Twitter Guide: How to create an account, tweet, get followers and more
Twitter is gaining more and more users every day. Here's how you can join twitter, gain followers and start tweeting right now.
Twitter is among the top 3 most popular social media platforms in the world. It is also a place for official user accounts of celebrities, companies, brands and more. It is not only used to share personal thoughts, but people also use it to raise their complaints against products and/or services.
If you have been out of the Twitter world, here’s how you can set up your own account and start tweeting right away.
How to create a Twitter account?
In order to start tweeting, you will first be required to create a new account on Twitter.
- Head over to the Twitter website on your PC or download and install the Twitter app on your Android or iOS device.
- Now, you just need to tap on Sign Up or Create Account. With each step, you will be required to fill in your details and verify your phone number or email id.
- Once done, you will be asked to follow the people you might now.
On your phone, you can give access to your contacts to see which ones are on Twitter. If you want to stay connected with them, just hit the Follow button next to their names.
How to Tweet?
- If you are using a smartphone, open the Twitter app and tap on the feather icon on the bottom right corner.
- Upon doing so, you will be welcomed by a blank page where you can type anything. You can even attach images, videos, GIFs and other media files on your tweet. However, you will be able to use only 280 characters on Twitter.
- On PC, just head over to the Twitter website and login to your account. Once logged in, you can start tweeting by clicking on the “What's happening?” box.
How to tweet without internet?
While Twitter is all about the internet, you can even post tweets without an internet connection. In order to tweet without internet, you will need to link your mobile number with your Twitter account.
- Head over to Twitter Settings > Account
- Tap on Phone and verify your number using the OTP you receive
Once you have linked your phone number, follow these steps to tweet using SMS messages
- In India, you can just send a text message to the number "9248948837"
- The text should contain your tweet and it will automatically be posted to your linked Twitter account.
How to delete a tweet?
In case you have posted something by mistake, just follow these steps to delete your recent tweet.
- Open your profile and look for the tweet you want to delete.
- Click on the down arrow key and hit delete
How to gain followers?
Start following the people you know including your friends and family. They will follow you back in order to get your updates. Also, if you want to gain extra followers, you should start posting interesting content on your Twitter handle like jokes, poetry, news or others. In order to reach out to more people, try using hashtags and especially the ones that are trending. Tap on the explore section to know what hashtags are trending in your country.
What are direct messages?
Direct Messages or DMs are personal messages that you do not want anyone else to see. You can send DMs to anyone by just heading over to the messages section.
Some keyboard shortcuts on Twitter
These shortcuts can be used when you are surfing Twitter's website on your PC or Mac.
n = new Tweet
l = like
r = reply
t = Retweet
m = Direct Message
u = mute account
b = block account
enter = open Tweet details
o = expand photo
/ = search
cmd-enter | ctrl-enter = send Tweet
Navigation
? = full keyboard menu
j = next Tweet
k = previous Tweet
space = page down
. = load new Tweets
Timelines
g and h = Home timeline
g and o = Moments
g and n = Notifications tab
g and r = Mentions
g and p = profile
g and l = likes tab
g and i = lists tab
g and m = Direct Messages
g and s = Settings and privacy
g and u = go to someone’s profile
In a nutshell, using Twitter is pretty easy these days and it has become even more popular than before. However, do keep in mind that you will not receive a lot of followers in just one day. You will need to be patient and keep tweeting!