Twitter is a service to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of brief messages. People write short updates, called tweets, of 140 characters or less. These messages are posted to your timeline, sent to your followers, and are searchable in Twitter Search.

The message restriction of 140 characters has resulted in Twitter being labeled a microblog.

One of the unique attributes of Twitter is that it allows people to find information in real-time. This can be beneficial in the following ways:

Conduct research Twitter allows you to tap into a community of people from around the world to find out what they are thinking, experiencing, and feeling. Collaborate and network with peers and colleagues Interactions can lead to new ideas, collaboration on projects, and opportunities. Listen to your audience Learn what your target audience is saying by monitoring their posts. Promote events and manage press announcements News travels fast on Twitter, so it can be an effective way to communicate company news, press releases, webcasts, upcoming tradeshows, and events.

Gain competitive intelligence Twitter can be used to monitor what the competition is up to, enabling real-time response to competitive announcements and claims. Drive traffic to your site or blog Twitter is a great way to broadcast links to new blog posts or content on your site. Generate awareness and demand for products It is fine to use Twitter as a marketing tool, as long as you balance communicating with marketing. Find people with similar interests Twitter's search function can help you locate friends, family, colleagues, and like minds.

Anatomy of a tweet Decoding a tweet can be daunting at first. Before setting up your Twitter account, let's look at the main components of a tweet:

The @ symbol The @ symbol is a way of referring to another Twitter user. For example, @IBMWatson means you're either sending a tweet to IBM Watson or you're talking about IBM Watson in your tweet. Replies and Mentions Replies and mentions both contain the @ symbol. On your Twitter home page, you'll see a @Mentions link, which is where you can find mentions of your username. All replies and mentions will appear, with the exception of replies from people you've blocked. Replies will have "in reply to" indicated next to their time stamp. If a tweet does not have this, it's a mention.

Retweet (RT) Retweeting on Twitter involves copying an original message, pasting it in a new Twitter message, then adding "RT @username" before the message to denote whom you received the original tweet from. Twitter's new Retweet feature helps you quickly re broadcast tweets you have received from others. Direct Message (DM) Whereas replies are public, a direct message is akin to a private message. You can send a direct message only to someone who is following your account. Send a direct message by starting your tweet with "DM @username." Hashtags Hashtags are keywords that provide additional context to your tweets and make them easier for others to find. You create a hashtag by prefixing a word or acronym with a hash symbol: #. You can track tags on Twitter Search or Hashtags.org

Twitter setup 1. Set up an account

Go to Twitter and click the "Sign Up" button.

On the resulting screen, enter the username you want (up to 15 characters), your desired password, and your e-mail address.

We recommend against using your IBM email address for signing up for social platforms. Instead use a personal email account.

2. Enter your basic profile information and identify yourself as an IBMer

If you publish content relevant to IBM in your personal capacity use a brief disclaimer such as this: "Opinions are my own."

3. Complete your profile information

If you want people to connect with you, you'll need to start by completing your profile. Log into Twitter and click on the "Settings" link at the top of your Twitter homepage.

The "Account" tab of the "Settings" section includes a text box that lets you input a 160-character statement about yourself, along with a link to your website or blog and your location. You can share as little or as much as you are comfortable with.

You also have the option of "protecting" your tweets. Every time someone attempts to follow you (i.e., subscribe to your tweets), you will receive an email notification so you can approve or decline their request. There are advantages and disadvantages to protecting your tweets.

Protecting your tweets can feel safer if you're nervous about other people seeing what you post. You can protect or unprotect your tweets at any point. However, protecting your tweets will limit the number of people who will follow you, which, in turn, limits the conversations you have.

The "Picture" tab lets you upload a picture to your profile. It is optional, but having one will make you seem more approachable and may encourage more users to follow you.

4. Find people to follow

Following someone on Twitter means subscribing to their tweets. Once you follow someone, their tweets will automatically appear in your timeline. There are a few simple ways to find people to follow on Twitter:

Search for people you know who are already using Twitter.
Enter your friends' email addresses to invite them to join Twitter.
When you find a colleague or someone with similar interests, look at the people they follow to find more like-minded individuals. You can also see with whom they are having public conversations and follow those people as well.
Search for conversations about specific topics using hashtags.

Unlike some social channels, Twitter allows for one-way relationships. If you follow someone on Twitter, that person does not necessarily have to follow you. 5. Choose a way to post your tweets

You can interact with Twitter directly on the website, via mobile apps, or using a desktop application.

The benefit of running a desktop application is that it allows you to do everything that you can do on Twitter, all in a convenient application that resides on your desktop.

Two examples of desktop applications are TweetDeck and Seesmic.

Soon, we will be able to recreate these open, engaging interactions directly from Social Business @ IBM. A future release will include Twitter client functionality - much like a desktop or web-based application - so you can conveniently connect and share information.

6. Start posting Next: LinkedIn