The 66,000 Tweet - Twitter Advice, 2009 vs 2012

At the beginning of using anything new, no one is good at it and everyone makes mistakes. Maybe I can help you avoid tweeting boring things on Twitter that also make you look like a beginner. Plus, I want to share some fun stuff with you.

On June 1, 2009 my blog post started with: "Late last night (I can't say what time or my family will think I've lost my mind), I finely started a Twitter account."

By October 19, 2009 I had 915 followers even though I mainly tweeted contests and giveaways that I entered. Actually, I was a very boring and ignorant Twitterer when I first started tweeting.

I don't have my first tweet, but I've been able to find some of my oldest tweets and I have been rolling my eyes at myself. Obviously, I didn't know how to tweet!

There is a point to showing you this, so try to bear with me.

The first is a comment I made on a blog...



I didn't tweet much in the beginning. I mostly just had tweets for giveaway entries and I actually did win quite a bit of stuff. Most of the things I won I gave to my daughter either to use or to put in her hope chest for her future.

https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/15655165089


https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/2660119365
https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/2746623856
https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/2834616418



Could these three tweets be much more boring?

https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/2834469757
http://twitter.com/TheRedheadRiter/status/2909985021
https://twitter.com/#!/theredheadriter/status/3573253075



https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/4768296990


https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/6136992588
https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/6137008333



https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/6293622040
https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/6338501258


https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/6387719639


https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/6403352496
https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/6490403191


https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/13666347091234816
https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/6604766315



I didn't win any of those giveaways, but they were teaching me a little bit about Twitter. As time passed, I learned how to create more interesting tweets and I also started using Hootsuite so that I could program tweets as well.

Eventually I found the TweetGrader site. It has all the Twitter users ranked so that you know where you fall in the millions of people that tweet. Right now my "grade" as a Twitter user is that I rank at 24,813 out of 9,938,660 users.

Not bad!




The site also ranks users by location. My location is Richmond, Virginia, USA. My first goal was to actually get on the top 100 and then my goal was to be above NBC12. It took a long time before I moved past the television station, but I was totally pumped when I did.

My next goal was to get past the playboy bunnies for obvious reasons followed by the GOP Leader. Who wouldn't want to pass a politician!

So now I am number 13 and my next goal is to be number 2. I don't win anything. My name isn't written across the sky. It's just something to keep me motivated and it means that my social media influence is growing.

http://tweet.grader.com/location/?Location=Richmond%2C+VA%2C+United+States



On February 18, 2012, I tweeted my 66,000th tweet. That is a mind boggling number of tweets even to me because I am a rather quiet person most of the time. That many tweets makes me sound like a yapaholic! Without even planning it, this was my 66,000th tweet...




Yep! It was the Twitter art I had created that says, "REDHEAD" in big letters and then in letters that are in small circles it says,"THE REDHEAD RITER". I immediately grabbed a copy of the screen because I couldn't believe that was my 66,000th tweet!

If you want to see it actually on Twitter, here is the link to my 66,000th tweet:

►► https://twitter.com/#!/TheRedheadRiter/status/171087475446530048 #sweet

Twitter is a totally different experience for me now and my tweets are actually more like conversations. I've also developed relationships/friendships with many people while learning Twitter etiquette.

To show you that I'm more interesting on Twitter than I was in 2009, this is how my tweets look now...

I tweet ascii pictures...



I sing songs and tweet the real artist's video...



I share interesting information...



I create my own quotes...



I thank people who send things to me...



I thank people for retweeting my posts and I use my Twitter man, Humphrey, to spice up my tweets...



I tweet merchandise that I like...



I retweet other people's blog posts...



I tweet famous people's quotes...



I have learned short abbreviations to thank people...



I tweet and retweet beautiful photos...



I express myself...



I tweet fun facts...



I thank people for following me and reading my blog...



I advertise blog posts by attaching them to Twitter art pictures...



I participate in Follow Friday #FF where I shout out my friends. Since my list is long, it takes many, many tweets throughout the day...



