Little did I realize when I signed up for twitter that I was about to begin a whirlwind social media journey!
I also didn’t realize that with twitter having 140 character limit (of which we shouldn’t be using more than 120 anyways)… that a 15 character twitter username (@KimJCastleberry) was a LOT of characters to lose!
Every character of your twitter ID (username) digs into your 120 characters the moment you are retweeted! Suddenly the added “RT @KimJCastleberry costs almost 20 of my extremely precious characters! Oh no!
Of course, there is the internal struggle of keeping consistent naming conventions on all of your social media profiles. However, I’d already been building the “Ask Kim” element with both my “Ask Kimberly & Community” (free Facebook technical Q&A) and my Facebook Fan Page, which is at http://www.facebook.com/Ask.Kim So yay, I had something shorter to work with!
Of course, even with a shorter name to work with, I was scared of losing majority of my several-thousand follower base. So, after some research, here’s what I came up with to change your twitter name without losing followers!
Step 1: Change Your UserName
Go to Twitter (login) -> Settings (upper right). Click Settings and in the page that opens, in the USERNAME field, type in your desired new name. Twitter will give you feedback about the “taken” or “available” status of your desired name.
(In my case, I couldn’t get exactly what I wanted, but @Ask_KimC is pretty close!)
All follower’s are automagically updated to be following your new twitter name! How cool is that?
However…. You knew there was a gottcha, didn’t ya?
Step 2: Any client that you use to connect to Twitter with (in my case, I depend on and affiliate for 3: Hootsuite (client), Tweetspinner (management), Socialoomph (free keyword tracking and auto-DM)), needs to be logged into and have its login credentials changed.
In Hootsuite this means go into Settings -> Social Networks -> Edit (for the account you changed) -> Change and save. In Tweetspinner, log in, and in the upper right near your twitter name, under it, select “update (your) user/pass”. For SocialOomph which lacks a full edit feature, I simply deleted that old account and registered and authenticated the new one. Piece of cake.
(Also be sure to update any place you may have the old address in use such as social media buttons, cute profile buttons, listed on your facebook account, listed on your linkedin profile, etc.)
Step 3: Re-Register Your Old Twitter Name
The last thing you want is someone grabbing your old twitter name and pretending to be you. Two notes however: (1) This will require a seperate email address and (2) It can be a bit after changing your accounts name, before twitter will allow you to re-register the name, so don’t panic! (Which of course, I did, learning this the hard way!) Put a single tweet on it that says to join you at your new username, and put the same information in the accounts bio box.
Step 4: Breathe A Satisfied Sigh Of Satisfaction!
That’s all there is too it! With this method you wont lose any of your precious followers! Majority of the work is auto-updated on Twitter’s side, which is incredibly convenient! Always nice when companies make it so easy!
That’s all folks! Like it? Love it? Got Questions? Be sure to share it and drop me some feedback! I’d love to hear how it goes!
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Related posts by Kim:
- What To Do If Your Twitter Account Is Hacked
- #Blogchat – A Blogger's Hidden Twitter Resource!
- Troy’s Greasemonkey Script: Making Twitter Better!
- FB140 – How To Find All Your Facebook Friends Who Are Using Twitter
- Brand Your Tweets on Twitter For Free with TweetBrand!
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{ 77 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi Kimberly,
Cheers Toni
A little while back I changed my username on both twitter & facebook to marry in with my blog (tonisuggests) However there was one step I was not aware of until reading this post. I had never thought to re-register my old name….I shall get onto that. Thanks for sharing this very useful piece of information. We are so blessed to have you guiding us
.-= Toni King´s last blog ..EFT =-.
Thanks for the great reply Toni!
.-= Kimberly Castleberry´s last blog ..Profit Being You Webinar =-.
Wow, this is a very cool thing to know! You are incredible Kim! You really know your technical stuff! Thank you for always sharing with all of us! You are a gem!
Mahalo (thnnk you),
Kellie :0)
.-= Kellie Hosaka´s last blog ..MY PRIVATE AND VERY PERSONAL ADDICTION TO FOOD =-.
