How To Twitter...or Is It Tweet?

Two months ago, I broke down and joined the Twitter using the name @AmberCharkov. Not even a week after that, I had jumped on the HootSuite. I was very apprehensive to join because I just didn't understand it and didn't think I needed another form of communication. I mean, I had Facebook. Wasn't that enough? I had no idea what I was missing out on!

One Allison Ackmann (@AllisonAckmann) (a friend and coworker) has been saying I needed to get on it. It started at subtle hints and ended with her going to get the entire office on Twitter if it was the last thing she'd do. So, one slow week at work, I took the last half hour of the day to get myself signed up on the Twitter. The first weekend I had Twitter, I was obsessed! I had to read every update that came across my screen. If I missed any, I would go back and read them to catch myself up. This was fairly easy, as I wasn't following many people. OCD much? YES! It's just like the blogs I follow. Right now, I follow enough that I could catch up on a week's worth of missed blogs during a Saturday. So, I become a little tentative to add many new blogs. I feel like if I don't see everything, I'm going to miss out on something. Geez, what did I do before I didn't join this blogging and tweeting world? However, with the twitter world, I've realized that I'm not going to be able see everything and that half the stuff out there isn't that important. I can let pieces of twitter information slide.

I did realize that it's a great way to communicate and to get your voice out there. You can post anything from what you ate for breakfast to an article on abortion. It can be as laid-back or as serious as you want it to be. I started by mostly replying to treats or re-tweeting (RT) what others wrote. This made it easier to get into the swing of things and took off some of the pressure. The hashtag (#) was something of a mystery to me, but it's really quite simple to use. You use it when you have a certain topic you're talking about or something you want to get across. A good example would be: Nothing will ever be as good as Veronica Mars. #KristenBell #VeronicaMars #ilovetv. See?! I also find you get more followers by following more people. It helps make connections and get your name out there.

I opted for the HootSuite because it was easier to re-tweet than using the original platform. I can't compare it to other platforms because I have no experience with them, but it works well for me. I like that I can see people who have mentioned me, re-tweeted me, sent me a message, and my tweets in addition to the tweets of my followers. I would definitely recommend it!


All in all it's a great tool for information and can be a good way to stay up-to-date. Of course, you should only follow those people that you want. And if someone turns out to be annoying (ie tweeting a shit-ton), then you unfollow them. It's impersonal enough that no one's feelings get hurt. However, here are some of my fave tweeters: @ClairBrsoman, @AllisonAckmann, @BellaTrella26, @NicoleWTHR, @David_Boreanaz, @RIPorSOL, @MS_Living, @threadless, @HeartlandTMP, @TheMommyologist, @TheChrisAngel, @WestCoastTacos

Don't forget to start following me--@AmberCharkov!

Happy Following!
--Am