A Brief and Informal Twitter Etiquette Guide

August 1, 2009 · Comments

twitter spammers I love Twitter. I think the service is a wonderful tool that permits a whole new way of communicating. The thing is, it’s also a place where newcomers might often make some mistakes in their choices that will likely be taken in a negative manner, and will likely result in an unfollow or a block from other Twitter users. The idea to write a brief and informal twitter etiquette guide came from my new friend Zaven, who asked whether, in some cases, people might just be behaving in a social structure that makes sense to their culture, but not mine. He might be right. With that as a motivator, here are some guidelines for Twitter to consider. NOTE: these come with the You’re Doing It Wrong seal of “don’t take anyone’s word for law, least of all Chris Brogan’s.”

Maybe, as this is fleshed out, you’ll have some ideas to add or subtract to the guide, and we can update it accordingly. Fair?

A (less) Brief and Informal Twitter Etiquette Guide

  • A complete bio and avatar pic (I like people’s faces, but do what you will) is always a good idea. We want to know who you are. (inspired by Kendra).
  • It’s helpful to be transparent about your work/employer in your profile, if your use of Twitter has any implications for your day job. (from Eden Spodek)
  • Face to face you get a sense of how your idea is being received. No such thing on Twitter. So play nice. (from Carolyn Stephens)
  • Be yourself. It is ok and welcome to be different on twitter. (from Sudha Jamthe)


  • It’s okay to follow people you don’t know on Twitter. They can choose whether or not to follow you back.
  • It’s okay to unfollow people on Twitter. Unfollowing doesn’t automatically mean “I don’t like you.” There are many other reasons.
  • It’s okay to @reply someone a question or comment vs direct message, especially if it’s an idea where others might weigh in or add a perspective.
  • It’s better to direct message someone if you’re making 1:1 plans or having a very focused, personal conversation.
  • It’s not polite to direct message people you don’t know well with your automated quiz results or similar. It’s great that YOU like those quizzed, but others see it as spam.
  • Most folks don’t like seeing those “I just used whateveryoucallit.com to gain 300 new followers right now!” services. – (from Steve Woodruff).
  • Some people are not a fan of auto reply messages that are sent in direct messages when someone follows you on Twitter. They (and by “they,” I also mean “I”) consider these robot behavior.
  • Promoting others and talking with others is a great way to show your participation to the community.
  • Only blurting out your information and links doesn’t usually come off as friendly or community-minded.
  • Tim O’Reilly suggests that @replies have lots of detail in them, so that others picking up the conversation can understand the response (example: turn “yes” into “Yes, I really love the new G.I. Joe movie.”)


  • You don’t have to read every tweet.
  • You don’t have to respond to every @mention.
  • You aren’t obligated to reply to every direct message.
  • If someone direct messages you and you find that you cant message them back because he or she isn’t following you, a simple @reply stating, “I went to send you a direct message back but you’re not currently following me” is good manners. – (inspired by Kendra). *NOTE: Twitter sometimes loses follower relationships during clean ups. It doesn’t always mean that someone actively unfollowed you.
  • However, the more you can respond, the more people tend to stay with you and build relationships.
  • When retweeting other people’s works, it’s okay to truncate a bit to be able to retweet. Please preserve the link and also the original person’s Twitter name. (ex: RT @mackcollier “Twitter lives and dies on retweeting.”)
  • When retweeting someone else’s retweet, it’s sometimes okay to drop the secondary source and just retweet the original poster of the information. (example showing a change to a retweet): “RT @chrisbrogan RT @mackcollier Twitter lives and dies on retweeting” turns into “RT @mackcollier Twitter lives and dies on retweeting.” (make sense? agree?)
  • Want to avoid the above problem? Make your retweets more retweetable.
  • It’s Ok to have multiple twitter identities (from Jack Bresler)
  • It’s OK to disregard robots. (from Jack Bresler)
  • If you’re running a customer service Twitter account, it’s polite to follow back the people following you. (from Ted Coine).
  • Unless you have the author’s consent, it also may be unwise to pull from another feed stream, like mybloglog, and place the information into the twitter stream (from WWAHHMpreneur)
  • Swearing/cursing might well be bad etiquette, and feels like swearing loudly in a public place. (from BizyBiz) . *Note: I sometimes swear. Sorry. :(
  • Pitching your blog might not be the next best move directly after a follow. (inspired by cherylandonian)
  • Don’t get hung up on the numbers, that’s not what matters. Its a case of who you know not how many you know. (from Justin Parks)
  • People might unfollow you if you tweet excessively (falls into Chris’s “You’re Doing it Wrong” category). – (from Chloe Wilkinson)
  • It’s OK (heck, it’s recommended) to actively BLOCK followers you don’t want following you. – (from Bonnie Lowe)
  • Check your links before you tweet them! (from Sure)


