In tutorial six tweeps will take a look at the options for a Twitter client that I feel are most productive.

We will be comparing features and user opinions to give a great insight into the options available to new tweeps.

Right now the options and Twitter clients to be included are;

• Desktop Twitter Clients, Tweetdeck and Twhirl
• Browser / web Twitter Clients, Hootsuite and PeopleBrowser
• and not forgeting the Twitter Home Page

Which Twitter client would you recommend? Let us know in the comments below and have your say in teaching new tweeps how to use Twitter.

Technorati Tags: back to basics, day6, how to tweet, how to use twitter, twitter client, twitter how to

Twitter has started rolling out the Discovery Search Engine, a small test group of accounts now have Twitter search fully integrated to the home page.

As one of the accounts to already have this feature, I wanted to show you what the fuss is all about.

The first difference I noticed was the position of the search box which has moved from the top of the page, to a more natural position in the side bar.

The real improvement is the way your search results are returned. No longer are you taken to a new page. Instead, when you do a search, the relevant tweets instantly show up right where they should be, on your home page.

I think this change really improves both the functionality and feel of using Twitter search to find any tweets that contain the word or phrase you’re interested.

Another feature added is the ability to save a search for a term or interest that you want to follow . Saved search terms are placed permanently in your sidebar for easy access. So if you want to know what people are saying about the weeks football games, a product you sell, or just about anything else, it becomes a link on your home page.

And there’s more…

Also now appearing in the home page sidebar are Twitter trends. The top ten words and phrases being mentioned on Twitter make up the currently trending Twitter topics. This is a great place to start if you are looking forinfomation or a discussion on a current event or topic. Clicking on a trend will bring up the latest tweets that include the trending term.

Introducing the improved search features will surely encourage new tweeps to remain inside Twitter as oppose to using third party search app’s. However, I do not see a huge number of tweeps that make use of desktop and browser Twitter clients with built in search switching over. This said, I do think Twitter has got the search integration spot on.

Well done Twitter!

Technorati Tags: twitter, twitter blog, twitter client, twitter search

Lesson five in the Twitter How To, Back To Basics Tutorials will be focused on how to connect your tweetin’ with any other social media accounts.

Covering how to connect to Facebook, FriendFeed, gmail and others. Tweeps will be shown which twools (Twitter tools) to do this with, where to get them and the set up process of each.

Now of course I already have my prefered twools for doing this, but how about you?

If you want to help the Twitter community just let me know which twools you use for linking social media profiles with Twitter in the comments below.

I already have Twitter How To Tutorials one and two ready to go. How ever, your input and suggestions for all of the remaining tutorials is not only welcomed, but will be highly valued and any suggestions that make it into any of the tutorials will include a link back to your Twitter profile.

Technorati Tags: back to basics, connect Twitter, day5, twitter how to

By Day four new tweeps will have discovered what is Twitter, been walked through the sign up and profile settings and learnt how to tweet.

The next lesson will show tweeps where and how to find and follow Twitter users who’s tweets will provide value and interest. I have never advised (unlike some so called “Guru”) to follow everybody in a bid to find those using the twam spreading auto-follow back software, and will not start to do so here.

What I will show Twitter users is the excellent resources and techniques I use myself to find then follow other tweeps that are regularly tweetin’ about the same interests I have, and niches I am involved in.

Anybody reading this content rich report style lesson, will also learn why the individuals purpose of using Twitter is so important when it comes to deciding who to follow.

As with the previous course overviews I have posted, I would love to get your ideas and suggestions in the comments below.

As I have had a few readers tweet me @twtr_gator, suggesting that most new Twitter users will want to get started right away and not wait days for each tutorial, I am now looking at releasing days one through three together, follwed by days four and five, then finally days six and seven. This should feel like natural breaks and also allow for individual experiment ( playing, using and enjoying Twitter ), before the next stage of guidance. Because of this new structure, days, will now be called as tutorials.

Again if you have any thoughts on this new structure please do use the comments form below.

Remember, helping new tweeps get the best from Twitter will ultimately help us all get more value from Twitter, so please contribute to your community. Ideas and suggestions cost nothing!

Technorati Tags: back to basics, day4, how to find and follow twitter users, twitter how to

Day 3 of the back to basics course will be examples of different types of tweets. Looking at straight update tweets, @replies, DMs and retweets. Also explaining how to get involved with conversations with other tweeps, Day three how to tweet will give new tweeps the basics to get some updates onto their profile before day four when we will go over the best and easiest ways to find people of interest to follow.

Do you have any advice on the basics of how to tweet? Add them in the comments below, and if they make the final edit I will include a link back to your Twitter profile.

