Twitter Bio Tips

By Jamie Faidley Tweet

People who sign up for Twitter often times neglect to put much time into filling out their bio section. It's pretty common and if you are in a hurry to get signed up and to check out the Twitterverse then I can't really blame you for doing it. However, your Twitter biography is important and it can help you display information to potential followers.  By hovering over a username in any kind of followers list it will display your bio.  A solid description can entice the person looking at you into becoming a follower.

Here are a few tips that I have found that can help you get more out of the social platform.

Tell People What You Do

Your bio should tell users a little bit about yourself, it is your bio after all.  Most people that stumble across your page will no nothing about you.  This is your chance to tell them a little bit about yourself and why they should listen to what you have to say.  Tailor this information to your audience.  If you want to get the attention of golfers, then describe your golf bio, not your computer science background.

It's also OK to add a few hobbies or interests that you have.  This shows that you have some personality and aren't completely dull, but what is your main purpose behind the account?  If you are promoting a site or your brand, then make sure that comes before hobbies or your family details.

Use Your Real Name

Using your real name works best to show you are an actual person.  If you are tweeting for a company, having a name will at least help the followers figure out just who the "I" is in your tweets.  It also portrays a more human side to the company.

Identify Yourself As An Authority

Dan Zarrella did a lot of research on Twitter users with a lot of followers and his data debunks the old myth that you shouldn't call yourself an expert.  If you are an expert in a given field, then identify yourself as such.  His list includes using the words official, founder, speaker, expert, guru, and author.  Anyone who owns a blog can be called an author or founder.  If you know more than the average person does about a specific niche then you should feel confident enough to identify yourself as an expert or guru.

No Keyword Stuffing

You know what makes you look really stupid?  Stuffing your bio full of keywords that you are trying to target.  People might be searching for something specific and it's great that you want to be the one that they find.  However, f someone reads your description and finds 10 different variations of the keyword in a list they are going to see you (correctly) as low-value and they won't follow you anyway.

More Resources

• Bajillion Hits - Tips for "cool" bios.

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