  • If you can, cite the source of the link you’re posting. – (from Carlos R Hernandez)
  • and what else?

What else would you want to tell people who are new to Twitter? Do you agree or disagree with my ideas? What else will we do to help new people get acquainted?

Your thoughts are important.


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  • I found this to be a great help - it's a bit like joining anything new - you want to join in but not make a fool out of yourself. So I found some of the advice helpful ie you don't have to follow everyone who follows you or RTs you necessarily. It's about making sincere relationships over time like joining any club really and I've made some wonderful connections and been invited to amazing places (The Downing Tweet Party) just through Twitter. So thanks for the advice - I'm off to pass it on !
  • I had an experience with a Social Media Expert who demonstrated poor Twitter etiquette as illustrated in my post entitled: Don't @Mention IT http://nGn.bz/viva
  • rackmanager
    easy to understand the manner of using Twitter . thanks (this article is suitable for newbies though)
  • Thanks, Chris! This is a good list that included a few pointers that were new to me.
  • BTW, Chris, thanks for the shout out (regarding etiquette in getting author's consent to pull from another stream like mybloglog and insert into a different stream like twitter).

    As usual, you're being a great example.

    (I know this is a very late post...have been very busy with homeschool.)
  • Nancy
    As a newbie: what is the relationship between Twitpic and Twitter? They seem to be connected, but I don't see an account setting for this feature, nor do I notice a place to share or see photos on twitter home pages.
  • It's ok to NOT follow any of these tips!
    Just kiddiiiiing ;)
  • Great info Chris, Thanks!
  • This is the best Twitter guide that I've seen to date, Chris. I wish this was mandatory reading for all newbies. I'm definitely bookmarking this to send to any new friends who join the Twittersphere. Thank you!

    Amber
    @wordsdonewrite
  • Thanks for this list. I really helped me with a few questions I had. I've also shared it with our FB fans at www.facebook.com/coffeeshopreneur.
  • Thanks for this Chris. I will be distributing appropriately.

