Tips for Promoting Your Profile with TwitBacks

TwitBacks users are already experiencing the benefits of our new “promote your profile” feature. Here’s a quick success guide to help you get the most out of your promoted profile:

• Be sure to select the most relevant category for your service type. This will ensure that your promoted “listing” is posted to the correct area at all of our directory partners, which in turn ensures that the appropriate people are viewing your services.

• Title your listing like a targeted Google search phrase. For instance, “Designer” won’t yield very targeted or quality results. Instead try “Wordpress custom theme designer” or something like that.

• Enter your correct city and state. This ensures that your listing is placed in the correct area at our partner posting directories.

• Write a short, detailed blurb about yourself and your professional services. The more descriptive you are, the more information you’re providing potential customers, the more likely they are to contact you. See how nicely that works?

So go on, get started promoting your services with TwitBacks. You have something to offer, make it easy for people to find you! Check out our short slideshow below for more info:

Are You Listening to What’s Being Said About You?

If not, then you should be. Our Twitter poll this week asked, “Do you use Google or Twitter search (or both) to track what’s being said about you / your brand?” Most of you responded saying that you use both, some responded that you use one (or something different altogether), and a few of you said that you don’t track what’s being said about you at all.

Keeping track of what’s being said about you all around the web may seem like a daunting task, but it’s definitely worth it! If it’s something negative, you can respond right away to give your input (and look like a hero). If it’s positive, you can bookmark it into a testimonial page, give someone personal thanks, or keep track of in some other way for future use.

To keep things simplified, setup Google Alerts and Twitter Search for keywords that you want to keep an eye on (ie. your name, your brand name, a competitor, etc.) and have them delivered to your feed reader. You can get the Twitter feed right from the search page (see image).

This way, you have everything that’s being said about you on the web delivered to one convenient spot. Monitor this sporadically throughout each day to really stay on top of your business and brand! Do you have any other tips to share? Leave a comment below to share your ideas.

And as always, many thanks to all who participated in our Twitter poll (with another special shoutout to @mayhemstudios for Re-Tweeting the question and referring the answers back to us)!

	judyrey I use Google Search predominantly Tried Twitter search once for my name and both UnGraven Image & Art of Seeing The Divine
	cococello both google and search.twitter
	webhues Both (keywords & combinations of keywords) + Google Alerts
	andysowards I use Google Alerts Son!
	simonturner have used Google for couple of years, and have just started to use Twitter Search
	ruthe I use both twitter search via tweetdeck and google alerts emailed to me daily to keep track of my company’s “buzz”
	coated Google Alerts is really good for tracking mentions of keywords or stories on the net.
	politicsRboring i use both!
	infinityplusone i use my own twitter tools: http://twitter.infinityplus…
	timjahn Google Alerts currently
	mayhemstudios I use Twitter Search, see what is said about me; good or bad. Google for my brand, linking and ranking.
	musosdan I have searches setup on TweetDeck for watching Twitter chatter
	nakeva I use both Twitter search and google to track Twitter conversation
	deannatroupe I use both.
	havrilla You bet!
	tweetgrid http://tweetgrid.com/ is a far superior way to monitor your brand/image on twitter as you can search multiple topics in real-time
	skyn3t Twitter search is used by me quite frequently 2 track tweets related 2 me & other useful keywords, also the #hash tag channels
	vacaconnect We use the search and google. Have to monitor to engage!
	sarahvreid Honestly, it’s not something I’d ever even thought about doing!
	alanunderkofler yes both google and twitter have proven to be essential for keeping tabs of both personal and business brands! Use both!

	chrisredding I google alert.
	LilPecan I use m.slandr.net’s ego view to check out things said about me but not to me.
	jennipps I do Google search. Depending on what the source is, I may leave a comment if appropriate.
	ChrisVanBuren I primarily use Google to track both my name/brand.
	Telemill Yep.
	geechee_girl google alert, tweetbeep, search.twitter, and more, or you can just call @radian6
	yeahilikeit Yes!
	lyceum Keep both Twitter and Facebook and then follow it on FriendFeed.
	jackassletters I have google alerts set on my domains and usernames. I sit back and see where they land.
	heathersmemo I just signed up for @twilert and Google alerts.

When do you RT on Twitter?

Hi folks! Our most recent Twitter poll asked:

When do you RT (re-tweet)? When someone RT’s something of yours, something interesting, cool tool/link, other?

