The ultimate goal when using Twitter is to network, and to do that, you have to begin by finding people to follow. It’s a good idea to build a list of followers that are within your industry’s target audience, it is beneficial to add Twitter users with outside interests to your list as well who might add some variety to your network.
Twitter isn’t just a place to update what time you brushed your teeth or what you thought of today’s cloudy weather. It is much more powerful than that, especially when you’re following a network of people in your industry. Twitter allows you to connect with your peers and get new ideas, start joint ventures, and other deals that may not have been able to materialize in other typical business activities.
Aside from the amazing business opportunites that often arise, Twitter also allows you to simply “vibe” with your peers and those in the same industry that understand everything you’re passionate about as well as the trouble you may be having. What would once be limited to a very small network of people “at the office”, can now virtually be thousands of people who connect with you on several levels. The support that you can get out of that connection is priceless.
Sounds, good, right? But how do you go about finding these people to connect with?
Well, there is more than one way to find followers on Twitter. Here are a few:
- Choose from “Everyone”
When you’re on your main home page, you can click the link on the right column that reads "Everyone". This will literally show you tweets from everyone on Twitter. Grab yourself a cup of joe and scroll through until you see something that catches your attention. Click their name to see more of their tweets, and if you like them, follow!
- Find People!
There’s actually a button at the top of the twitter home page that allows you to search by people’s name. This is great for whipping through a list of people you already know to see if their on twitter, either by their real name, or by a username you know they typically use.
- Other Networks
If you have email contact lists on any of the major accounts online (Gmail, MSN, etc.) then you can choose “Find On Other Networks” on your twitter home page as well, and it will allow you to import any contacts you may have that are in the Twitter system.
- Suggested Users
Twitter has a “suggested users” link as well, but all too often it’ll just show you celebrity names and other people that won’t actually do much for your business. However, if you’re a huge fan of Brad and Angelina, then you might still want to check out this feature.
There are still a few other obvious ways such as using the Search function that will show you results based on name ot topic that you enter.
You can find someone with a list of the same type of people you’re looking to follow. On their home page, you’ll see a link on the right that reads “following”. Click that and you’ll see their whole list. Start browsing!
Of course, you will also be following people who have chosen to follow you. It’s a good idea to take a look at their latest 10-20 tweets before you actually click the follow button though, because you do want to have at least something in common. Some people choose to simply make it a rule to follow whoever follows them. It’s up to you. Either way, start building your followers!
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