Twitter How To Make the Most of Tweetdeck to Improve Your Twitter Experience and Productivity.

In this Twitter how to series I will show you how to use the Twitter client Tweetdeck to reduce noise in your twitter stream, as well as become more effective at finding and participating in the conversations you like most.

Tweetdeck is a desktop Adobe AIR based twitter client that in my humble opinion is the best Twitter client available. Tweetdeck basically takes the entire twitterverse and breaks it down into consumable pieces for you to enjoy.

When I started this Twitter how to post I soon realised that there are so many powerful features within Tweetdeck that I am using and want to help you master this would have to be a series, probably of three parts (for now). Any how for today I shall show you how great the Tweetdeck group function is at reducing Twitter noise and prioritising your tweeting habits. This is even more important if you are using Twitter for your business and/or have a large follow list.

I normally have two groups running within Tweetdeck, with the first being my high priority group.

This group is where I can find all the tweeps who tweet regularly and actively within my main interest (for me this is Twitter know how). The people you have in your high priority group should not only interest you but be tweeting back at their followers regular and be involved in conversations about your main interest(s), this is after all what Twitter is for.

To set up your first group click on the ‘group’ icon in Tweetdeck, as shown below.

This will open up a new column with the new group menu in. Choose a name for your group, then select the check box of all the tweeps you want included in this group.

When you have done this hit the ’save group’ button. You will now have the column showing the tweets of just the people in your first priority group.

Next you will want to move this group into a position of visibilty using the options at the bottom of the column. I have my group columns to the left so I always see them first.

Whilst you are at the options that sit at the bottom of the column, take a look at the filter option. This allows you to dial right in to conversations and thoughts that your priority group are having on any specific topic. For instance, I might run a filter to see what my favourite tweeps thought about Tweetdeck, or I could go further and find what only the Brits in my group thought about Tweetdeck.

This is so cool as now when you load up Tweetdeck you will instantly have the tweets of and just the tweets of interesting and helpful tweeps talking about your main interest, hobby or perhaps the niche that you sell a product for. No longer will you need to go searching for these tweets amongst your entire Twitter stream and keeping you from being distracted before you get to the conversations that are important to you.

The second group I have running is like a news feed to me. Within this group I have the Twitter users who mostly post important news and links for my area of interest. Often these are the Twitter accounts of influential web sites like @mashable of mashable.com, who are leaders in web 2.0 developments. This group is so important because it allows you to not only have the latest hot topics and talking points of the moment, but also means you can instantly tweet about them so you are the one with your finger on the pulse in your subject of interest.

You can of course set up as many groups as you like, maybe you would also like to have the tweets from family members available without having to search for them, or perhaps you use Twitter at the office as well as home and need to have your work mates tweets easily accessable during the day and then  move your work group column to a less visible position when you have finished work. One tweep (sorry I can not credit you I forgot who this came from) told me that she had a group consisting of only people who tweeted cheerful humour, if she was having a bad day she would turn her attention to her ‘cheer me up group’.

As with all Twitter clients Tweetdeck is there to help you be involved in the conversations and find interesting people to tweet with, go set up your groups and start getting involved in the tweets that matter to you.

If you have any thing you would like to suggest to help your fellow tweeps with Tweetdeck groups, please do comment. Or if you have any questions about this Twitter how to feel free to ask, use the comments or find me on Twitter.

Not downloaded Tweedeck yet? Get it here.

In the next Twitter how to use Tweetdeck post I will show you how awesome for your tweeting the search feature within Tweetdeck can be, if you know how to use it right.

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