If you are just starting out you may be wondering how to update Twitter or send messages to your followers. It really is the easiest task but as you get used to the basic features of Twitter, you will want to increase your productivity. You will probably want to add more functionality and additional tools will help you do this.

For those of you just starting out, once you have set up your Twitter account and your profile is ready, you can send your first message. That is if you have your first follower, if you are just starting out you may want an overview of Twitter.

To send your message, go to the home page and type in the box below the statement “What are you doing?” – this is your update or message box. You have 140 characters, so be brief. You can add a link or you can send the message directly to someone using the @ before there username. You can also set up a private message by putting d or dm before a user name (this means only they will see it).  This is what the message box looks like:

It will also show your latest update just below the box. When you have finished with your update – you guessed it, hit the update button and you have sent your first message. Well done.

After a while you will want to send messages using other tools. Many people stop using the Twitter interface and get a client, in much the same way as people use Outlook or an email client to retrieve and send emails. Some of the main clients are Tweetdeck, Twhirl, Hootsuite, Twithive, Spaz, Mixero, Statuzer and many more. When I have had a chance to review and use them all I will provide a review on site and probably a comparative article to dig a little deeper into the functions and ease of each application.

In the meantime, start your twittering. Now that you know how to update Twitter, you are ready to explore and connect with your followers. Managing them with other tools will come later.

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