As you can tell, my Twitter thread is dramatically different than it was when I first started tweeting years ago. Being active on Twitter has given me many opportunities to increase exposure to my blog and to strengthen friendships. It has definitely been worth the time and effort I have put into it.

If you have a blog or a business, you should be on Twitter working it every day. It won't even feel like work. If you're not following me yet, jump on over to Twitter and follow me! I followback! If you are already on Twitter, great! I'll be looking for you, so just give me a holler!

Tweet

When Prince Harry Tweeted Me

To help myself wake up in the morning, I read the post that was published the night before on my blog. If I'm not in a hurry or have the day off from work, I languish on Twitter, Facebook and in my community until my brain finally realizes that it is time to start the day. Sometimes that takes a little while.

On Thanksgiving day, not only did I wake up late, but I enjoyed computer time too.

My Twitter name won't surprise you a bit. I'm @TheRedheadRiter and in case you haven't noticed, I am a redhead. In Twitter language, that would be "I'm a #redhead" and my profile states it also.



Putting the numbers sign (also called a "hashtag") in front of a word while on Twitter makes the word stand out and it becomes a searchable term.

Have a little patience! I'm getting to my point, but I have to explain this stuff or my mother won't understand my story!!!

Whenever I talk about being a redhead on Twitter, I always try to use the hashtag so that other redheads or lovers of redheads will find me. Hmmm...That could lead me down a total different topic because who doesn't want to love a redhead?

(innocent smile)

So now I'm going to tell you what happened to me on Twitter while I was trying to wake up and I'm going to throw in some Twitter hashtags too. It's very important to remember that I was half asleep and desperately trying to wake up totally. #MakingExcusesAlready

See how the whole hashtag thing works?

Okay then, here I go...

I was talking to one of my newest followers who is also probably one of my youngest - a young man with the Twitter name @LukeVsLukas.

Part of the conversation went like this:

Me: @LukeVsLukas Where were you born/live?

Luke: @TheRedheadRiter I live in Sheffield, England

Me: @LukeVsLukas With the redheaded Prince Harry! Aren't you just so lucky!

Luke's response to me was a retweet of my message, except that he included another person on it:

Luke: @Prince___Harry "@TheRedheadRiter: @LukeVsLukas With the redheaded Prince Harry! Aren't you just so lucky!"

Me: LOL I didn't know he Twittered. #Redhead power! Long live the #redheads of the world! ♥ RT @LukeVsLukas: @Prince___Harry ": @LukeVsLukas

Pause right there for a second.

Let me give you the definition of an important word in this story:

gull·ible
adj \ˈgə-lə-bəl\
Definition of GULLIBLE
: easily duped or cheated

You didn't forget that I was still #HalfAsleep and #TryingToWakeUp, right? Well, since Luke is from England, I figured he would know if Prince Harry was on Twitter and even know his Twitter name.

So like any good Twitterer, I jumped over to Prince Harry's account and retweeted (RT) a message he had posted earlier:

Me: RT @Prince___Harry: Are my American followers enjoying Thanks Giving. RT if you are :) #happythanksgiving

Then I tweeted Luke and said:

Me: @LukeVsLukas okay, I've officially RTd a prince. Cross that off my bucket list LOL

The next thing I know, I get this tweet from none other than @Prince___Harry.

Luke: @TheRedheadRiter muha! As if @Prince___Harry has just tweeted us! We're privileged! #moment4life

I stared at my screen and blinked.

#Gullible sets in

No? Yes! Prince Harry just tweeted me!

#RememberThatIWasStillHalfAsleep

So then on November 24, 2011 at 12:09 pm I tweeted:

Special #FF request ya'll A fellow #Redhead so "Love a redhead 2day" & please follow ❤ •.•´¯`•.• ❥ @Prince___Harry

That marked the moment I officially showed all my gullibility.

The phone rang and after Mom wished me "Happy Thanksgiving," I recounted the whole story to her. Alyssa heard it too and just #RolledHerEyes.

