How to Make Google Love Your Twitter Profile

Posted on June 4, 2009 by Laura Christianson

Did you know that Google (and MSN’s new Bing)  indexes your Twitter profile?Traffic Jam

That’s why it’s so important to create a bio for your Twitter account. If you don’t have a Twitter bio, your profile will still be indexed, but the description won’t include any helpful information about you.

I’m amazed at how many Twitterers don’t have a bio., or their bio consists of generic phrases such as, “Mom, wife, friend.”

You can do better than that, Tweeps! Use all 160 of those characters to give your readers as many details about you as possible.

@yarnnation took the generic, “wife/mom/friend” and expanded on it:

Wife, Mom, Friend, MBA Student, Knitter, Spinner, Dyer, Reader, Chronic Over-doer, Hopeful Adoptive Mom.

Gives you a much better picture of her, doesn’t it?

Here’s the Google listing for my two Twitter accounts:

google-listings

I decided not to get too cutesy or playful in my bios, since they’re business-related. So both bios are packed with keywords. But I also included a brief personal glimpse:

  • I’m an adoptive mom (helpful for my tweeps to know, since I’m branding myself as an “adoption expert”)
  • I de-stress by rollerblading, cleaning toilets, and eating chocolate (shows my quirks)

To create your bio, do the following:

  • Log in to your Twitter Account
  • Under Settings > Account, enter your first and last name.

Putting your REAL name into this box is critical if you want Google to index it (note in the image above how Google includes both my name and my Twitter account name in the listing).

  • Scroll down to One Line Bio.
    Type in 160 characters about yourself (be sure to include key words that promote your brand identity!)

Your Twitter bio is limited to 160 characters (not coincidentally, that’s the maximum number of characters search engines index).

If you need help writing a creative Twitter bio, e-mail me: laura@bloggingbistro.com. I provide affordable social media consults.

Part 1 in this series:

Coming in the next post:

…And in the June issue of Bright Ideas Blogzine:

  • Dos and Don’ts for creating your social media profiles
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  • http://twitter.com/Jennarumba Jennifer S. Muller

    yes

  • http://twitter.com/Jennarumba Jennifer S. Muller

    yes

  • Mike

    I appreciate the social media tips, keep them coming.

  • http://bloggingbistro.com/ Laura Christianson

    Thanks, Mike. I post a new one every day on my Facebook page @bloggingbistro.

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  • http://twitter.com/Divorcesmart101 Divorcesmart101

    Laura, our Twitter account is only @Divorcesmart101, I don’t have a personal profile. Why is it critical to put my real name in our account settings? What if we only have a business profile? Your help will be appreciated.

  • http://bloggingbistro.com/ Laura Christianson

    Excellent question. If you are using Twitter only for business and do NOT want your business and personal lives to mix, then you should just use your business name.

    Many studies have shown that people on social sites prefer to network with a real person or face — the person behind the brand. So, whenever appropriate, you should also include your real name in your profile and a picture of you as opposed to just your company logo.

    Weigh the pros and cons and do what works best for representing your business.