Maybe you have some input for day one or day two, if so be sure to help the Twitter community and yourself by sharing your ideas and suggestions in the comments for the relavent days lesson outline.

Technorati Tags: back to basics, day 3, how to tweet, twitter how to, what is twitter

Day two of the Twitter How To, Back To Basics, will be a step by step walk through of the Twitter sign-up process and suggested profile settings.

Covering such topics as making the most of your Twitter bio, this is sure to be essential info for new tweeps, and may even teach you more experienced tweeps a trick or two.

Whilst I already have the content for this one in the bag, I am still undecided on how to publish this one. What do you think, for the step by step tutorial would a combination of text and images be easiest to work along with? Or would video be a better medium to digest easily?

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Your help is essential on this project!

Technorati Tags: back to basics, day 2, twitter bio, twitter how to, twitter signup, what is twitter

On day one of the Back To Basics course, I will be giving an over view of what is Twitter, and why Twitter can be so useful in so many different ways.

Published as text and images (probably as a PDF), I will also be including a sub-section called “Twitter In 140 Characters”. For this I am going to need your help. I am looking for you to tweet me @twittergator, what Twitter means to you. If you can fit what Twitter is, or what you use Twitter for, into a single tweet, then let me have it. The most interesting tweets will be included in day one’s lesson, along with a link back to your Twitter page.

The more original and interesting your take on Twitter is, the more likely it will be included in the lesson, and of course, the more original and interesting the published tweets are, the more likely readers will click through to learn more about you and hit that follow button.

As I have said previously, I am wanting to get the community involved with each of the days lessons, so what better way to start than offer you the chance to appear in the very first day of the “Twitter How To” Back to Basics course?

Now, get tweetin’!

Technorati Tags: back to basics, day 1, twitter how to, what is twitter

This is your first opportunity to give your input into the Back To Basics Twitter Course.

Aimed at new Twitter users who are interested at learning how to take their tweetin’ skills from zero to a proficiant level whilst learning the intracasy and principles behind building a solid foundation for their new Twitter profiles.

Although many will prefer to still make the mistake of buying into short cut guidance, and fall foul to problems such as “Facebook Syndrome” (the desire to simply increase number of followers as quickly as possible.), for those that do participate in the dailly lessons will gain a long term understanding, and ability to enjoy Twitter, as well as freely find new friends and personally communicate without negatively effecting other tweeps experience of Twitter.

Below is an outline of the main subjects to be covered and I am looking to you for any other topics and suggestions that you feel would be beneficial.

Included within the course designed to help get complete newbies up and tweetin’ will be subjects such as;

    * What is Twitter and how can I benefit from it?
    * Where and how to sign up to Twitter.
    * What is this new interface I am faced with?
    * How to set up and change profile settings.
    * How to Tweet, @reply and DM.
    * How to find new tweeps to follow that will not twam (twitter spam) you.
    * Getting involved and increasing your following or not!
    * Automated processes and how to avoid miss using them.
    * How to align your Twitter account with the rest of your online presence.

Use the comments form to add your ideas, any that get included in the final course will be linked back to the twitter profile of the tweep who provided the idea. Think about what will or would have helped you with Twitter and remember, this is not about complicated stratergies.

If you are still thinking, “why should I contribute?” let me explain.

Right now there seems to be a huge increase in auto-tweets and twam (twitter spam) that many, many tweeps are complaining about. If this is you, you may well have brought this upon yourself with poor ineffective Tweetin’ methods and stratergies. Good news is, you can do something about it!

You can also help others avoid making the same mistakes. This simple course will be beneficial to everybody, but only some will take me up on the offer of advice. The more people we can get tweetin’ well, the less twam and auto-tweets you will have to put up with. Even more effective is to not leave yourself open to these poor Twitter tactics and then we can all get on with enjoing Twitter.

Ultimately, I just want to encourage and help people to enjoy Twitter as much as possible.

Technorati Tags: back to basics, how to use twitter, twitter, twitter course, twitter how to, what is twitter

Many readers of this site are already fully fledged Twitterholics, nothing wrong with that and many of the Twitter how to guides I have posted are aimed at helping you addicts get more from Twitter. But, recently, I have been inundated with requests for how to answers on the very basics of Twitter. Again nothing wrong with that. As Twitter really hits the mainstream there is no sign of Twitter’s growth slowing, quite the opposite infact. So with an apparent need already for beginners guidance, and ever increasing number of new tweeps joining us for business and pleasure I was hoping to be able to simply direct new tweeps to the relevant material already floating around the web.