As always, very valuable information! Thanks @Ask_KimC!
I have a long name as well ~ but atm will continue to just deal with it. But if I change my mind down the road, I know where to head to ensure the transition is painless!
.-= Beth Allen´s last blog ..Successful Weight Loss & Long Term Weight Management =-.
Kimberly,
You always have such interesting tips to share from the personal experiences you encounter. Thanks for passing that along to all of those that need to consider implementing it. It’s always exciting to check in and see what’s new in your world and how you pass it along to the rest.
Thanks again for great tips.
.-= Don Enck´s last blog ..Celebrate Your Victories…Even If They’re Silver =-.
Kim,
This is great information – I think I will be sticking with my username but its always useful to know there is a way to do it which isnt too tricky.
Thanks for the great advice as always
Beth
.-= Beth Hewitt´s last blog ..Successful Email Marketing. =-.
A friend of mine wanted to change her twitter name but was so afraid of losing followers. Well, I’ll be sending this to her, I’m sure it’ll make her day. Yes, you gotta conserve that 140 characters, it’s really not much for your messages. Thanks for sharing!
.-= Cherrie Bautista@Young And Fabulous´s last blog ..On Young And Fabulous: Your Limiting Beliefs =-.
How do you always post exactly what I need to know at exactly the right time??
But with a name as long as mine, I’ve definitely hit this problem as I get more involved on Twitter …. but now, thanks to you, I know how to fix it!!
.-= Jacqueline Gates´s last blog ..40 year olds doing Headstands =-.
Agreed! I was just now (even on Thanksgiving) giving my “old” facebook a new facelift and wondering about Twitter at the same time. Two accounts, slightly different names, one totally unnecessary.
Your information is priceless! Thanks again!
Thanks again Kimberly, for another get Social Media Tip – put into your famous easy steps, making it all so much easier for all of us !!!
Testing the back link thing with KeywordLuv – Cool, had not done that before.
.-= Lori Thomas-The Hypnovator@Motivative Hypnotherapy´s last blog ..You can Sleep Better Naturally – =-.
Great stuff Kim!
I’m glad that I didn’t stick with my original twitter username.
@justingloveristhecoolesttwitteruserintheworld was really hurting my abbility to get retweets.
Seriously though, great stuff. Thanks for your contribution!
.-= Justin Glover´s last blog ..How To Make A “Free Report” In Under 15 Minutes… =-.
Thanks Kimberly. This post came in a timely manner. I have a business client and I manager their twitter account. We recently changed their twitter account name, but we didn’t go back and reclaim the original name. Great advice (as always)!
.-= John Damstra´s last blog ..Monetize Your Blog – A 5 Step Process Overview =-.
Kim you never let one down when it comes to great tips and content! Thank you! You now have me thinking about the length of my twitter name and pondering if I should find something shorter? The best part is if I do decide to change it, I can follow your easy to understand advice and get it done in a snap, while still preserving my current name!
Thanks again Kim for making this so easy for all of us!
“Dream, Believe, Become…”
.-= Tracey Keefer @ Free MLM Help´s last blog ..Dreams Create New Careers for the Unemployed! =-.
Kimberly,
I always enjoy your informative posts to support us in managing our Social Media pages.
Thanks so much,
Val
.-= Val Wilcox´s last blog ..Meet Malin Berdette, World Traveler Extraordinaire =-.
Hey Kim I have been contemplating changing my twitter name to match my blog but thought I would have to start all over so I decided not to do that – and then I read your post! So now I am reconsidering – my twitter name now is janhill123, and somewhere someone said you shouldn’t use numbers in your “twitter handle” so thought I would change it to my blog name askjanhill – so decisions decisions! Thank you for forging ahead and doing this first! Great post.
.-= Jan@social media rockstar´s last blog ..5 Ways Social Media will Grow your Dental Practice =-.
Wow I didn’t even realize this was possible. At 14 characters, my twitter names feels a little selfish, but all my social media profiles are @garrettcanhelp… Gotta keep it!
