#Hashtag Help!!!

#Hashtag, Tweet, Retweet...


Like many people, you may not have a clue what any of those words mean, let alone how twitter works.  Twitter isn't just for the younger generation anymore.  Long gone are the days of the "sitting at home eating toast" tweets.  Twitter has gone mainstream.  Business and celebrities are joining to spread image awareness to an unlimited amount of people, for a fraction of the normal cost of advertising. 
Once you join twitter and assign yourself a name, you can find and follow people or businesses.  And some of these people will hopefully follow you back.  You can then write short status updates of under 140 characters.  This update, or post,  is "tweeted" and your followers can read it and then favourite it or share it if they desire.  A share or "retweet" then shares your post with all of their followers. 
A #hashtag is a word that you have chosen to accent.  By doing so, users can find your post based on your hashtags.  For example, I could hashtag #sorrynotsorry and anyone can look up that hashtag and see all of the tweets written with that hashtag.

Here is a link demonstrating how to tweet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkdXJOpqXOw


Businesses use twitter for updates, sales, contests...  The sky is the limit. It is one of the most valuable tools available right now that has changed the face of social media.  Twitter also allows your customers to send you a direct message.  This could be a simple inquiry, a compliment or a concern.  Smart businesses must monitor their account and respond back ASAP.  This helps to retain goodwill if it's due to a problem.  Remember, Twitter is not private, so any negative posts will be on your account for all to see.


Here is the link to SocialMagnetsDotNet.  They have many tutorial videos explaining Twitter in more detail.


Until next time, Tweet away!