    I agree with mrbusinessgolf that there are too many marketing and PR firms out there teaching their clients to use Twitter as a billboard. I strongly advocate authentic communication when working with my social media marketing consulting clients. I like to use tweetlater as an example with a quote I picked up from @unmarketing "Using a service to tweet while you're not here is like sending a mannequin to a networking event ...".
  • Thank you Chris. I will be distributing this link where appropriate.
  • Chris: why do we give credit with retweet's on twitter, but not any other source? For example -- facebook sharing?
  • It's OK to "tease" a link with your clever description, but try to give at lease _some_ indication of what the link is about.
  • The mikroblog / Twitter show proper etiquette guidelines, but the entry of new members is not subject to any conditions of acceptance and understanding of etiquette and the strengthening of.
    On the other hand, consider it viable to the autonomous community of the shape to the moral morale of microblogging: levy itself sooner or later those who are the community's expectations, do not conform to the fundamental values and even tried not to do so. An alternative scenario I can imagine that it is not too much time oylan after becoming a member of Twitter, the various conditions and / or waiting to enter the person's recommendation will be achieved.
  • Twitter is about sharing your learning experience. It doesn't really matter if you are an expert or not. So long as you are very willing to share your experience, people are willing to follow and listen. And while you do the same by following people to listen to them, you can borrow their strengths by retweeting for your followers to listen. It's a one-bird-kill-two-stones method. But it works very well, and it provides a good value preposition to my followers.
  • If someone's twitter profile includes their phone or email, don't be presumptuous that they want you to call or email them with irrelevant or unsolicited contact. Sooner or later there may be a Twitter DNC list.
  • andreagoldman
    Twitter is about forming relationships. So, even if you are posting about business related issues, show that you have a personal side as well. Tweet about your interests and hobbies and even in a limited way, family activities. This is not the same as a LinkedIn page. I think you are limiting yourself if you don't come across as a person.
  • Nice Twitter Etiquette Guide.quite use for me.
  • Nice Twitter Etiquette Guide.I think this is quite useful for person like me because I have not join the tweeter yet.
  • Just use twitter however you want. Nobody is going to search for you all day just to start a conversation with some random person. Get involved where you want to be involved and respond how you want others to respond to you.
  • Nice collection of Twitter Etiquette guide. :)
  • Batman
    I don't believe that you can be doing it wrong, as Twitter is different things to different people, which is the basis of, The Experiment, actually :)

    You seem to have hit all the highlights, however, It seems to me that this is yet another post telling me how to use Twitter. Of course, now that Twitter has gone mainstream, maybe regular social rules that you'd use in a casual party situation apply now.
  • dougal
    Hey, I went to whateveryoucallit.com and I didn't get *any* new followers. All I got was a stupid parked domain page! What a rip-off!

    But seriously, I think it's important for newcomers to keep in mind: you don't have to follow back everybody who follows you; you don't have to feel pressured to read every tweet; you don't have to participate in every meme you see (like #followfriday); don't obsess over follower stats.

    I only follow people that I already know, have met (online or offline), or who have something to say that I feel is interesting to me. Sometimes I unfollow people. It's usually not due to anything in particular they've said, but just because of a "noise" threshold, or a lack of interest overlap. In my case, I'm more likely to keep following you if you tweet about programming, sci-fi, or hockey than if you tweet about NASCAR, needlepoint, or your pet parakeet.

    And yes, definitely block accounts that look like spam.
  • paulawilliams
    Hi Chris-

    I derived a top ten list from your "Brief Etiquette Guide" for my etiquette blog at http://www.Ravenwerks.com, included a link back to the original.

    Well done- hope that you don't mind a linked derivative work!

    -Paula
  • basketsbybonnie
    2 more:

    1. There is such a thing as TMI (too much information).

    2. Don't automatically follow. Good idea to check out new followers to make sure you really want their Tweets. Also good idea to block anyone you would be embarrassed to be "seen" with (adult websites, spammy spammers)
  • basketsbybonnie
    As with any Social Media, be careful what you Tweet. ANYONE, your boss, future employer, customers, friends & family can see them. Your Tweets can & will be used against you.
  • Simple Criteria for me to follow and engage you:

    1. Picture of yourself or likeness.

    2. Where you live. iPhone/Google longtitude/latitude numbers don't count. That makes more work for me. I'm not going to stalk you.

    3. Give me a description. It can be work or non work related. What you are passionate about will come through in your tweets.

    4. Don't auto-dm me upon follow. It is like getting a form letter from my congress person. Their secretary wrote it and stamped used the signature stamp.

    5. Half your tweets must be @replies or RTs that you share common beliefs in. If you're just tweeting information you're traditionally old. You still haven't got the point of Twitter. This includes you major news sources (CNN, WSJ, et al). You are not exempt if you're not listening.

    6. Change your Twitter background. Doing so shows you are a creative person and we all are creative in our own way. You could draw stick figures and I would find it better than someone who doesn't take the time to care about public perception.

    7. DON'T YELL. It won't get your point across anymore.

    8. Don't RT major news all the time for the sake of karma. Nine times out of ten everybody else I am following has RTed the same thing too. Common bonds = common interests = common knowledge.