Either way, thanks for sharing Kim!
Garrett
.-= Garrett Miller @attraction marketing, network marketing´s last blog ..Network Marketing vs Internet Marketing vs Attraction Marketing: Rumble in the Home-Based Business Jungle =-.
I know many people that have thought about doing this but had no idea how to go about it. They are afraid to lose their following, so they just open a second account. This is definitely a better way!
.-= Jose H. Caraballo´s last blog ..Forget Your Why…Begin With Your Purpose! =-.
Kim:
As always,your indepth knowledge is amazing!
Thanks for showing us a safe way to make Twitter changes and not lose any of our following.
Looking forward to your next words of wisdom!
Take care.
Linda.
.-= Dr Linda Douglas´s last blog ..WHAT IS YOUR STORY and HOW WILL IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE? =-.
Great information Kim! This is good to know and very helpful. Thanks for posting!!
.-= Lisa M Arnold´s last blog ..BEFORE I WAS I MOM…. =-.
Hey Kim, I’ve been considering dropping the find off my user name just not sure I’m ready to let go yet. Glad you have shared this great post with so much helpful info. Always know where to turn for great tech guidance!
.-= Kara Grabenhorst´s last blog ..Don’t like it? Change it NOW =-.
These are all great tips, glad you wrote this and it’s going in my archive
This has been something that I have been thinking about doing for a while now. Thanks for the helpful tips!
.-= Kevin M.´s last blog ..23 ways to know it’s going to be a really bad day =-.
You have great timing as usual! This is awesome! I went through this (in a much more clumsy and hair-pulling fashion) a couple weeks ago and managed to break several things in the process. I appreciate your leadership.
This should be one of the most popular posts ever written about Twitter. I have no doubt that many can really use this info – in fact I’m going to forward it to two bloggers right after I enter this comment.
Great job! If you ever want to do guest blog posts let me know. I have a dozen blogs I’m managing content on and would love to publish some of yours.
This should be one of the most popular posts ever written about Twitter. I have no doubt that many can really use this info – in fact I’m going to forward it to two bloggers right after I enter this comment.
Great job! If you ever want to do guest blog posts let me know. I have a dozen blogs I’m managing content on and would love to publish some of yours.
I just sent this to a couple bloggers I know well whose Twitter IDs I had to look up for the longest time! I finally started remembering @lambdakennels1 because of the CommentLuv contest and might be able to remember @momof3boys3702 if I use it often enough.
I hope you don’t mind me sharing my tips about choosing Twitter names. I always remember Donna as DazzlinDonna but she uses @DonnaFontenot on Twitter and it took me a long time to remember her last name and how to spell it. I do now because we collaborate often. I suspect she did that to present a businesslike brand but I sincerely believe DazzlinDonna is way better. It sticks in the mind easily.
When you choose your Twitter ID PLEASE make it as short and easy to remember and easy to spell as possible. Avoid words most people have trouble spelling – even common words like nickel/nickle that are commonly confused.
Make it catchy if you can and claim that username on at least the major Social Networks. If you can afford it use Knowem.com and claim them all. (You’ll be happy you did if you get serious – we can only remember ONE of your username and if you have too many and we have to look them up we’ll use and share them less.) If you can’t, use their site to find other Social Media sites you may like.
I just sent this to a couple bloggers I know well whose Twitter IDs I had to look up for the longest time! I finally started remembering @lambdakennels1 because of the CommentLuv contest and might be able to remember @momof3boys3702 if I use it often enough.
I hope you don’t mind me sharing my tips about choosing Twitter names. I always remember Donna as DazzlinDonna but she uses @DonnaFontenot on Twitter and it took me a long time to remember her last name and how to spell it. I do now because we collaborate often. I suspect she did that to present a businesslike brand but I sincerely believe DazzlinDonna is way better. It sticks in the mind easily.
When you choose your Twitter ID PLEASE make it as short and easy to remember and easy to spell as possible. Avoid words most people have trouble spelling – even common words like nickel/nickle that are commonly confused.
