There’s a lot of discussion about building a corporate Twitter account and using it to connect to consumers to answer questions and problems, promote products, and create a more level field. But what about you, me, and the average Joe? How should we promote our Twitter personality? Below are a few basic do’s and don’ts to follow to help develop your Twitter account into a full figured persona.

Do’s :

0. Get a name! And get a name that means something to you, not @goobygo. Your name, your pen name, or your website name are great options. Do not pick names that are trademarked, copyrighted, celebrity, or even impersonating someone else. You can end up losing your account.

1. Personalize your Twitter profile page. That means changing the Twitter background, avatar, description, name, and URL. This is best place to write a short blurb about yourself, your website address. Info that cannot fit here can go in a twitter background. I recommend Free Twitter Backgrounds or TwitBacks to help create a personalized background. You can include more URLs, contact info, a funny photo, basically anything that shows who you are.

2. Follow people that have similar interests as you. And even people who don’t. It’s what makes you happy.

3. Retweet interesting Tweets, especially links or causes that are important to you. This is a great way to give your persona, a personality. And make contact with others.

4. It is okay to unfollow people. Some people update their Twitter three times and then forgot about it. Or sometimes you follow someone thinking they write about one subject but they really don’t. Go through your Twitter list ever month and make sure the people you follow are real and active. Besides, the list of people you follow is a reflection of you as well.

5. Be succinct. Every character you type matters. Eliminate unnecessary words from your tweets.

6. If you have a blog, keep it updated. Twitter traffic can be great to your blog but if you fail to update, it can fade away.

7. Post questions to your fellow Twitter friends. Every once in while I pose a question to my friends on Twitter and use their answers in a post. For example, I once wrote about dating and going Dutch; several people responded and they were incorporated into the post. This helps to build trust and interaction on a new level.

8. Tweet daily. You do not have to go overboard and tweet every few minutes if you do not want to. A few a day to keep in touch, is still great.

9. Use a Twitter program to read and respond to tweets. Hoot Suite is great because you can use do url tracking when you create tinyurls. Or Twitterfox, which provides an icon in the corner of your Firefox browser.

10. Add a Twitter button to your Facebook, website, LinkedIn, and other social website you partake in. This will help create a complete profile of yourself.

Don’t :

0. Do not post only links to your site/blog. No one wants to see such blatant self promotion.

1. Do not avoid other Twitterers. I have seen some Twitter accounts never ever respond to a Tweet. It’s like they are having a monologue for themselves. Why would anyone follow them?

2. Don’t write about your mundane habits. Back in the day, it was okay for people to write “Just brushed my teeth!” Today, not really. When you follow 100s of Twitterers, you really do not care about their personal habits.

3. No flaming or insulting. It is okay to do some bashing. I have done it before, but keep away from lots of curse words and obscenities. It derails from the point you are trying to make.

4. Do not beg for followers or listen to those Get 1000 Followers NOW! It is not true and not good marketing for your own name.

Remember, Twitter is an extension of your persona online. If you do not want to share certain personal bits, don’t post it. But at the same time, it is an amazing place to converse with anyone around the world. It truly makes the world smaller. I use Twitter to connect to more expats but also get new nuggets of info about web 2.0 technologies, news, funny bits, and even rabbit organizations. It’s extremely varied but helps me to reach to everyone and everything I have an interest in.

About the author : Sapphire is a blogger who writes about life in Sweden as an America. After her unfortunate incident of a Twitter name squatting battle, she wants to help other Twitterers by writing about personal branding and marketing. You can also follow her at Twitter (@sapphire), of course.