    9. Your tweets must make sense. It is a 140 characters. Make sure you still use the lessons taught to you by your HS grammar teacher. I'm not going to click on a tweet with a bunch of buzz words thrown together.

    10. Be yourself. Living in a PC world takes a lot of work. It forces you to live within certain constrains. It limits honest, openess, and ultimately communication. This is where you have to know your audience and find the balance between being funny and sarcastic or being mean and hurtful.
  • Nice bit of information. :-)
  • Don't tweet only links (you look like a robot) and don't tweet without links completely (you look like a snob)
  • webzie
    re. point: Unless you have the author’s consent, it also may be unwise to pull from another feed stream, like mybloglog, and place the information into the twitter stream.

    Is there a resource that highlights Do's and Don'ts of Retweeting other people or organizations' content on Twitter?

    Thx for your great posts!
  • Some really great tips there, I would suggest to newcomers on Twitter that they don't spam advertismets, people who use social media sites don't want to be sold to, & they don't go there to buy.

    I'd also recommend if you join one of those Mafia family type sites, that you turn your notifications off, it really annoys me when when they fill up my timeline.

    Paul.

    http://twitter.com/Paul_J_L
  • @mrbusinessgolf - that is a great analogy, and I agree that in these cases Twitter is not being used to its fullest extent. Twitter allows others, particularly businesses, to interact and engage with their customers in an entirely new way. Communication and relationship building are much more effective than the "billboard approach."
  • Excellent post, Chris ..thanks
  • I agree with your ideas. I would suggest to include the rule Ronda Levine wrote in her comment to this post: Don't post anything that you wouldn't want your children, mother, boss, or client to read'. I think a lot of people are unaware at first that everything they post may turn up in their Google results.
  • I always try to make sure my retweets give proper credit to the author. Sometimes it may take an extra step of adding that person's Twitter ID before sending out the update, but I think it's important to do. Pay it forward a bit and help someone else with building their friend list along with traffic to their site.

    A suggestion: Those using TweetMeme should update their settings on their blog to have their @username automatically added to the retweet to save the retweeter time. Otherwise it just uses the RT @TweetMeme.
  • In many ways, this goes beyond a mere etiquette guide and is really more of a nuts-and-bolts Twitter 101 with lots of good tips.

    When we wrote our own "Twittiquette" post recently (http://blog.cdginteractive.com/my_weblog/2009/0...) we were focusing on the client/agency perspective; ultimately, we went the opposite direction and boiled it down to 5 rules: reciprocal following (within reason, of course); don't spam; don't disrespect your client; ask questions; and be transparent.

    Bottom line, as many have noted -- use your common sense and common courtesy, as you should in any public communication interactions.
  • dansorensen
    This is similar to Chloe Wilkinson's suggestion, but when tweeting, try to pace yourself. Allow atleast a few minutes between messages. Imagine other people's screen filled with your picture, name and messages and think how annoyed they probably.
  • maiwada
    Excellent Twitter Etiquette Guide. Please further explanations are needed as to the meaning of all these short cuts such as " http://bit.ly/wFn7K" and many of such technicalities
  • Excellent tips here Chris. I've been experimenting with different twitter strategies and so far I've found a bunch that DON'T work. I've taken your advice here and I'm changing up my game plan on one of my accounts to see how it works.
  • Chris, this is an interesting post about the etiquette of tweeting and blogging from events without disclosing it or seeking approval, particularly if its an invitation only event and hosts may not be expecting it or entirely happy to have this form of private media sharing without being aware. http://2020science.org/2009/06/03/to-tweet-or-n...
  • ordersatellite
    hey, I read your article about Informal Twitter Etiquette Guide. Thanks for sharing this with us. Do you know some people do manage to make a little money as inbound customer service work from home operatives and obviously this sort of work is suitable for someone who wants to work from home.
  • I liked the post. Very nice collection of etiquettes. I unfollowed a twitterer who used to tweet approx 15 tweets at once. It's a burden, I have to scroll all over that tweets to read other's valuable tweets.
  • Don't post anything that you wouldn't want your children, mother, boss, or client to read. Tweets do come up sometimes in Google searches. I try to remember that when I'm tempted to complain. Also, tweet with people's best interest in mind. I do post my blog posts on there, but I also try to keep in mind my diverse audience and post motivational quotes and links to other blogs and things I find interesting and useful.
  • If you ask a specific question of your followers, such as a product recommendation or a technical solution, share the answer in a tweet and give credit. If your question was appropriate to blast out to your followers then the answer may be of interest, too.
  • Excellent article. Thanks for the tips. Twitter is a great platform for social networking if we all play nice!!
  • Tom K
    Here's another source on twitter do/don'ts: http://www.sherrymain.com/ . Scroll down to "Twitter Style Guide".
  • Thoughtful well written article.
    I don't mind followers in foreign languages, but multiple tweets in a foreign language I tend to block, because I'd like most of my followers to be able to read most of my timeline.
  • spryka
    Twitter is like a breath of fresh air on the Social Media scene. I have been on it for just a few weeks now and I have met several interesting people. It is a platform to network with people you would like to meet in real life.

