15 Tips For Tweeting A Live Event

15 Tips For Tweeting A Live Event

Live-tweeting is a way of engaging your Twitter followers by sending updates about an event as it occurs. Live-tweeters use the hashtag relevant to the event they are tweeting about which can be located on the conference’s website or Twitter profile. Twitter followers who cannot be at the event in person can follow along using the hashtag and this in turn expands the reach of the conference.  

Follow my tips below to learn the art of live-tweeting your next event. 

1. Tag your tweets with the designated event hashtag (#) and let your followers know the meaning of the hashtag and why you are tweeting from this event.

2. Avoid the temptation to provide a blow-by-blow account. Focus on value and meaning in your tweets. Consider if people really want to see a tweeted photo of a half-empty conference room.

3. Don’t mindlessly re-tweet what everyone else is already tweeting, unless you can add a unique perspective.

4. Tweet links to websites, studies, or other information which will enhance understanding of the topic (but don’t spam).

5. Avoid tweeting sound-bites that won’t make sense to online listeners. Strive for originality and context; make it relatable to your Twitter followers

6. Don’t “binge tweet”; be selective, share key points only and avoid flooding your timeline with tweets. When live-Tweeting, one Tweet every 10 minutes is a good rule of thumb.

7. Let your followers know in advance that you are live tweeting so they can mute the hashtag if they aren’t interested in those tweets.

8. Choose some key quotes and statistics to share; people love to read and re-tweet quotes and stats. Be sure to attribute quotes to the speaker who made them, by using quotation marks. Whenever you cite a speaker, add their Twitter handle (and affiliation if known).

9. Highlight new discoveries, research, publications, or collaborations in your tweets. However please don’t do so if the presenter has made it clear they do not want their work tweeted.

10. It's best not to take/tweet photos of large groups, unless you ask the permission of all involved.

11. Encourage outside participation by asking questions.

12. It’s ok to be constructively critical, but don’t be needlessly negative in your tweets.

13. Don’t tweet in a vacuum; engage with fellow live tweeters and contribute to a larger conversation.

14. Be human. Don’t keep your head buried in your laptop or tablet. Remember to look up from your device and watch the presenter from time to time. This is not just a courtesy to the speaker it is also an opportunity for you to practice the art of undivided attention.

15. Be social. Don’t restrict yourself to tweeting behind a screen; seize the opportunity to network and meet new people face-to-face too. Live-tweeting is a great way to meet like-minded people, so use it to organize “tweetups” at coffee and lunch breaks during the event, or dinner in the evening to further the connection.

 

Thanks for reminding me - something I still have to get my head around this. Let's hope Mike Rea reads this so we can all learn something from his great conference.

Joan Keevill

Director at Designs on Learning Ltd

8y

Lots of good sense here, though restricting ourselves to one tweet every 10mins is a rule I think many of us break!

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Niall Gavin

Commercial Learning Consultant at CIPD & Accreditation Mentor at the LPI

8y

A couple of useful self-check reminders in there; thanks.

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Julie Wedgwood

Learning & Development Professional

8y

Ask Kate Graham - she is superb at doing this!

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