How Does Twitter Work –Here’s All to Know!

These days, Twitter has raised a storm as one of the most popular social media networks. It can help you in taking your online recognition to the next level. However, to make the most out of this platform, you must know how does Twitter works.

How Does Twitter Work - First Get Verified!

To start with answering the question, how does Twitter work, the very first thing that deserves a mention is getting verified on the platform. Twitter verification is a way to certify that your profile is relevant. The blue symbol gives credibility, validating that it is an official account of a brand or company.

In the beginning, the social network did not have such a specific policy for receiving verification. The profiles that were contacted through the social network's website could already count on the symbol. 

Today, this reality is different. To get the verification, the profile needs to have the following data-informed:

• verified phone number and e-mail address;
• biography
• profile picture;
• birthday date (if it is a personal profile)
• website;
• tweets set as public in the personal settings.

Another specification that Twitter determined to achieve this validation was that the profile must have some social relevance. That is, it must have some kind of involvement with the public and a considerable number of followers. Twitter does not say the exact amount or an estimate of how many followers you need to have to be validated.

Once these requirements are met, you can submit your request for verification and wait for the social network's approval.

With a verified account, your profile can be used normally, only with more credibility for followers. 

How does Twitter work - The Detailed Synopsys

The social network is very simple and intuitive, but to know how to use Twitter it is important to know some words, functionalities, and techniques specific to the platform. So, let's check out how does Twitter work.

Followers

The first thing you need to know is, "following" is a natural thing on Twitter. And this is not to make you afraid of stalkers or worry about people watching you. 

Followers are the people who are following your profile. By following you, they start receiving your content and messages on their timeline. 

You can also "follow back" these people by having a list of "followed" and a list of "followers".

Reply

The Reply is represented by the balloon and is a way to interact directly with that specific message. When a follower clicks this button, they can reply with a new message of 280 characters or add the media they deem necessary.

Even the person who owns the tweet can click on Reply to write a new message, continuing the conversation that was in the original content.

The reply is one of the ways to interact with a tweet, each message also offers other ways to interact: liking, sharing - via direct messaging, copying the link from the tweet or adding to bookmark - and Retweet.

These options appear below each message by symbols of a balloon, a square formed by two arrows, a heart, and an arrow coming out of a box.

Retweets

The Retweet is represented by the arrows forming the square, and by clicking it, you replicate the original tweet within your profile. It is a way to bring someone else's content o your followers, which you found interesting to share. 

There are two ways to RT a tweet: with and without commentary. In the first, you can add a text of up to 280 characters and/or an image when "retweeting".

In the second, you Retweet without adding anything, just bringing someone else's original message to your followers.

By gaining Retweets your brand message is spread to more people, beyond those who already follow your profile.

Like

If you really want to know, how does Twitter work, you must be well=informed about 'likes'. The heart represents the tweet being liked. All tweets that your followers like, bring the original message to their timeline. Naturally. it increases the visibility of the tweet.

Share or add to Bookmarks

The fourth and last way to interact directly on a tweet is sharing. You can do this in various ways.

•     by direct message, the person forwards your tweet to one of his followers without being through the timeline;
•     by copying the tweet's link, so the person can send it via WhatsApp messages, for example;
•     or by adding it to Bookmarks, this way the tweet is saved for the person who can view it whenever they want.

Mentions

Another way for your followers to interact with you is through mentions. For this, the "@" you defined when you created your account is essential. After all, it is the @ that will be used to indicate a direct mention to your profile.

To make a mention is very simple: just write "@" and add that of the person or brand you want to mark in your post. 

With the direct mention, the person will receive a notification as soon as they log into the social network. They will be able to interact with your message.

Know the Hashtags on Twitter to Know How Does Twitter Work

Hashtags are present on Facebook, Linked In, Instagram, and also on Twitter. But the use of hashtags on Twitter needs to be very strategic. And it's vital to know about them to understand how does Twitter works.

Hashtags are ways for your audience to find you in a faster and easier way. Moreover, on Twitter, you can involve them with big actions that are happening in real-time.

The launch of a new program, the beginning of a reality show, a big musical performance...all of these offer opportunities for hashtags and content that will put you in the spotlight.

Since Twitter has a specific space limit for the number of characters, the tip is to use not more than two hashtags per post

Twitter Moments

As we said, Twitter is a network that allows you to stay in touch with what is going on in the world. Twitter Moments shows, through tweets organized in chronological time, what is happening in real-time.

You can create your own Moment by giving it a title and description and adding your own tweet within a subject theme you want to follow.

There are two different ways to create your Moment:

•     by the "Moments" tab in the social network;

•     through the details of a Tweet.

Twitter Threads - You Must Know About them To Understand How Does Twitter Work

Twitter threads are the most current feature on the platform and you need to know about them to comprehend how does Twitter works. They serve to organize a conversation by creating a thread of tweets that have related information.

Since there is a limited space of 280 characters, it is not always possible to tell the whole story you want. After all, there is no objectivity in the world that can summarize some events and gossip.

This is why threads are perfect. They help keep the conversation going within a sequence of tweets, organizing all the information and making it easier for the public to interact. 

For example, your followers can RT only the first tweet in your thread, by clicking on it, people can see the whole sequence and read all the content you produced.

Twitter Lists

Can you imagine being able to organize all profiles of people and celebrities by interest group or theme? This is possible with Twitter's lists.