    KZ
    Email Marketing Software
  • In essence, Twitter is both enabled by trust, and a trust enabler. IMO, its potential as a driver of high value interactions is vastly diminished if you don't view approach Twitter with this as a first principle in mind.

    I wrote a piece after the Twitter spammer cull on STweM.com about how important I think it is to continually prune your follower list of spammers as a courtesy to your genuine followers.

    If you think you haven't got the time, you need to ask yourself why on the one hand you're prepared to spend so long creating great content that adds value to your community when composing blog posts, yet on the other are happy to have the authenticity of your presence and voice diminished by allowing spammers to trample all over your account.
  • rdbattistella
    Thanks for this list of items Chris. I'm new to Twitter and still figuring things out. This kind of info helps quite a bit.
  • Nice list for anyone to read and think about, I read quite a few of the comments and there were two things so far I had not seen mentioned ... One would be if you have multiple twitter accounts only follow another person with only one of your accounts ... I have a tendency to not allow someone to follow me with more then one of their accounts ...

    The other would be when creating a custom background, that you make sure it is easy to View / Read, for example A Black background may look nice & professional even, but please be aware that your sidebar (where you info is) should be of a different color, or at the very least the Font color should stand out ... Black background with Navy Blue Font doesn't read so easily ... :-)
  • I think those are both good ideas.
  • One of the most annoying things is when someone you follow DMs you and they aren't following you back so you can't respond. It has happened to me a few times.
  • Like when I just did that to you? Sorry. : (
  • aubreykipp
    Excellent post chris. Keep sending the good content.
  • Anita Ebanks
    As a newbie this has been very helpful. Thanks. I'll look forward to other updates.
  • wow !! this was a very good information. I just started using twitter from last 15 days. & this blog was really provided a lot info.Thanks!!
  • >>>You don’t have to read every tweet.

    Then what the hell is the point of Following people? I Follow people because they have informative tweets. That's why I have barely 400 I Follow, instead of the ludicrous 15,000 some do.
  • Clearly, you're doing it right and everyone else is doing it wrong.

    You follow however many you want and you use it however you want. Reading EVERY tweet is one way to do it. Reading lots of tweets across various topic lines is another.

    I follow people so that they have permission to direct message me. That's why.

    It's ludicrous to you because you don't use it the way I do.
  • keellabs
    Reading this particular "rule" was revolutionary for me, the reason I actually came back to make a comment.

    My experience on twitter is much changed now. Building on Gary V's analogy of a cocktail party, you can't be in every part of the room hearing every conversation. That would be weird. You were there, you hung out, and that's plenty.

    Thanks!
  • As someone who first read the masses chanting, "thou shalt follow everyone you can and follow back all who follow you," I had to find out on my own that I got more out of finding quality people to follow and offering value in my tweets to entice new followers.

