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Tips to Improve your Twitter Account in 2023

Tips to Improve your Twitter Account in 2023

Easy Twitter Tips to improve your Twitter account in 2021

I have been on Twitter 12 years now (as of April 21st 2020) and over the past 9 years I have come to love the platform. For me,​ Twitter is a source of news, opinion and interesting articles as well as the odd competition which I have won. If you are looking to grow your Twitter audience and influence you are going to have to invest some time on Twitter. These are some Twitter Tips to help in growing your following and presence in 2021.

1. Have a good Twitter Profile image

The first of the Twitter tips is to update your profile pic. The Profile Image is the small icon which appears beside each tweet. Your profile picture should be representative of you or your business. Try to​ make the image one which will stand out.

The key here is don’t leave it as the default Twitter Egg! The profile photo of an egg is indicative of an account which is new. So change this and you’ll get an advantage over accounts with Twitter eggs.

 

2. Ensure you include a Twitter Header image

At the same time, you should upload a good header image. The header image could be a product photo or something which works along with your profile image to strength your accounts visual appeal. You can use systems like Canva to place a nice quote or even your web address. Canva is a very easy to use system which gives you great results. It certainly saves me lots of time when I need to create a graphic in a hurry and gives results which are as good as using a graphics programme.

Twitter Tips : The Dreaded Twitter Egg - No profile image on Twitter is not good.

3. Your Twitter Bio

Your Twitter Bio should detail what your account is about. Tell people the benefits of following you. It should also outline the types of interest and content people will expect if they follow you. For example, you could tell people what interests you or what you tweet about. If you look at my Queen account @shanesqueensite it has the following biog…

Shane’s Queen Site run by Shane McDonald. Keyboardist & MD for Queen Tribute Band ‘Celebrating Queen’. Tweeting all about the band #Queen. YouTube Channel ⬇️. 

Feel free to use hashtags like I did or even other accounts. e.g. “I am an​ ​ account manager for @mentioncompanyhere and I like #Travel”. or “I love Twitter. Follow my account for freebies and great Twitter Tips and advice.”

If you have a website don’t forget to include that. This is one of the key Twitter Tips – so if you do one thing, it’s update your Bio.

 4. Daily Twitter Activity – Key Twitter Tip !

Each day, as as much as you can, you should log on to Twitter and do some sort of activity. This is my personal must do from this Twitter Tips list.

This activity may include;

– Tweeting something even if it is just a comment on the weather. This keeps your feed flowing with recent content but try to make it interesting and if you can include a photo of the weather in your region (following on from this example) if puts your tweet in context..
– Retweeting others tweets. If you find something interesting retweet it. Perhaps ‘Quote Tweet’ it and add your own personal comment
– Responding to any replies or notifications ; always thank people for replies and always respond to your engagements
– Thanking some of your recent followers for retweets or likes.
– If you find the ​content you like the press the ‘Like’ button on others tweets or perhaps leave a comment
– You should follow any Twitter accounts which you are interested in. Normally I follow about 5-10 accounts per day. If I find a Twitter list of Food Bloggers or Travel Writers I may end up following 50 or 60 accounts.

One warning on things like ‘The weather today is …” if you over use that sort of tweet, just for the sake of having content, then you run the risk of people becoming bored and perhaps unfollowing or muting you. Always try to keep your content relevant and of interesting

 

5. Tag or include others in your tweets

Every now and again you should mention other accounts using the @account method.
For example “Hi @mrshanemcdonald many thanks for liking my tweet. I am delighted with the Twitter Tips post on your website” would send me a nice mention and I may then follow you as a result. This can be especially good when responding to Brands, e.g. complementing a brand on a good job or a great product you recently used. They may retweet your tweet to thousands thus exploding your reach.

6. Use Hashtags

Use hashtags, as tweets with one or two hashtags have about 20% more engagement. You can use systems like Hashtagify to find the best hashtags for your tweets before you tweet.

7. Use images and GIFs

Use images and gifs in your tweets. Apparently tweets with images and relevant gifs normally get over 80% more engagement than tweets without images

8. Use Lists

Lists are exactly that, it’s a section a Twitter where you can list all the accounts which share a similar topic or relationship with you, e.g. You could have a list of Digital Marketing experts or just place all your friends and contacts in a ‘My Friends’ list. Twitter Lists are free and easy to setup. The upshot is you don’t need to filter through all of Twitter just to check in on a certain list – plus others can subscribe to your list.

