Friends with Benefits

Getting Started with Twitter

Just as with the other social media channels discussed in this book, start by setting up a profile. Setting up a profile on Twitter is much simpler than on Facebook or MySpace.

The first and most important decision you'll make is choosing your account name. That will determine your Twitter URL and how people will refer to you, as in http://www.twitter.com/<youraccountname> and @youraccountname. Brevity is important because other Twitter users will include your account name when they want to send a public or private message to you specifically. We recommend sticking close to the name of your brand or organization. Keep it as short, simple, and punctuation-free as possible. Since there are already millions of Twitter ...