A Quick Guide to Twitter Forums
A Twitter forum is an online session that will run for one hour. The forum is usually structured by a host/moderator who asks several questions over the course of the hour, and the community responds to the questions posed. Questions are tagged âQ1, Q2, Q3 ...â and answers are tagged âA1, A2, A3...â The community can join the forum by searching under the designated #Hashtag. Every tweet each community member makes should include this hashtag, as it will be visible to anyone following the stream without having to follow people they donât know. Normal Twitter interactions are also permitted, e.g. RT, Reply & @mention.
How to get involved in a Twitter Forum?
To start you will need Twitter or a Third Party Application. Â If you donât have a Twitter account, itâs simple to get started. I have shared the link at the bottom of this post.
In a Twitter forum, the content is based around one topic, so be sure to follow people who provide input which you like or other people who you find interesting.
Follow the #HashTag Stream
Twitter Forums are linked together with the usage of a #Hashtag. A Hashtag is a word with the # symbol in front of it. It represents a thought, a topic, an idea or a subject. In a Twitter forum, the #Tag will always be the same. For example if discussing the topic of equality, the #Hashtag will be #Equality.
To be sure your tweets register in the Twitter Forum, the #Hashtag must always be added to every tweet you send out. Otherwise, people who do not follow you, will be unable to see it.
What Twitter Platform works best?
There are several Twitter platforms that you can use to participate in a Twitter Forum. Below is a description of 4 of the most popular. The concept is the same if you are using a platform that is not listed below:
On your homepage you will see your stream of tweets by the people you follow. A #Hashtag will appear in a different colour. Simply, click on this #Hashtag and that will take you into the Twitter forum. From here you can âreplyâ, âReTweetâ, join the conversation and watch the stream by updating.
If you are new to Twitter and have not started following anyone, you can search for the #Hashtag in the Twitter Search toolbar at the top of your page. Simply place the hashtag (e.g. #Equality) in the search bar and hit the little magnify glass. This will take you straight into the Twitter Forum.
From here, all you have to do to participate is âreplyâ and / or âReTweetâ the comments in the forum.
If you are using TweetDeck, the principle is the same as Twitter.
On your âAll Friendsâ stream, you will see the tweets of the people you follow. If they are participating in the Twitter forum, click on the hashtag in their Tweet (e.g. #Equality) and this will open up a new âcolumnâ titled: âSearch: #Equalityâ. From here you can âreplyâ, âReTweetâ, join the conversation and watch the stream by updating.
If you are using TweetDeck and want to locate the Twitter Forum, you will need to add a column by clicking the grey circle with a + symbol inside it at the very top left of TweetDeck. A pop up window will appear, and you will be prompted to enter a Search keyword. Here place the hashtag (e.g. #Equality â donât forget the Hash symbol) and the column will now appear on TweetDeck.
You are able to move where the column is positioned by clicking on the Ă button at the bottom of each column. Personally, I like to place the Forum column next to my âmentionsâ column to help me watch the stream and respond to other people during the conversation.
Like TweetDeck, Hootsuite offer the ability to search and add a column for any Hashtag you use. Under the âSearchesâ tab, simply enter the hashtag into the search field (e.g. #Equality) and hit the little magnify glass. This will pull all the info from Twitter that contains this hashtag. Now create a column and start interacting with the forum.
If you are following a Twitter forum from your phone, Echofon is a nice application to use to help you watch and interact with the stream.
Like all of the above application, clicking on the hashtag within a tweet, will automatically direct you into that Topic forum, as denoted by the #Tag.
If you want to search for the forum using Echofon, select the last menu option on the bottom right titled âSearchâ and then type in the hashtag (e.g. #Equality). Once again, donât forget to include the # symbol. This will now direct you into the forum, where you will be able to watch, participate, reply and ReTweet from your phone.
Popular hashtags and forums usually move very quickly, so donât be worried if you miss a lot of the content, just respond to what you see. If the stream is moving quickly in real-time, it means it is very popular and a hot topic. Sometimes there could be a few untrustworthy tweeters and bots out there, which tweet links to unfavourable sites. If the tweet doesnât look legit, my advice would be not to click on the link. Bots usually donât Tweet, they just post links.
Twitter Sign Up Link: http://twitter.com/
Hope to catch a few of you in our forums!
As always, Share + Enjoy!