9. Use a Tweet Scheduler

If you think you might be away from Twitter for a while or you might be busy this week, add a few tweets to a scheduler such as Buffer, Hootesuite, Crowdfire or Agorapulse. This can ensure you have some content being dripfed onto Twitter and your account can continue to show in feeds.

10. Occasionally do an Twitter account Cleanup

Every so often, do a clean up of your Twitter Account and looking at who you follow, remove dead Twitter accounts, Twitterbots, people who don’t provide any value to you following them. Every so often I clear down the accounts I am following based on their content. 

 

How do I know if I am doing well on Twitter?

If you follow some of the Twitter Tips above, you should see some growth over the next while. There are a few pointers and KPIs to show your success in growing your Twitter account.

  1. The first is your follower’s growth if it is increasing fast this is one indicator that you are doing well.
  2. Secondly is your mention notifications, if you are getting a lot of @mentions, either responses or direct mentions, this shows a well-engaged audience.
  3. Check your Twitter Analytics to see your performance month on month
  4. You can also look at how much traffic is being driven to your website via Google Analytics. Strong Twitter performance would lead to good traffic to your website.
  5. If you are enjoying Twitter and you are Tweeting daily – In a way, this is a success of its own as many people start on Twitter and just give up!

 

Klout is Dead, Long live the King

In 2018, Klout had it’s last score update. There are a few different cites which have digitally passed-away over the years.

You may also be interested to know how long people spend online and on social media – check out this report regarding the Average Time on Social Media.

 

I hope you enjoyed these Twitter Tips for 2021 and this is what works for me. Twitter changes all the time which is why I updated this list of Twitter Tips for 2021 as it was last updated in 2018 and again in 2020.
If you have any other interesting Twitter Tips or hacks please feel free to leave a comment.

 

Follow Me on Twitter

My Twitter account is @mrshanemcdonald so if you like this list of Twitter Tips post why not follow and say hi!

 

A full list of Social Media Tools

If you are looking for a great list of Social Media Tools please visit this great link – https://bulk.ly/social-media-tools/

Twitter Verification for All

Twitter Verification for All

Can Anyone have a Verified Twitter Account?

Twitter has announced that there is now an online application process in order to get your Twitter account set as a verified status. Verified accounts on Twitter allow people to identify important individuals and organisation ensuring that the followers know that they are authentic. This authenticity is denoted by a circular blue badge icon. Before today’s announcement accounts were verified if they were deemed to be public interest, e.g. brands, celebs, sports stars, public figures, politicians etc. There are currently about 190,000 accounts with Twitter Verification*. (* Twitter stats correct at the time of this blog post in July 2016) 

Twitter has stated that they want to make it easier to “find creators and influencers on Twitter”. Twitter are hoping that by allowing people to appliy for verification it will help more people to find “great, high-quality accounts to follow, and for these creators and influencers to connect with a broader audience.”

The application process is now live and I have already applied for mine, so I’m hoping that @mrshanemcdonald will be verified soon. Full details of the twitter verifiaction process is available via the Twitter Help Centre.

How to get Verified on Twitter

To complete the Twitter Verification application you will need the following;

  • A verified phone number
  • A confirmed email address
  • A completed bio
  • A profile photo
  • A header photo
  • A birthday (for accounts that are not a company, brand, or organisation accounts)
  • A website / URL
  • Your Twitter account set as public in Tweet privacy settings (i.e. not a private account)
  • You will also need to explain why Twitter should verify an account.

The responses will be replied to by email and if your request is denied, you can submit another Twitter Verification request for the same account 30 days after receiving the email from Twitter.

I’m sure there will be hundreds of thousands of applications but lets see what happens. From what I have heard many applications are being rejected, even those with high follower counts and thousands of tweets. I will update this post should I get any news from Twitter regarding my application for Twitter Verification status.

