mastering twitter - for careers services

Mastering

Lucy Hawkins, University of Oxfordaka @CareersLucy

With grateful acknowledgement for the incorporation of material from http://www.slideshare.net/ktlindsay/twitter-for-academia

What is twitter?

• Micro-blogging • 140 character answers to “what’s happening?”• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PThAriHjk10

• In careers it’s like chatting over lunch at a conference

• It’s not the keynote though – it doesn’t matter if you miss anything

What you can do on Twitter…

Without an account• Search• Read

With an account• Search• Read• Follow• Reply• Write• Gather an audience• Forward

How to read a tweet

How to read a tweet

How to read a tweet

How to read a tweet

How to read a tweet

Summary of twitter conventions

• @OxfordCareers is our Twitter handle

• Messages that start @OxfordCareers are directed at us, and often expect a response

• Messages that contain @OxfordCareers are referencing us

• #OxAlumniCareers is a hashtag – a self generated way of labelling dialogue on a topic

If Twitter’s a conversation, who could we talk to?

• Counterpart services at other HEIs• Internal partners• External services• Potential future service users• The general public• Current services users Direct, public Q&A

Higher accountabilityPre-emptive responses

Your Twitter Identity

TIPS:Shorter is betterMeaningful is goodConsider how it soundsNot capital sensitive

Pers

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Indi

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Char

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The

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Your tweeting style

Conv

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Subs

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The

Mid

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Way

Twitter etiquetteYou DON’T• have to read everything• have to tweet

everything• have to stay loyal:

unfollow!

You DO need to• Tweet usefully• Tweet regularly• Reply to questions• Search for how you’re

perceived• Complete your profile• Use it as a conversation

tool – don’t just promote

The interface at www.twitter.com

HOME

CONNECT

DISCOVER

SEARCH

Finding Useful People

1) Search, and use people results2) If you find someone useful, see who they

follow3) Explore other people’s lists https

://twitter.com/#!/CareersLucy/careers-people (On their page, or using sites like http://listorious.com to search for lists)

Finding Useful Information

Finding Useful Information

1) If you find someone useful, their favourites2) Search for what you want3) Retweet useful stuff to your followers4) People you follow will do the same5) If following someone is not proving

useful/interesting UNFOLLOW6) Build lists to group information sources7) Last resort? Google site:twitter.com/*/yourterm

Using Twitter Tools

Optional Twitter Tools

• Analysis – TwitterCounter, TweetStats, TwentyFeet• Alerts - Twilert• Management - HootSuite, TweetDeck, Seesmic• Saving and storing – The Archivist, Twistory• Rating and ranking – FollowerWonk, Klout• Displaying - Twylah

• Twitter widgets

Social media – rapid natural selection

Twitter strategy

1. Traction

1. Tweet regularly2. Follow others and have @ conversation3. Craft your tweets to be retweetable4. Consider daily/weekly features5. Initiate and share hashtags6. Save searches and engage with those

conversing

2. Management

• Agree guidelines– On content– On identity– On tweeting style– On frequency

• Agree who’s managing, and provide backup• Multiple managers is possible, but can cause

issues!• ‘If in doubt...’

3. The Impact File

• Set out aims and a review date before you begin• Collect data:• Number of followers• Names of useful people for future collaboration• Invitations that come via twitter• Number of hits to your blog / website via twitter

• Consider the opportunity cost

Brand new to Twitter?Exercises to get started

First, go to www.twitter.com/OxfordCareers

Sign up for an account

• Choose a nice short twitter handle• You can change this at any stage• You can deactivate the account at any stage• You will need to go to your email to confirm it

Finding people

1) You’re already cunningly following OxfordCareers2) Because OxfordCareers has a ‘Recommended’ list

you should get some suggestions for people to follow3) If you find someone useful, click on their name and

choose ‘view more tweets4) From here you can explore who they follow, their

lists and more https://twitter.com/#!/CareersLucy/careers-people

Tweeting

We’re going to send our first tweet…

Click ‘Home’.In the ‘Compose new tweet’ box type your tweet.Click ‘Tweet’Click ‘Tweets’ to see how it looks to the world

Over 140 letters? You’ll have to be more clever…

Paired practice!

• Tell each other your Twitter handles• Search for their handle• Find them in ‘People results’ – click on them –

and follow• Go back to Home – you’ll see you’re following

them in the top left box

Paired practice!

• Send a tweet that mentions your neighbour(use their handle in the middle of the tweet)

• Go to Home and Tweets to see how this looks to the world

• Go to ‘Connect’ to see if they’ve mentioned you

• Mouseover the tweet to see the option to reply

• Send them a reply

Direct retweeting

• Search for a tweet on a subject that you think your follower will enjoy– Use the search bar– Or explore people you’ve added in your timeline

• Mouseover and click Retweet• Go to ‘Home’ to see what this looks like

NB: Direct retweets won’t duplicate what’s already in a timeline

Quoted Retweeting

• Look at your timeline – click Home• Find a tweet you’d like to forward with

comment• Highlight and copy the text • Start a new tweet and type your comment.• Then type RT @[source] and paste (might

need to shorten)• Click Tweet and see how it looks!

Direct Messages

• Go to ‘Messages’• This is ‘direct messaging’ or DM – not tweeting• Only between two users that follow each other• Text is not publically visible• Try it in your pairs

Tweets that start @someone don’t appear in a follower’s timeline unless they follow both of you.Anyone can still see any tweet on searching

Hashtags

• The hashtag for this training is #agcasSWtraining• Send a tweet that uses it – maybe with a comment!• See how the tweet looks in your timeline (‘Home’)• Click the hashtag to find other people using it• Mouseover to send them a message/reply• Search for the hashtag in the search bar

Keep going – see what else you can find, and who else you can follow

Let me know how you’re getting on (start a tweet @CareersLucy ...)