    Thanks, Chris, for JAGA (Just Another Great Article).
  • Carolyn
    I'd be disappointed to see Twitter become homogenized with everyone following the same set of rules. The tool is fresh enough to leave room for surprise innovation in content and/or design. Whether building relationships or billboards the choice is in the hands of the user.
  • By all means. I put language as a disclaimer at the very beginning and a few times in comments that references my "you're doing it wrong" post. The reason for that post is that there are more than one way to use every tool.

    Disregard this post if you disagree, and that's fine too.

    :)
  • I think this blogpost is proof that users say what they want to be twitter and twitting like.
  • teemorris
    Chris, this is why I asked you to write the Foreword for my book. Thanks. :^)
  • My habits:
    Do not RT commercials tweets like "For win free pillow from our store http://our_company.com follow @our_company and RT this tweet". Its really spammy and not polite to your followers.
    Do not thank for following. I want to follow you if I have done it. Rather mention or RT when appropriate.
    Do not thank for RT. I RT posts I like, not because of thanks. If you wanna thank, RT what consider valuable or recommend on #followfriday(allwas mention why to follow)

    and make it fun :)
  • Irant
    A few more I'll list:

    I think a mistake some make is to @ someone with a large following, writing the tweet in such a way as one would think it were endorsed by that person isn't a good idea.

    With respect to swearing - I swear too, and that's part of who I am. If you don't like swearing then the issue in my mind is not a "don't do that because I don't like it" but an issue of "I don't like it, so I'll unfollow and /or block you." Twitter is NOT about anyone defining what others' acceptable behavior should be.

    I agree with your statement that it is OK to just retain the original source of a tweet if you have to, although ideally the tweet will allow you to acknowledge the original source of the information AND the source that brought the information to your attention.

    I've found that if there is someone I am following that consistently makes their tweets too long to retweet, I just stop trying (unfortunately, some of these folks have good information to share); I also have gotten to the point where I may or may not even read their tweets. This supports the "make your tweets retweetable" point, so that you can fully participate in the community.

    I think continually complaining in tweets about spammers is becoming the new spam - "I'm so sick of spammers; if you're a spammer don't even follow me; etc.) I don't want to read through any number of tweets in a day listening to someone complain about spam; I don't want to do this for the same reason I don't want to be spammed - it's a waste of my time.

    I like how @alohaarleen approaches spammers and other "dubious" twits - she calls them out directly, and with her unique voice. I think @ing a spammer directly, calling them out is a great way to police this community, just as a day in the stocks in front of all your neighbors was a great way to police communities three or four hundred years ago.
  • It's nice to @ someone you've started following to either start or respond to a conversation so you'll get to know each other better.

    It's also helpful to be transparent about your work/employer in your profile if your use of Twitter has any implications for your day job. For example, if you're always tweeting about cars and work at for auto maker, let people know.
  • I share your key thoughts on this, so much so that I recently wrote
    "11 Sure-Fire Ways to Get Me to Unfollow You on Twitter." http://bit.ly/ilis6

    Each platform has its own rules of etiquette, but the problem (or challenge) is that etiquette is in the eye of the beholder. We all think we're conducting ourselves appropriately and that it is the "other person's" problem if they don't get it.

    The beauty of social media and networking is that it allows us to "try people on" and see who fits. If someone's style or content doesn't suit us, we just return them (no questions asked and no receipt needed).
  • I wrote a blog post a while back about approaches to twitter and it was more prohibitive than this. I've chilled out a lot about it but I'm still a big fan of the block button. Your guidelines here would be a great starting point for a new twitterer.

    My experience has been that you CAN end up with very famous people following you but there are real people behind the avatars and they're just the same as anyone else: some are more than happy to DM regularly and some aren't. It's the same as 'the real world' - you have to feel your way around, screw up a bit, and work out the rules for each relationship as you go. Everyone messes up. Most people forgive you if they trust that you respect them.

    I thought I was being a bit petty for hating auto-replies so much. Really glad you don't like them either.

