’ll get all the latest news, relevant links and updates from your fellow volunteers in the community!