SmithsonianX: ENVR1.1x #EarthOptimism

1. Creating an Account

To create your account, visit Twitter's sign up page at https://twitter.com/signup. Once you have registered your email or phone number, you'll need to verify it. Twitter will send you an email or text with a link or code. Follow the instructions to finish setting up your account. 

Once you've verified your account, you should:

1. Choose a professional handle. Your handle is the username that follows the @ symbol. This is how you will be recognized on Twitter and is the name that all of your tweets will be associated with. Select a handle that you'd be happy to share with your colleagues at work or in your field. 
2. Add a profile picture. Twitter deletes accounts that it suspects of not be associated with a real person. Having a profile picture is a way to identify that the account is a real one. Your picture can be one of you or of something you're passionate about. Just be sure it is small. Twitter has a size limit for profile pictures of 400x400 pixels.
3. Add a short description of yourself. The description of the account is another indicator that the handle is owned by a real person. It appears below the profile picture on your Twitter profile page. Your description could include something about your interests or passions or could simply be your job title.
4. Add a cover photo. This is one more way Twitter identifies real versus fake accounts. The cover photo appears across the top of your Twitter profile page. This is a larger picture and is much longer than tall, so you'll need to look for something that will fit Twitter's size limitations of 1500x500 pixels. Like the profile picture, this picture could also reflect you or your interests.

@EarthOptimism Profile Page

2. Writing a Tweet

Once you're ready to write a tweet, click on the Tweet button  on the top right of your screen. If you're on a mobile phone using the Twitter app, click on the icon that looks like a feather , which is also in the top right corner of your screen. A new window will appear that will say, "What's happening?" Start typing your tweet. Click  in the bottom right of the screen on a computer or in the top right of your screen on a mobile phone to publish your tweet so everyone can read it. 

As you write your tweet remember:

1. Tweets can only be 140 characters. This includes any hashtags (#) you add. 
2. Proofread your tweets before publishing them.
3. Read our Twitter Tips & Tricks to help you create engaging tweets and Twitter threads.

Compose New Tweet

3. Following Other Users

Following other people on Twitter will help you engage with the communities you want to be a part of. You'll see the tweets of people or organizations you follow on your Twitter feed when you log in. To follow someone, click the follow button  under their name or Twitter handle. You will see the button turn blue to indicate you are now following them. They will get a notification that you are following them.

When you create you account, Twitter will recommend people for you to follow. These might not be the people you're interested in engaging with. Think about the topics you are interested in learning more about. Think about whose work you're interested in. These are the people you want to follow on Twitter. 

People will also begin to follow you. Remember that it takes time to build up followers. It does not happen overnight. Also remember that it is the quality of the exchange that is most important, not the quantity. Fewer engaged followers are much better than many disengaged ones. 

Throughout this workshop, we will recommend people to follow. These are people who are changing the conversation around conservation. You'll find these names in each session's Conversation Changers section.  

Follow

4. Retweeting Tweets

You don't always have to come up with original content to tweet. You can and should retweet other people's content. If you see a tweet on your feed that you agree with or think is interesting, funny, well-said, etc., you should feel free to share it. 

There are two ways of retweeting:

1. Straight retweeting: This is when you simply hit the retweet button  at the bottom of someone's tweet. Straight retweet shows that you agree with or endorse what that person said. 
2. Quote retweeting: This is when you want to add your own ideas to someone else's. When you retweet with a quote, you add a thought above the other person's tweet to qualify what they said or comment on it. If the original tweet has a hashtag (#), be sure to include the hashtag (#) of the conversation the tweet refers to so that your retweet is also visible in that conversation.

Retweet