    The only thing I'd add to this is that sometimes it's a good idea to explain yourself if you're acting out of character. For instance, at the moment I'm winning a popularity contest on twitter and a fair number of posts are about that, so every now and then I explain this as I'm not a big fan of blatant self-promotion and I don't want new followers to think all I ever do is demand votes. It also works if you're having a rant. Obviously nobody should ever rant but sometimes you really need to. If it happens, you need to break off and explain 'I'm having a rant. Sorry everyone. I'll be done in a sec' or something or else new followers get a really skewed view of you. (Rants are best DMed BTW if/when they happen). I'd say only debate with people you respect enough to try to resolve the issue/see things from their perspective. If someone just offends you: block them.

    Oh.. and treat twitter like a party. Interact. Follow the people you find interesting but don't hound them to follow you back. Have fun!

    Rebecca - word nerd
    http://rebeccawoodhead.com
  • Em
    Good Lord. I was on Rebecca Woodhead's Twitter stream a few months back and I couldn't keep up with the spam of constant self-promotion. The quickest unfollow in history for me. At least be honest about it...
  • Chris, thank you so much for these wise words. As someone new to Twitter, I was wondering whether sending an auto-DM to thank people who follow is polite or rude. Having originally started with the darn thing on (still cringing that I ever thought it was polite; ouch, brutal newbie mistake), it's now permanently off thanks to your post.

    A question for you / the community at large about RT-ing: if you find great information that you want to share & honor the original tweeter(s)... but the text of the original post is not particularly descriptive of the content (or of the point that you are wishing to emphasize in the information), is it ok to rewrite the text portion if you keep the "@name" of the original poster(s) and original link? If so, what do you think is the most polite way to do it - to use the traditional "RT" or "RW" for ReWrite as suggested in one of the previous comments?

    Thanks again, for those of us still getting our social media sea legs this post is incredibly helpful!
  • I would say you can rewrite it and add a (via @blabla ) at the end.
  • Chris & Rene - Sound advice. Much appreciated. Thank you both!
  • I think the rewrite thing is okay. In magazine articles, a rewrite is usually [bracketed], so maybe that's the best way here?
  • Chris,

    I like to cross-stream as you call it. I sometimes find an interesting url shared on facebook and if that friend is on twitter I'll likely tweet a response with a link to their url.

    These days I am increasingly responding to emails via tweets to help get friends comfortable with twitter and also to reduce emails. Its a disservice to some conversations to keep them bottled in email or IM between two people, so I set it free by bringing it to twitter.
  • Avoid, at all cost, Twitter "follower" services that guarantee that you'll get x amount of followers, and then, when you participate, a tweet shows up under your name in your Twitterstream saying something like "I used Twit-O-Matic and got a zillion new followers - you can too!" It's a fast way to get unfollowed.
  • bonnielowe
    Along the lines of what Heather said, try to make your replies easier to understand. (I don't care much about whether others totally understand the exchange between two tweeple, but sometimes the person you're replying to won't have a clue because he/she won't read your reply until several hours later.)

    I always try to begin my replies with a helpful reminder of the topic, e.g., "Re: Twitter etiquette, I (blah, blah, blah)." That's sometimes tricky with a 140-character limit, but it sure makes it easier on those reading your replies.
  • Chris,
    Thanks for this. I particularly agree with your 4th point about switching to DM when having a long personal exchange (or better yet, go to the 'Facebook Lounge!') I don't want to hear the details of your surgery or the how the diet is going or 'witty' banter that goes on and on, clogging my stream and making me want to scream 'get a room!'

    On the other side of that coin, the Twitter experience can be richer if you mine your favorite Tweeters' 'following' list for gems, so that you can benefit from their exchanges (providing they don't get to far into child-rearing tips or what's for dinner tonight, yaaawn!)