Creating lists is a way to gather profiles you follow or not within a category. Then, by simply accessing it, you can see information from the selected accounts. You don't miss out on the tweets you really want to follow. 

Also, if you represent a company, you can organize lists of people who are brand lovers or haters. This makes it easier to be able to monitor what they are saying about you and take action if necessary.

Twitter Cards - Plays a Great Role when it comes to talking about How does Twitter Work

Anyone who used Twitter back in 2009 suffered from the small character space to write. The situation was even worse when you shared a link since there were not many shorteners back then.

Each letter of the link was deducted from the number of characters of the tweet, making any kind of sharing difficult.

Twitter Cards came to solve this issue. It replaces the link with an image - which can be a YouTube video or artwork of the post being shared - allowing you to still have 280 characters available for writing.  They play a vital role and you need to be well-informed about them to know how does Twitter work.

There are four different models of Cards:

Summary card: it appears with the sharing of posts and stories. You can characterize it by a title, a description, and an image of the content;

Application card: when your application is available on Google Play or App Store, the textual link is replaced by an image with the title and short description automatically in the tweet;

Player card: when sharing a video from platforms like YouTube, the person can see a preview of the content with one click;

Lead generation card: it is made to call the attention of your followers to download some product or material, the tweet is expanded and the user sees the offer with a call-to-action.

Unfollowing on Twitter

When you are following someone, you can view the messages on your timeline and see all of the person's tweets if you go directly into their profile.

Now, if you are unhappy with someone, no longer identify with what they are posting, or something similar, the best way out is the "unfollow" button.

To stop following someone on Twitter, you log into their profile and go to the "following" button on the main menu. When you hover your cursor over it, the button changes to the "unfollow" option.

Twitter Fleets

There was a time on the Internet when Story became a real trend. Many social networks started to gain a version of the feature: Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp.

So many people were making Stories that if you blinked, it was possible that the feature would be available on your refrigerator. (Okay, I'm kidding).

Twitter also jumped on this bandwagon. Twitter's Fleets has the same function and mechanism as Instagram Stories, for example.  

The published image is available for 24 hours and one can view them if he/she is on Twitter. But for now, the only way to see the Fleets is via mobile.

Twitter Memes

Have you ever been in a situation where you see a friend laughing for hours at a joke you heard days ago? If you are the only person in your group who has a Twitter account then memes must be it for you.

Memes on Twitter go viral with a very fast intensity - even faster than compared to other networks. This is why it can be common for a friend to send you an inbox on Instagram of a meme that you have seen in a tweet a while ago.

This is because the network allows this tone of a joke to be common, so much so that it has been the stage of several "meme" disputes between Brazil and other countries.

What is Twitter DM?

If you do not want to write a message on your timeline to someone, Twitter offers another option: the Direct Message (DM).

DM is a feature to send a conversation just between you and the person. The message box is available in the lower-left corner for those using Twitter on the desktop. When you click it, the last exchanged messages appear.

To create a new message, simply click on the envelope-shaped button with the "+" sign. You select the person you want to send the message to and write it. There is no character limit on DMs!

As this space is more personal and close, many companies use it as a customer relationship channel. Thus, it is possible to solve any pending issue without a fuss.

How to send messages on Twitter to non-followers?

You can also send direct messages to those who are not followers. But there is a difference in the notification.

While messages forwarded to your followers generate a notification, DMs forwarded to other users are not notified. The system stores them as "pending", waiting for the user's approval.

Only when the user accepts it, a person can read the DM entirety.

How to disable Twitter Account?

If you do not want people to have easy access to your Twitter posts there are a few ways to disable your account.

If it is something very specific, you can go to the person's profile and block it. This way they will not be able to access your updates, not even your page. 

Now, if you want to keep all your posts closed to only approved followers, you should modify the privacy of your profile.

•     go to the "Privacy and security" settings;

•     under "Tweets Privacy", check the box next to "Protect my Tweets";

•     click save at the bottom of the page;

•     enter your password to confirm the change.

Now your tweets are all protected 🔐. With this protection, no one can retweet your posts anymore.

What to post on Twitter - Vital to Understand How Does Twitter Work

To understand how does Twitter work, you need to know what you should post here. Twitter is a very eclectic space for information, profiles, and publication formats. It allows you to post images, GIFs, videos, news, etc. 

And you don't have to post just one photo. It is possible to upload up to four different images, creating a small carousel - many users often use these in-jokes and chain posts.

If you use Twitter for business it is important to think about how all these features can help promote your brand.

The tone of voice of the company needs to be present in all tweets and interactions. The public needs to know how to get in touch with your @ - if in a more relaxed or serious way, if you can use memes or not, etc.

Now, if your account is personal, you can take advantage of all these possibilities to create a profile that shows how you really are. Just think, the network doesn't focus on photos but on more diverse content.

What is Twitter Engagement? 

In any marketing strategy designed for social networks, engagement is important. Twitter engagement happens through the features and alternatives offered to each tweet. You need to know a bit about it to know how dos Twitter work.

It is not enough just to have many followers, it is important to involve them with your publications. Encouraging an interaction that can happen through:

•     likes;

•     retweets;

•     replies;

•     click on the link

•     click on the hashtag;

•     click on media (photos and videos).

These metrics help you calculate the engagement rate on each of your posts, increasing the reach of the post.

When a person likes or RTs your post, they bring your content to more people. In this way, your reach increases, surpassing your followers and impacting the followers of your followers.

Hope the information helps!