1. The Basics - tell people who you are

It never ceases to amaze me how many people still fail miserably at this first hurdle. When you are setting up your Twitter profile you can set up an avatar/photo, your name, your Twitter username and a 160 character bio. This is so when people visit your Twitter page they can instantly see who you are and what you’re all about. The first thing I do when I’m “followed” by someone on Twitter is look at their profile page to see who they are, what they do and if I think they’re worth following in return.

2. Publicise your Twitter URL whereever you can

3. Don't be vain Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that it’s cool to follow as few people as possible but still expect to have hundreds of followers yourself.

4. The juicy bits - join the conversation

5. Network