Twitter 101 for Birth and Breastfeeding Professionals: Your Audience

This is a part three of a multipart series on using Twitter for the first time at a conference. For part one click here and for part two click here.

You are at a conference and using Twitter for the first time. You’ve set up your account and you’ve figured out the basics of how to write a tweet. That’s all you really need to start participating in the conference!

If you would like to take it a step further, though, now’s the time to start to build your audience on Twitter.

Why build an audience?

When you aren’t at a conference following the hashtag, you’ll be connecting with others by checking your Twitter stream. Your Twitter stream contains the recent tweets of all the people you have chosen to follow.

And of course if someone follows you then your tweets appear in their stream. This is why Twitter users with high numbers of followers wield such influence. If you have 100 followers, and you send out a tweet, then 100 people see it – until it gets retweeted by someone with thousands of followers. If a few others with a thousand followers retweet it again . . . you see how a single tweet can suddenly be amplified.

This is why reciprocity is a shared value on Twitter. When communities work together to spread messages, the impact can be powerful and far-reaching.

How to start building your audience.

Learn about fellow Twitter members. By clicking on their name or avatar, you’ll see that’s person’s profile, avatar, and their recent tweets. If you click on the follow button, their tweets will be added to your Twitter stream.

Check your notifications. You may find that people start to follow you because they are enjoying your conference tweets. That’s great! Consider following them back. (Again, reciprocity is valued on Twitter.)

If someone retweets you, thank them!

Check your mentions. This will tell you who is responding to your tweets. Join in the conversation and respond where appropriate. Twitter can be a great place to build and solidify relationships.

Looking for action steps to keep your Tweeting going after the conference? Watch here for a post soon!