 

Verified Twitter Progress Update: I have since applied for verification twice now and every time my Twitter verification has been rejected. Maybe Twitter Verification is not for everyone after all 🙁

More Details on Twitter Verification

Twitter Verification Update – 25th July

I just got an email from Twitter with the following;

 
Thanks for your request to verify @mrshanemcdonald.
We reviewed the account, and unfortunately it is not eligible to be verified at this time. Please visit our Help Center for more information about the types of accounts we verify.

Maybe next time … I can resubmit in 30 days !

Twitter to remove Images and Links from Character Count

Twitter to remove Images and Links from Character Count

According to reports in the media your Links and photos may soon (possibly in the next 2 to 3 weeks) be ignored by Twitter and therefore would not be counted in the 140 character limit for tweets.

Proposed Changes to Twitter

This radical change would come at a time when Twitter is trying to boost active user numbers and new user registrations, by simplifying the product. Ultimately users would have the ability to compose longer text commentary in their messages. This would be a radical shift for the social media giant who have always said that 140 characters are enough for the micro-blogging network.

At the moment a link in a tweet will use up 23 characters in your tweet after that most users like to leave about 20 characters for retweet potential, so this new change could be a welcome boost for Twitter.

Personally, I love Twitter, I find it really useful and very enjoyable to simply dip in and out of. Although the company have declined to comment I really hope that this rumour is more than just talk.

There could even be a situation in the future where the social media platform will double the number of characters and maybe release 280 characters per Tweet. What do you think? Should Twitter also increase the length of its tweets? 

Let’s see what the next few weeks bring…

Social Media & Photography Blog & Photo Sharing

Social Media & Photography Blog & Photo Sharing

Photo Sharing on Social Media

As you may know, I have a photography blog at www.shanemcdonald.me. Photo sharing is important to me so I also share a lot of this photography content online via Instagram, Twitter, Flickr, Facebook and only recently the site at 500px which I have been slightly addicted to. I have just posted my Photography Year in Review and look forward to more of the same in 2013.

I really enjoy sharing photography and images online either on the specialise photography sharing sites or social media. It is nice to get feedback from the photo sharing by visitors who either compliment or provide constructive criticism. I have often posted photos on social media which I thought were poor or average photos which the public have loved. Often the photos you have taken which you may not like, those might be the ones the public really like. That’s one benefit of the social media photo sharing. Another key benefit of having a photography account on social media is seeing other photographers work. Being inspired by other content or getting ideas is always a benefit.

My Photography Social Media Accounts

If you wish to follow any of these photography & photo sharing channels which I have outlined below via the social media and social sharing links below.

Shane McDonald Photoblog: http://www.shanemcdonald.me
Shane’s Photography on Twitter: @shanesphoto
Shane McDonald Photography on Instagram: @shanesphoto
Shane’s Photography on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ShaneMcDonald.Photography
Shane’s Photography on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/people/shanemcdonald/
Shane’s Photography on 500px : http://500px.com/shanemcdonald

If you do follow my photography on any of the above please drop me a note and let me know that you saw this post. I will also do my best to ensure I follow back any related accounts.

 

Top 10 “Replace Movie Names with Bacon” Movie Titles

Following on from the Twitter there was a Hash Tag of #ReplaceMovieNamesWithVoldemort which asked you to replace movie names with Voldemort to come up with new and exciting or funny movie titles. The previous Twitter HashTag was #ReplaceMovieNamesWithBacon (I think it was trending) as was #ReplaceAMovieNameWithBacon which was a similar concept except you Replace Movie Names with Bacon.

I have included some of my #ReplaceMovieNamesWithBacon movie titles in the list below… Enjoy!

I have also updated this Replace Movie Names with Bacon blog post with the best of 2018s Movies !

Top 10 “Replace Movie Names with Bacon” Movie Titles

Star Wars: Episode V – Bacon Strikes Back
American Bacon
A Clockwork Bacon
For a Few Bacons More
No Country for Old Bacon
Million Dollar Bacon
How to Train Your Bacon
When Harry met Bacon
Bacons and Aliens
War of the Bacon

The Top 5 ‘2018 Bacon List’

Bacon Man and the Wasp
Bacon Rhapsody
Bacon Panther
Bacon: A Star Wars Story
Isle of Bacon

If you can think of any other Movies you can Replace Movie Names with Bacon into please place a comment below