How to Tweet on Twitter in 4 Steps

Twitter is one of the world’s most popular social media platforms, and everyone uses it for different reasons. It is the platform where the biggest news is shared, where companies make important announcements and, on the converse, where memes are created. Twitter is the best platform to go viral and create a broader engagement.

If you are new to Twitter, you’ll love it, but it will take some time to get accustomed to how things work. Let’s explore how to tweet so you can make your first tweet. But before we discuss the details, let’s get some terminologies right.

Twitter Terminology

Handle

A Twitter handle is your unique username on Twitter. It should not be confused with your Profile name. For example, when joining Twitter as Samuel Jackson, you can have a Twitter handle like @doglover. It will identify your interests.

Tweet

A tweet is a post on Twitter. It consists of text, photos, links, Gifs, videos and polls.

Retweet (RT)

It is sharing something somebody else has tweeted to your own Twitter feed. If you like somebody’s tweet, you can retweet it to share it with your followers, and it will appear on your timeline.

A variation of Retweet is the Quote Tweet. It allows one to Retweet another person’s tweet but with a comment.

Hashtag (#)

These phrases or words are keywords to cite to incite a discussion or fit your tweet into an ongoing discussion. They are written with the (#) symbol, then a word or phrase. For example, #dogs will aggregate conversations that have this hashtag.

Hashtags can go viral, and many people worldwide would join the discussion. It is a good tool for marketing or getting engagement on your tweets.

Mentions

It is the equivalent of tagging somebody else on Twitter. It involves using somebody else’s handle to mention them in your tweet. Mentions incite engagements and replies on Twitter.

Reply

A reply is a response you make to someone else’s tweet. It automatically begins with the handle of the owner of the tweet. Other people can also reply to your tweets.

How to Tweet on Twitter with Your PC

Step 1: Log in to your Twitter Account

Go to your preferred browser and Log in to your Twitter Account.

Step 2: Go to the compose box at the top of your Home tab or select Tweet on the left navigation bar.

Once you go to the compose bar or select the tweet button, it will open a tweet box for you to type in your tweet or add other content.

Step 3: Type your Tweet

Remember, you can only tweet up to 280 characters. The counter at the bottom will show you how many characters you are in.

Step 4: Click on the Tweet button to share your tweet.

When you click the tweet button, your tweet will be shared publicly and appear on the top of your timeline.

How to Tweet on Your Smart-Phone

Step 1: Go to your Twitter App

Tap on your Twitter app to open your Twitter Home Timeline

Step 2: Tap on the Tweet Icon

The tweet Icon is on the bottom left of your home timeline.

Step 3: Type your Tweet

On the compose your tweet box, type your tweet up to 280 characters.

Step 4: Tap on the Tweet Icon

Once you have completed typing the tweet, press the tweet icon. It will share your Tweet publicly. The tweet will appear as the first tweet on your timeline.

Tweeting is not limited to text; you can also include photos, links, and videos.

How to Tweet a Media (Photo or Video) or Include a Media (Photo or Video) to your Tweet

Step: Click on the Camera Icon on the new Tweet Box

Follow the process of Tweeting. Then when composing the Tweet, there is a camera icon below the text box. Click on it to select a Photo or media to Tweet.

How to Share a link in a Tweet

To share a link in a tweet, you’ll need to copy and paste it into the compose tweet box.

Anyone on Twitter can select the tweet and open that page when shared.

How to Create a Poll on a tweet  

Go to creating a tweet and check the Poll Icon below the tweet Box.

Ask the question you want your followers to take a poll on, fill in the choices, Fill in the Poll length and

Tweet it.

How to Retweet

When going through your Twitter feed and you come across something you like and would like to share, click on the retweet button to Retweet it.

How to Schedule a Tweet on Twitter

Step 1: Got to Compose the tweet Box and Compose the tweet you want to send out. On the options below the text box, click on the Schedule tweet Icon.

Step 2: Choose the time you want the tweet to send out, then click Confirm.

The tweet will send out at the scheduled time.

Rules for Tweeting on Twitter

Twitter has set up some community guidelines that help users to operate within acceptable boundaries. These include:

Safety

Violence – no posts should threaten violence against a group or a person. One shouldn’t also glorify violence.

Terrorism – posts should not promote or threaten acts of terrorism

Child sexual exploitation – tweets should not contain any content with Child sexual exploitation

Abuse – Twitter posts shouldn’t incite or harass any other person or group

Hateful conduct – Twitter posts shouldn’t promote hate against other people based on their characteristics

Suicide – tweets should not encourage self-harm or suicide

Sensitive content – graphical violence and adult content is banned on Twitter

Illegal goods or services shouldn’t feature on Twitter posts.

Privacy

Twitter discourages sharing your or other people’s private information without authorisation. One should also not threaten others to provide confidential information and also not promote non-consensual nudity by sharing other people’s intimate photos and videos.

Authenticity

Spam – tweets should not suppress or manipulate information in a manner that disrupts people’s experience on Twitter.

Civic Integrity – tweets should not manipulate civic processes, such as elections, e.g., through manipulation.

Manipulated media: One shouldn’t share manipulated media that would mislead or cause harm.

Copyright -Tweets should not violate the copyright or intellectual rights of others.

Breaking these Twitter rules results in the suspension of the account, either temporarily or permanently.

 Tips for Posting a Tweet

1. Keep it short and captivating– short tweets help to get your thoughts and insights quicker. People on social media have short attention spans and pay attention to what appeals to them faster.
2. Make the tweets relatable – tweet about trending topics or content that appeals to your followers. Funny stories, memes, gifs and captivating threads are an excellent way to go about this.
3. Use hashtags but don’t overuse them– Jump on popular conversations using a hashtag. Stick to one hashtag. It will help people not follow you to see your tweets. Using many hashtags makes your tweets look spammy.
4. Encourage engagement – conversational tweets incite people to join in and contribute to the discussion. Drive engagement by asking followers to share their thoughts.
5. Monitor Notifications – It will allow you to respond to comments and questions and keep your followers engaged.
6. Tweet often – tweet often but not in a spammy manner. Tweet often to ensure you get more exposure and followers and keep in check with ongoing conversations.

Up Next

• How to DM on Twitter
• How to Save a Gif on Twitter
• How to Tag Someone on Twitter

The image featured at the top of this post is ©FellowNeko/Shutterstock.com.