The answers were quite interesting, even a little surprising. Here are the results:

Cool link or tool: 20%
Useful or important info: 48%
When someone RT’s me: 12%
To help someone out: 20%

The interesting thing to see was how many of you said that you RT to help someone out, especially since that wasn’t one of the suggested options. And we can testify to how awesome that is! The responses to this poll were quite a bit fewer than our last one, but thanks to our Twitter friend @mayhemstudios who re-tweeted our question several times, we got a bunch more responses!

Another recent experience with helpful re-tweeting came after the phishing scam spread through Twitter. We posted some tips on our blog about How to Protect Your Twitter Account from Scammers, and so many of you RT’d the link that we received a bucket load of traffic to that post (and the most comments yet). This was such a great example oh how helpful re-tweeting can be, and we hope it saved lots of people from being taken advantage of.

Thanks to all who responded to this poll, it was quite enlightening Here are the actual responses from the Twitter stream:

lenire cool tools, cool links, something clever that was said, a question, or an announcement

easy_way most of the time a tool or a warning of sorts xD

samblankenship I rt when it was something so good that it makes me wish I was the one that had originally sent it!

kishau I like to keep it simple. I RT to share useful/interesting info. That is all.

Lotay usually a trusted friend’s suggestion gets my attention or an interesting bio.

madmicroblogger Not necessarily, I think it’s more for when you see a tweet worth sharing

chipg I always try to spread the ‘love’ and RT. I also have been known to HT (hat tip) for food ideas.

sarahvreid Yes, if they have something worth sharing – I’m lucky as the people I follow are very interesting, so it’s easy for me to do!

alanunderkofler I always RT people that RT me… Of course I RT more items because they add value, show a cool tool, or I like the tweet

MattLevenhagen I RT when someone posts something interesting, useful, smart, enlightening & I think my followers will enjoy or benefit from it

musosdan I always try and RT when someone posts something important, or a cool tool/link. I never RT based on them RTing me!

easy_way its something important/cool

jessewilkins something interesting. If I’d blog/Del.icio.us it, I’ll RT. Also requests for assistance if I know I have followers that could

macbooknovice I retweet when someone tweets about something that I think will be useful, humorous, or interesting to others.

skyn3t i do RT to help spread urgent messages, interesting links, important news, rare updates, cool tools and special blogs

Geek_News I RT interesting links such as blog posts, pics or news

Firgs RT factors include: Cool, interesting to me & followers, I am helping promote someone I know, out of the norm, and NOT spam!

mayhemstudios I retweet anything that will benefit my followers. It doesn’t matter if people return the favor or not, most times, they do

jennipps When something is interesting/motivating and relevant to me and what I do. If I like it, generally a lot of my followers do too.

ruthe when I think is interesting/important OR to resend a question/blog posting of mine to make sure all time zones R covered.

politicsRboring I RT when people tweet me!

Adrigonzo Whenever i feel like it! especially if someone needs help (begging for more followers does not constitute a request for help)

ChuckAtLegacy I RT when I think the tweet will be interesting to my followers, and/or to help out a friend.

kgrz i personally prefer to RT if the content is interesting and out of the ordinary and if it would benefit people following me!

@jantallenI I retweet things I think are worthy or would be interesting to my tweethearts that might not see the tweet

@arronlock I generally RT things that I have found useful or interesting. Of course when someone RT my stuff thats always a plus

MiriamJacobs I RT to help promote others whether they return the favor. I even RT for some who I later find out no longer follow me. Lol

epuri when something intresting found in any tweet

shoutmeloud It depend on the mood…and depend on the person who tweet like you got it now

kristinaeichorn I RT something interesting/cool that I think would be of value to my followers

GeorgeDearing if you understand your network, your RTs should either inform and educate or provide a baseline 2 kick off convos..just my .01

@effamae I RT when I find a really get how-to, photoshop toots and tools. Or something just really great.

How to protect your Twitter account from Scammers

As many of you are probably aware Twitter has been flooded by a phishing scam. The scammers are putting up websites that look exactly like Twitter. These websites prompt you to login with your Twitter username and password and then use your Twitter account to spam your followers. They send DM’s and @replies under your account with their phishing url. Your followers may then click on the link, give their credentials and have the exact same thing happen. Our DM’s are flooded with different variations and URL’s of this scam. So what can you do to protect your account?

DON’T put your Twitter username and password into a domain that is not under http://www.twitter.com.  Check your browsers address bar before logging in and make sure the url in the address bar is http://www.twitter.com. 

