Your tweets turned into... Online newspaper!

Here is my little discovery of the week - a website called Twylah. Currently in beta (I guess I was lucky to get an invite very quick), the service allows you to create "custom brand pages for your tweets," which is pretty accurate.

What you get after receiving an invite and signing up with you Twitter account is a dedicated page, in a trendy newspaper-like layout, divided into sections based on the most popular keywords in your tweets. Just look into mine to get a better understanding of what I'm talking about.

Clicking on a tweet opens a preview with suggestions - "Related Tweets" - which is pretty engaging as well.

All in all, so far it looks like a promising and essential tool for any brand or celebrity, active on Twitter.

I didn't ever think that my stream of random tweets could start making sense so quickly.

Filed under  //  service   social   twitter  
Posted by Andrew Apanov 

My Twitter performance infographic by Visual.ly

A very nice tool. Look forward to its forthcoming Labs features!

Filed under  //  fun   image   infographic   twitter  
Posted by Andrew Apanov 

Twitter's basic guide for journalists

Welcome to #TfN. Inside, you’ll find resources to help you and your organization at every step of the reporting and publishing process.

We want to make our tools easier to use so you can focus on your job: finding sources, verifying facts, publishing stories, promoting your work and yourself—and doing all of it faster and faster all the time.

We know you come from different generations. Some are native to the pilcrow, others native to the hashtag. You began your careers in different media: radio, print, broadcast, online and mobile. But you share a common bond: the desire to make a difference in the world, bringing reliable information to the communities you serve.

If you missed it, this is "Twitter for Newsroom" - an official guide from the company. It is really simple, but if you are new to Twitter (and have a media background), be sure to check it out.

Filed under  //  guide   journalism   tips   twitter  
Posted by Andrew Apanov 

How to manage Twitter account with TweetDeck [Basic Musician's Guide]

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If you are not on Music On The Dot newsletter list yet or just missed this, here is a beginner's tutorial on using a popular Twitter tool called TweetDeck. Hope some of you will find it useful. What do you think on the guide's format?

Filed under  //  guide   service   tips   twitter  
Posted by Andrew Apanov 

40 Tried And Tested Twitter Tips

FINDING FOLLOWERS

  1. Engage, engage, engage. Repeat.
  2. Want to know how not to get somebody to follow you? Ask them.
  3. If you tweet it, they will come. Behave in the manner with which you wish to be noticed, and write about the subjects you wish to discuss. (Or do the opposite and crash and burn.)
  4. All the following systems, Twitter trains and that kind of thing are complete garbage. Don’t waste your time or (in some cases) money. However, mass following people does work. Assuming, that is, you’re happy with a large but empty network of eternal strangers, none of whom are paying the slightest bit of attention to you. Ever. Hey – at least you’re all like-minded.
  5. Strive for 100 true fans, and be remarkable. The rest will take care of itself.

TWITTER ETIQUETTE

  1. Avoid text speak – if you can’t squeeze a proper sentence into 140 characters (or, ideally, less), try, try again.
  2. Find the balance between being overly negative and happy clappy trappy. Neither camp is enormously popular except with others like them. Don’t be somebody you’re not, but if the real you is a jerk, a sap or a fraud, you should probably work on it.
  3. It goes without saying, but trolls, bullies, spammers and stalkers are not welcome. (Try MySpace.)
  4. Act as if.
  5. Don’t send people automated ‘welcome!’ direct messages when they start following you. We hate that stuff. Again, never automate anything.

Wanted to share this post I tweeted about last week once again. If you use Twitter, the full article is a must-read.

Filed under  //  management   social   tips   twitter  
Posted by Andrew Apanov 

Getting the most out of Twittering with Buffer

This is a post I sent out to my adorable newsletter subscribers a couple weeks back. Wanted to share it with the world, since Buffer actually saves me a lot of time each day.

Twitter can be awesome. Twitter can be dull. Twitter can be exhausting and confusing. How do musicians and brands make the most out of this essential social network, not spending hours on it each day?

I’ll share one of the tips on how I do it.

My little secret is a service called Buffer, and for me it’s one of the best free Twitter services out there.

Here’s how Buffer creators describe the app:

Work out all your tweets at one point in time during the day. Then fill up your Buffer with your tweets and Buffer schedules them for you. Simply keep that Buffer topped up and you will then be tweeting consistently all day round, all week long.

Being more specific, here’s how to start saving time with your Twitter promotions, and reaching as many fans as possible in the next ten minutes:

  1. Sign Up here (there are paid plans, but the default free one is absolutely satisfying).
  2. Install a plugin for your browser at the Goodies tab.
  3. Go to Settings and choose at what time of the day your Buffer tweets will be sent out.
  4. Once you are on any web page, hit the bookmarklet / plugin button (or press Alt + b) and add to Buffer either a link to the page you are viewing, or any message you want to Tweet.

That’s it, your Tweets will be published at the set time, making your Twitter activity look way more systematic (leads to more followers and retweets).

If you want more, here’s a decent Buffer review I just found. If you decide to give the service a try, sign up here (and get a free space for an extra Tweet in your Buffer).

If you’ve tried it already, let me know in the comments!

Filed under  //  apps   life hack   management   social   twitter  
Posted by Andrew Apanov