Unfortunately, as recent spam and auto message problems have shown nobody is providing this material particularly well. Sure people are being shown the mechanics of Twitter, but they are not being shown ethical, successfull, positive methods to use this awesome new tool that Twitter is ( worst still, some are being taught the complete opposite!).

And whilst many big name, popular tweeps with huge counts of followers are just adjusting their tweetin’ habits to improve their own experience and use of Twitter, I am going to be releasing a Back To Basics, Twitter How To, multi-media Course to help all that are willing to listen, and ultimately encourage the growth and positive usage of Twitter.

I want to explain why I really want to help anybody who has not yet mastered the basics of how to use Twitter. Also how you, as the community can help and why you should.

So far this year on Twitter we have seen a large increase in new Twitter users (especially marketers, promoters and business tweeps) trying to get to grips with tweetin’ and increasing their following for a number of reasons.

Now, I do not have any thing against internet marketers and businesses leveraging Twitter accounts. Why should I? Twitter is fantastic for many different uses all based on communication. Unfortunately many are only being shown (and sold!) short cut solutions to using Twitter. Many of the Twitterati are complaining about the number of auto DMs and welcome messages they are receiving, and even more “typical users” are fed up with so called spam being pushed into their Twitter stream.

The reason this is happening is because of the amount of tweeps that do not fully understand the true potential of Twitter and how to use it effectively. This is relevant to all Tweeps although the effects are magnified ten times by marketing tweeps making these mistakes.

I believe that by showing new Twitter users the best and without doubt most effective long term way to use Twitter, we can together genuinely effect the way Twitter is used. Helping protect our own community from abuse, and ultimately the decline of Twitter’s usefulness.

How can you help?

Before I finnish editing this series of Twitter how to advice (including, videos, text, images, diagrams and podcasts) I will post an outline of each topic on this site. I encourage, no, I insist that you get involved and help by adding any advice or comments about each subject by using the comments section after each post. Please, if you want to help protect your Twitter experience from being abused help us in educating a better way of tweetin’ (tweducate?).

In my next post you will find the initial course overview of whats to be included.

Remember I am looking for any contribution you feel you can add to help, lets not just complain about the miss use of Twitter, we all have the power to do something about it and act to help ourselves.

Technorati Tags: how to use twitter, twitter basics, twitter how to

Did you ever ask on Twitter how to do something with your Twitter account?

Maybe you wanted to know how to find an important tweet from three weeks ago, maybe you wanted to know more about the Twitter API, or did you try searching Twitter for a recommended way of finding new followers?

If you have tried tweetin or searching for specific Twitter how to answers you will no doubt know that as helpful as most people on Twitter are, you can some times tweet a question and get no answer. This is because of a couple of main reasons.

1. Your followers may be great at flower arranging or have a wide knowledge of football, but they probably have no more knowledge of the in’s and out’s of Twitter than you do.
2. The tweeps who do have the Twitter expertise to answer your question and also follow you may have missed your Tweet at the time and have since received so many more tweets in their stream yours has already been pushed way down the line out of sight.

So now what? Your next step could be to head over here to see if I have covered your Twitter how to question or you could try good old Google search.

But what if you still do not find what you are looking for? Maybe you just do not want to go through the leg work of trawling through google results. Now what?

Well let me present to you, the Twitter How To Twitter Group.

Powered by TweetWorks, in here you can ask Twitter questions and help other group members by answering any Twitter questions that they have asked. As well as showing up on the Twitter How To Group page, your questions and answers are automatically shot over to Twitter. So now you are asking two communities at once. Best of all, one of those communities is specifically interested in Twitter questions! Who better to get Twitter answers from?

When posting tweets to the group you can also @ a user name just like you would on Twitter, this gets your question even more coverage.

Now you are asking the group, Twitter and of course me. (By the way, if ever somebody asks me a question about Twitter that I can not answer I always retweet the question to all my followers.)

With features like the group RSS feed and email alerts, you will never miss an answer and can be sure other group members are being made aware of your questions each time you ask.

Before you rush off to join our awesome group (LOL), I need to mention one more feature. Actually this is the most powerfull feature of all because it is what really makes the TweetWorks platform work. Unlike on Twitter where you end up clicking through the “in reply to” link from tweet to tweet to tweet just to try and follow a conversation,TweetWorks displays all group tweets threaded!

No more clicking through an endless procession of “in reply to” links, no need for hashtags or writing queries on a search tool to get the whole conversation. So all Twitter questions and answers stay together where they belong.

I am sure you get the idea. If you have a Twitter how to question, the Twitter How To Group is the best place to discover the answer.

Ooops, nearly forgot to mention that joining the Twitter How To Group is completely free

Technorati Tags: how to use twitter to get answers, twitter groups, twitter how to