TweetDeck: How to Use it as an Information Hub.

Twitter seems like the type of thing that turns people off to it pretty quickly. It’s difficult to understand, it takes effort to use, and it’s hard to get new people to follow you. I am here to discuss an application for Twitter, called the TweetDeck that makes Twitter a breeze to understand, and to use. In fact, it optimizes Twitter’s ability to help you if you are trying to promote something or trying to use it for information. I can honestly say, the TweetDeck definitely made me see how you can, “join the conversation,” for the first time!

First things first, google the TweetDeck, and download it for MAC or PC. Once it is downloaded, register it to your twitter account, and if you have one, Facebook and Linkedin. It also allows you to add your Google Buzz, FourSquare and Myspace accounts. Once you have done all this, then you’re ready to learn how the TweetDeck can help you in your everyday life, whether you are a blogger or are trying to use it for business.

The Tweet Deck is seperated in columns: “All Friends,” “Mentions,” ”TweetDeck Reccomends,” “DIrect Messages,” and “Search.” I am going to break down each of these columns and explain what each caan be used for,and how to use them. I understand that this may seem overwhelming at first but I’ll break it down so that it is easy to use and can be understood better.

“All Friends”

This column is where you will see your tweets and the tweets from those you follow on Twitter. If you do not have followers yet, go on Facebook or Myspace, or whatever account you may have and advertize your twitter account; say, “follow me on twitter!” or “what’s your twitter account?” or simply look for their twitter in their information. Once you have done that, you can follow anyone from celebrities to writers…whoever! You will get their updates sent directly to this section of the
TweetDeck.

There are icons at the bottom of this column, and some are used for organization and filtering. One is shaped like a little cloud and it is used for popular tweets. When you click it, the most popular tweets will pop up. Then, there’s the “Filter this column” button that allows you to filter the contents by whatever keywords you wish to. When you click this icon, you will see a “Filter by..” bar where you can type in some kind of text and Twitter will filter your updates by those keywords.

The next icon is used to help you clear out some of your shown updates. The First one is shaped like an eye. This button marks all of your updates as “seen” which you can use for the next icon, which allows you to clear all seen posts. The icon that does this is shaped like a pair of scissors. The next icon is a garbage pail that will clear all posts. These are used for organization and maintenance.

“Mentions”

This section allows you to see when you have been mentioned by other twitter users. This can be when they are speaking directly to you or when someone has “re-tweeted” you. This is useful to you in ways that you can see who is trying to talk to you and you have the ability to monitor who re-tweets you. You will also see the same icons at the bottom of this column that one may use in the same manner as mentioned above.

“TweetDeck Recommends”

This section will show twitter users that the program suggests to you based on your twitter output and tweets, as well as your profile. This is important because, if you are a writer or blogger, it will point out other users who are similar. Networking is important to many users of Twitter, and this section supports that. Go ahead, follow them! You may get some useful information or pointers from these people!

“Direct Messages”

When you send out a direct message or receive them, they will show up here! This allows you to keep track of who you sent messages to, and make it easier to see messages that come straight to you. These messages are not set on the “updates” section, rather, they are for your eyes and the eyes of the person who either messaged you or vice versa.

“Search”

Now, if you are a blogger or a promoter, or are simply just trying to connect with people on a topic, this column is key! It’s also easy to use; you simply click the top of the column where it says “search” and type in a keyword. Say for instance, you wrote an article about Obama and you want to see what other people say about him, or wish to promote the article. At the top, you would type, “Obama” or something of the like, and you will see where the conversation is about Obama.

Now, there are other columns you can add like, “New Followers” but I feel that these first few columns are key for beginner users. Where do you find the “add columns” icon? In the upper left hand corner of the application. You can edit your columns at any time. View this screenshot.

I have more information to help you understand the TweetDeck more fully, and will describe other icons and applications of this program in more detail below!

How do you send out an update?

You can simply click on the icon that is bright yellow with a square and a pencil through it. This will bring up a bar at the bottom of the program, where you can type up to 140 words. This section also allows you to attach photos, videos and links. You will also see, on your left, the other accounts you added, and if you click them so they light up, your update will go there as well.

Links are difficult because they can be so long, right? But you really want to share that link with a description of what it is so it doesn’t seem like spam, correct? I have a solution. All you have to do is go back to your browser and type in ”bit.fy.com” and you will get a chance to shorten your link. simply copy and past it in the box, and hit enter. Then, your short-link will appear for you to copy and paste into your update.

Scheduling an Update

You may also schedule an update to go out at a certain time. This is good if you decided to send out an update late-night, and would rather it go out early in the morning for more people to see! It also allows you to pick the date, so this icon is fun. It’s the little time-watch to the left of the send button.

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Other helpful and useful things are “translate this update” which allows you to pick a language to post your update. This is helpful to you in ways that you can broaden your audience for advertisements, promotions, etc.

Also, if you have exceeded the number of characters allowed for a twitter update, you can click the icon that says, “Tweetshrink this update” which is shaped like an downward arrow next to the translate button.

There are some icons located on the top right of the TweetDeck application as well that allow you to refresh, switch to one-column view, access your settings, and log out. These are key icons to keep mental note of!

Finally, I will have to let my little TweetDeck learners fly. I have given you the information needed to understand the TweetDeck to help you organize Twitter so that you may optimize your business, blog, or social life.

I hope you found this tutorial helpful; spread your wings and fly little tweeters!

For more information, consult this video tutorial!

TweetDeck Tutorial

Check out the AUTHOR on her blog: http://bit.ly/9NuIKD