Twitter Parties

There are a few of you asking exactly what a Twitter Party is, and how you go about participating. After some looking around at the best way to explain it, I came across this post done by Eco Chic Parties, a website dedicated to all sorts of eco friendly Twitter parties.  It’s a great blog post, and so I thought I’d share the main points that I felt helpful here!

"reprinted with permission of 'eco chic parties"

Tips for Following a Twitter Party:

1.  If you don’t already have a Twitter account you will need to set up an account.  Visit www.Twitter.com and select Sign Up Now to create your very own account.  You will need to select a Username, this can be your real name or a nickname of sorts.  For instance my Twitter Username (or handle) is EcoChicParties.  (Ours is ToptoBottomBaby )  Follow the directions on the screen and then select Create My Account.  You are good to go!  Of course if you want to get really creative you can customize your account with a picture and a background. 

2.  If you want to join a Twitter party you will want to be sure to follow all of the party hosts and sponsors.  There are several ways you can find the party hosts and sponsors on Twitter.  If you are joining an Eco Chic party I have links on the party page that will take you directly to the hosts and sponsors.  Another way is to search for them under Find People on Twitter.  Once you have logged into your account select Find People and then enter @EcoChicParties (or their Username).  The @ sign will help you find a specific person if you know their Twitter Username.  You can also search for them by name or email address.  Once you find the person you want to follow you select Follow (it’s the person icon with a plus sign).  Be sure to follow all of the party hosts and sponsors so you can see their tweets (or messages).  You can follow people before the party begins to be sure you receive any party updates and to receive notifications of upcoming events.

3.  Most parties will encourage you to pre-register for the event.  For Eco Chic Parties Twitter parties there will almost always be extra prizes or incentives for pre-registering.  

4.  When it’s time for the party you can follow the tweets using some external sites.  Sites such as www.TweetGrid.com and www.TweetDeck.com will make it easier to follow the chatterings of the event.  My personal favorite is TweetGrid; I prefer TweetDeck if I’m following on my iPhone.  For TweetGrid you can create a unique party grid by entering the party #Hashtag, party hosts, and your username.  A #hashtag is specific to the party or event topic.  For instance, if you are joining the Get Real (past party from April 2010) twitter party the #hashtag would be #GetRealDiapers.  After you enter all of the information and select Join Party a tweet grid will appear.  To tweet you enter your username and password at the top (under the message or tweet) and begin tweeting.

5.  A tweet is limited to 140 characters so your messages will need to be brief.  You can follow the number of characters you have in red after the tweet box.

6.  Most Twitter parties ask that you participate in the chat in order to be eligible to win the prizes.  Feel free to join the conversation, meet new people, and learn about the topic being discussed.  Chances are you have valuable questions and/or comments to add to the party chatter.  Don’t just be a lurker, we want you to join in and will try to include everyone in the tweeting.  We will be asking you questions and encouraging you to respond; sometimes it will be a requirement to win a prize.  Speak up, you’re valuable…without you it wouldn’t be a party!

7.  Have an important question you would like to ask the hosts or sponsors?  You can send them a Direct Message (DM) or tweet directly to them.  A direct message is private and only that user can see your message.  All other tweets are public (or shared with your followers…depending on how you set up your privacy settings) so if you include @Username or #Hashtag of the party and party hosts your tweet will be heard.

8.  Reply!  When a party host asks a question you can reply directly to that host by selecting reply next to their message.

9.  Retweet!  Did someone say something that was valuable?  You can retweet (RT) their message so that all of your followers can see the information.  This is a great way to get your friends to join in the party with you.

10.  Have fun!  Your first party might be a little overwhelming but I promise it will get easier.  Some parties move very quickly and you might miss something.  Speak up, and someone will help you along the way.

There you have it. Joining in on Twitter Parties can be fun and exciting. At first you may think this is just too much for me to participate in, but stick with it. The more parties you attend, the easier it will become to join in the fun!

Up and Coming party you might be interested in: 
   (click on the link for more info!)

#Rumparooz #ClothDiapers Party 7/22 – Where there will be 2 new prints released, as well as a revision of their KangaCare - Rump-a-Rooz Website!!! Plus 4 lucky people will win the new prints!