BE VERY CAREFUL what outside Twitter applications you give your password to.  If an outside application asks for your password, read their terms and do a little research on who is behind the application.  If wary at all don’t give your password.

If anyone has further suggestions on how to protect your Twitter account, please posts them in a comment.

Please tweet this post so others are made aware.

See below screen shot for a great visual provided by @PawLuxury

tweet this post

What makes you visit someone’s Twitter profile?

We recently asked the following question on Twitter…

 twitbacks: Question 4 all. What makes u visit someone’s Twitter profile? They tweet something Interesting? They follow you? They reply to u? Other?

Following is a break down of counts from the tweets we received back from this question.

As you can see from these results most people will view your profile if you follow them.  We feel it is important to have your profile in order and complete before following people.  This will help ensure they will follow you back.   With TwitBacks.com you can create a professional profile background image to help enhance your Twitter profile.  We also recommend posting a fair amount of interesting tweets before following people.  If someone does visit your profile page they are more likely to follow you if your tweets are interesting, relate to them and your profile is appealing.

We would like to thank the following Twitter members for particpating when we asked this question.

GaryPaulson:  I always go to the profile page of anyone following me to decide if I will follow them back.

AsstPerProject:  new followers, RT’s that spark an interest

primetimeparent:  When they write something pertaining to my interests

ruthe:  usually only because they follow me.

 MiriamJacobs:  I am attracted to certain profiles based on the photo, based on referrals from friends,and based on interesting tweets.

kaxxina:  Boredom… just looking for something (someone?) new to read about or a new perspective

easy_way:  cuz they twitter something intresting

TheVCF: Answer to Your Question 4  = when they Follow Us we visit their profile to see if we want to Follow them back. Hope That Helps

fitzcharming:  I view someones Twitter profile if they follow me or if they tweet something interesting to someone I’m following.

chrisredding:  And when they make ref to weather i want to see how close they are to me

constructionlaw:  they tweet something interesting or are followed by someone interesting

RawrStar:  As I use TwitterFox for the majority of my updates I usually only see someone’s profile when they follow me. =]

entrep_thinking:  looking for expertise (entrepreneurship, econ devel, social/sustainable entrep) but sometimes… good ol’ curiosity!

kennbell:  All of the above!

MarketersVA:  Usually if someone I like Twits them and I want to see what it was about. I’m a nosy tweeter! : )

MichaelMillman:  I check profiles of all who follow,some who are mentioned by others in interesting tweets,some who tweet @ me that I don’t follow

gautamghosh:  usually when they follow I want to see their twitter profile and understand what they do and what they tweet about.

joannayoung:  a) they reply to me b) someone I follow is chatting to them and the conversation intrigues me

jkvirtualoffice:  I check out the profiles of all my followers & their tweets & sometimes their website. Sometime check if rec. to follow by others

PhoenixREGuy:  I check the Twitter profiles of all who follow and any @ replies that are new to me. Or if I’m just curious to know “who’s that?”

avfguy:  Usually because I see an @ reply to them with something intriguing from someone I already follow

havrilla:  The majority of the time I will check out the profile of followers and people with interesting tweets

sarahvreid:  Tweeting something interesting is usually the most frequent reason for me visiting someone’s twitter profile

Josh_Smith:  When they follow. When someone retweets an interesting tweet. when they @ me.

TheVCF: Answer to Your Question 4  = when they Follow Us we visit their profile to see if we want to Follow them back. Hope That Helps

BotterTweet: #BotterTwit :  generally only when they follow (to make sure they’re not bots), sometimes when they reply – http://bit.ly/1304H

IShopTheWorld: Answer to Your Question 4  = when they Follow Us we visit their profile to see if we want to Follow them back. HTH

gregdavispsu:  for me it is when someone first follows or replies to me.

OCRealEstate:  I visit someone’s Twitter profile if what they discuss in their Tweets is something of interest to me.

weirdenough:  All of the above. Another reason is because someone I follow replies to something interesting they say, or vice-versa.

BiggiFraley:  I visit profiles when people follow me (most often), but also when someone else tweets about them.

mike868y:  Normally I visit a twitter page when I want to learn more about the person and/or follow/unfollow them

lspearmanii:  They tweet something Interesting

jessewilkins:  generally only when they follow (to make sure they’re not bots), sometimes when they reply

Knunez:  reply or follow

PavanKumar:  all them…

UGNunya:  If they follow me, or I am doing a twitter search and they show up as someone I may want to follow, or a friend recommends them