If Twitter is right for your charity, how should you use it? For strategies to launch and disasters to avoid, Charity eNews sought out Lara Veltkamp, founder of Watershed Marketing Group Inc., a small business strategic marketing and consulting firm. This week: tips for using Twitter well.

• Tweet regularly and often. People are only on Twitter for a short period of time and they don't check every tweet.  Scatter your tweets by varying the posting times.
• Involve and engage your audience by polling on what interests you. For example, an environmental nonprofit could pose the question, "What are you doing for Earth Week?" 
• Use contests. Involving people with a contest provides something interesting for followers and allows you to collect more information for your database.
• Provide entertainment.  Humour makes your organization seem human and approachable. It sells and engages, so use it in an appropriate, professional way.
• Appreciate the people working for and with you.  Let the world know that your people are valued and praise them in public.
• Use pictures or short videos. With the help of Facebook and Pinterest, informal pictures can add some visual interest to your Twitter account. And a picture can say a lot more than 140 characters.
• Make sure the content is relevant.  Link it back as often as possible to a blog or website with a call to action.
  
• Make sure you provide loads of value for your clients or stakeholders. Aim for a ratio of 6:1 - six pieces of information to one ask.

Next week: Six blunders to avoid on Twitter

Contact Lara Veltkamp at www.watershedmarketing.com, 905-726-8399; follow her on Twitter @WatershedMktg; read her blog at watershedmarketinggroup.wordpress.com.