    Biggest mistakes I see newbies make are technical, like not leaving a space before the @ sign so that it doesn't show up as a reply to the receiver.
  • I'd like to add it is ok to @reply someone not following in response to something they said. It is not ok to @reply someone not following you a topic of your choice just to get their attention. Even if it's not a spam/link topic. Especially if you send the same @reply to multiple people. That is still spam.
  • @chrisbrogan This will make a good handout for my computer class, if that's OK with you. Thanks!
  • Rebecca_M
    What is the etiquette for commenting on others' tweets with which you disagree? One fellow I follow is quite vocal about misinterpretig others' tweets and blog posts and then unfairly and very self-righteously criticizing. When I pointed out (as tactfully as I could) that he seemed to be unfairly attacking others, he attacked my integrity, unfollowed, and blocked me.
  • There are plenty of losers out there. Disagree all you want. Attack the issue, not the person, and be respectful or risk counter-attack.

    Make sense?
  • monikaginoseast
    Chris, as a newbie tweeter I must know: Is it wrong to send a DM coupon for my business if someone has signed on to follow me?
  • If the first thing a person, that decides to follow you, hears is a DM with a link to your site... I'd say, some people would unfollow for that.
  • monikaginoseast
    katharinavienna that is good advice. What if its after some time? If people are following my business, don't they want something? If they don't, do they just want someone to follow them and then they won't care about what I send...?
  • If you got the link in your Twitter Profile, or Tweet about news and stuff, it's ok. But for me, a DM where someone plugs their company means unfollow.

    Why not post it as a tweet? you can write: "I offer coupons to my followers - DM me, if you'd like some, and I DM you back with the code"
  • monikaginoseast
    Yes! thank you!
  • Chris, this is a great list. One of my biggest pet peeves is when you receive an email notification from a follower who is following thousands of people and has 0 tweets. I don't see the point in that at all.
  • Chris, your opening comments show that you are a master of diplomacy. Your mother should be proud. They are also a perfect example of how important it is to measure your words when you are online. Face to face you get a sense of how your idea is being received. No such thing on Twitter. So play nice.
    Networking is networking whether it's Twitter or at a Chamber of Commerce mixer. The stranger who shoves a business card in my face is just like the Twit who follows me because he/she picked up on a keyword in one of my posts. NO, I don't want to follow (do business with) you! I don't know you.
    So my rule is Be Prepared: before you join the convo, write a bio, add a photo, and most of all read what others are writing and learn how to participate.
    Too much information?
  • That's GREAT advice, Carolyn. I appreciate all your participation in this community over the last year or so. I never say it enough, but I'm glad that you come here.
  • Newbie to Twitter but not to you, Chris. Q: I desperately want to curb 'tmi' and wonder if the 'autopost' features of FB status line are 'in or out' re: netiquette? Also feel sheepish NOT returning/acknowledging a follow, but know that's the 'disease to please' kickin' in and I need to get over myself to keep it from a cluttered resource stream, right?
  • Personally, I don't like crossing streams (linking facebook to twitter), but that falls into my "You're Doing It Wrong" category, meaning that it's a preference.

    As for the returning and acknowledging a follow, I seem to see this different than most folks. I don't think acknowledging is a big to do because it's just the START of a relationship. But that's me.
  • This is exactly the kind of accessible guide those new to Twitter, such as myself, find useful. Old pros may find these guides trivial, but they're not the intended audience. Cheers for encouraging signal above noise.
  • Be yourself. It is ok and welcome to be different on twitter. I enjoy being exposed to so many new cultures and learn whats important to my friends because of their tweets.

    There is no one way to use twitter so don't believe it if anyone says so. Some say they use it like an IM, some like email, find what works for you within the limits of being considerate to people you call our with a @mention or DM.
  • Now that's a great primer!
  • Before all of these great tips, please have a complete profile and pic. Let people know who you are and what your intentions are. We will be more inclined to follow you back.
    Also, if you DM me and you are not following me. I can't respond to your DM.
  • I had one of those DMs today as well. I wished someone a nice holiday, and he DMd me (twice!) with a "Thank you". So I remarked it on my public timeline - without naming the person.
    But I agree completely with you. it is annoying.
  • Great one. I like it. : )
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