Your Twitter profile and why it is relevant

Setting up your profile well is very important for your account and gaining quality followers. Setting up an account is not just to put in some biographical information.This is only one element of an effective profile.

To explain why, let us lay out first what may be seen as a purpose for your profile:

• To prove that you are not a bot or troll
• To attract people to follow you, who have shared interests
• To deter people from following you, whom you would not want to
• To avoid giving out unnecessary information that might help identity theft and to promote online safety for you and those you love. A good profile achieves all of these things.

Some tips.

Before you write your own profile, take a look at some profiles of other Twitter users. Note which ones appeal to you and which do not. Ask yourself what it is that attracts/ appears unattractive? Your profile should mirror the elements you like.

• Note also the hashtags in bios (you can usually Google them to find out what they stand for). These can be a quick shorthand to declare information. e.g. you may see that a bio contains #FBPE (“Follow Back Pro Europe”). This is a pan-European hashtag encouraging pro-European people to connect and grow their networks. This is a quick shorthand way of identifying oneself as pro Europe/ Remain, and those in the know will view it as a reason to follow or not follow depending on their views. Another example is #GTTO (“Get The Tories Out”). There are many more. Using these can be a shorthand way of telling the Twitter world where you stand.
• You have a character limit, so use it well. One simple example, of not doing that, is saying, in a bio statement, that one is in London, when it also states the location, as a particular London borough. These characters in the bio could be used for something more useful.
• A recommendation is to write about your interests, rather than your life history. Being clear about interests helps to attract and deter people appropriately. As you will see in the bots & trolls section, it’s also helpful in demonstrating that you are human and not a bot.
• Always have a photo or at least an avatar in your profile. It’s a barrier to being followed if you are completely “faceless”.
• Think about personal info you include. Maybe it's paranoid, but e.g. if thinking of including a spouse'’s name in a bio. it may be inappropriate to give their name out, for no good reason.
• It may be that including quotations or inspirational sayings, instead of data, on your interests may not be wise. Quotations use a lot of characters and deliver little info, to a potential follower.