#IStartedWakingUp

After hanging up the phone so that I could get ready for Thanksgiving dinner with my family at my sister's house, Alyssa hollers from down the hall, "Hurry Mom. I don't want to be late!"

#KnownForBeingLateAtAllFamilyDinners

#IStillHaventFiguredOutWhy

#ICouldntHelpMyself

I had to know if the real Prince Harry just tweeted me. It is one thing to look like an #idiot with my mother and daughter, but I didn't want to go tell the rest of my family a total falsehood.

#GoogleIsMyFriend

After just a little Googling, I discovered that if I want to know anything about Prince Harry, then it can be found at the official sites of The Prince Of Wales or The British Monarchy.

There is also an official Twitter page @ClarenceHouse which "Updates, pictures and videos from Clarence House, about The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry" or @BritishMonarchy that gives "The latest news on Royal events." Both of these accounts have been verified by Twitter which is indicated by a little blue check mark icon on the Twitter profile page.

Prince Harry does not have a Twitter account that is all his own. Apparently @Prince___Harry is a fake and should learn some...

hon·es·ty
noun \ˈä-nəs-tē\
Definition of HONESTY
2a : fairness and straightforwardness of conduct
b : adherence to the facts : sincerity

Unfortunately, that makes me a total:

suck·er
noun \ˈsə-kər\
Definition of SUCKER
5a : a person easily cheated or deceived

I didn't tell anyone at dinner about #MyCloseEncounterThatNeverHappened with Prince Harry. Obviously, going forward I should be #TotallyAwake when I tweet since being #HalfAsleep didn't work too well.

#ThatsMyStory and #ImStickingToIt

Tweet

I Want To Twitter Follow You

An updated answer from a previous posting can be found here: Not For A Man's Eyes


I use Friend or Follow and ♥love♥ it! Read all about how it works at Other Stuff Blogroll.

Here are all the people that follow me on Twitter. I want to follow you too if you are not being followed by me.


So if I am not following you, please visit this spreadsheet and type in your info or follow me on Twitter (icon can also be found in the right side bar and in the footer) so that I can return the favor.

http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0Alxg0m7Iz_XgdEsxQ1I2ZExGYVBVNTFXVGxNMmdYV3c&hl=en

Thank you and Tweet Tweet!




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Twitter, Trash and Pens

Late last night (I can't say what time or my family will think I've lost my mind), I finely started a Twitter account. Did you notice my new little blue birdie in the right side bar? Before I became a Twitterer (yes, that's a word), I wanted to really know why it is such a craze. I found some great information pertaining to twittering. I think the best was this YouTube video that really tells the whole story and is worth watching.

Video on YouTube "What Is Twitter?"Today I spent some time searching the internet for crazy stuff (which I found), but I did find something that just made me laugh out loud while being totally alone in the room. I would love to see my mother's face when she reads this one! My mother is rather "frou-frou" meaning that she is a very proper and "fancy" dresser. I think it is impossible for her to look messy! I mean that in the nicest way! Anyway, I love "hair" and my family could be called the "Big Hair Clan". I don't know how that happened, but maybe we never left the 80's. Here is a "new" way of fancifying your hair. You just HAVE TO look at this one!

Fancy Up Your HairMy family has a "pen" thing. My husband has to have a certain pen. My daughter goes crazy if she doesn't have "the" pen (I don't remember what kind). My mom raves over her "non-splotchy" pen...etc. I guess it is important to have a good pen. Yeah, whatever. I found an ergonomic pen today...woo hoo. If you are a pen-a-holic and you are big into ergonomics, you may find this to be just the coolest pen ever. Don't forget to check the price tag on this baby (choking as I type the price). It is just a mere $140. Yeah, you read that right!

The Ergonomic PenI'm off to see my Twitter account. I heard on the radio that someone has earned the title of the "Oldest Twitterer" so I looked her up online. If you think you're too old, you're wrong. Ivy Bean is 104 years old. Isn't that fantastic!

Ivy BeanCatch ya' later! I'll look for you on Twitter! Tweet