Make it catchy if you can and claim that username on at least the major Social Networks. If you can afford it use Knowem.com and claim them all. (You’ll be happy you did if you get serious – we can only remember ONE of your username and if you have too many and we have to look them up we’ll use and share them less.) If you can’t, use their site to find other Social Media sites you may like.
Its not hard to change your twitter id but the funny part is that people wont recognise your new twitter profile sometime and will unfollow you. I have experiencd this
That’s a really good point Saket, its definitely true! I think the odds of that would go up if you changed your profile picture though, since many of us are very visual and heck even changing your picture without changing your name can get some accidental unfollows! Thanks for commenting!
Kimberly
Soooo, if you are self branding – how will this affect you in the search engines? Will you still come up for twitter?
Hi Kimberley,
You touched a very useful task on twitter. I created an account with name icttrends and now I’m more focused on seommotips but because I am already interracting and have some friends with that username, I’m scared to change it. I’m still confused, if I change my username, twitter will inform my followers, but is it necessary them to follow again or they are already following? If they need to follow me again, there certainly remains some riks of loosing a factor of my existing users.
Suresh, I can understand the confusion. Let me see if I can explain better.
When you change your account name – all of your friends simply remain following you. Its as though they were always following you by that name. Keeping your picture the same will help them realize you’re the same person with a new name, as will some announcement tweets. Everyone that was following you will remain following you and does not need to go take any action for them to remain so.
As long as you keep the same picture for a little while (for the visual learners) and do a few announcement tweets, most of your followers will be totally either cool with it or unaware anything was going on! Twitter really made this as nice as they could.
Kimberly
Thank you Kimberley. Its safe and I can switch anytime.
Hi Kimberley,
You touched a very useful task on twitter. I created an account with name icttrends and now I’m more focused on seommotips but because I am already interracting and have some friends with that username, I’m scared to change it. I’m still confused, if I change my username, twitter will inform my followers, but is it necessary them to follow again or they are already following? If they need to follow me again, there certainly remains some riks of loosing a factor of my existing users.
Kim,
What a great contribution. I am going to RT this right away. Heshie
1. Thanks Kim for informing me that even the username eats up the Character Limit.
2. If I change the name, will my name change in the previous tweets as well or the previous name will appear in the earlier tweets
Hi Kimberly,
Thanks for the Twitter name change tips. I messed up a name change last year because I didn’t fully understand how the system works.
Susan
Hi Kim, I changed my twitter name about a year ago. Somehow I managed to do it just as you outlined, except for step #3 (smh). And of course, by the time I figured it out, someone had already grabbed up my old name. Fortunately for me, I went from using a nickname to using my real name, so it’s not so bad. Keep on keepin’ on!
I just did this and it was just too easy. Thanks for sharing this information, I was fighting with this issue for a while and did not know how I was going to go about doing it without losing all of my followers.
Again, Thanks Thanks Thanks
Yay, glad you got it sorted out and found that helpful. Be sure you set up gravatar for that new email account since your mug has gone missing LOL!
Kimberly
Wow! What a great and useful post, I had no idea. Thanks!
Hey Kristina, thanks for dropping into comment. Yeah its super easy to change a twitter ID glad you found the post useful! Look forward to seeing you back
Kimberly
Hi Kim, your site really helps me get up to speed on the ever-changing tech stuff. I’ve only been blogging for 10 months and tweeting for 8, and my natural inclination is to be tech-resistant! But I can cook up a storm, so come on over for some of my own recipes and cooking tips. And if you happen to notice anything about my blog that would benefit from some tech tips, please feel free to tell me! In the meantime, I’ll keep exploring your wonderful blog.
This could probably a common problem that usually happen when you want to change name.
Great thing! this article can resolve this problem. You’ve got the impressive and helpful way in helping us. Thanks a lot!
Good stuff Kim, I don’t need to change my twitter name yet… but it sure is good to know that I can do it without losing my followers. I just stumbled in here (no not Stumble, stumble as in to trip or falter) and I’m glad I did. I’ll be back!
Good stuff Kim, I don’t need to change my twitter name yet… but it sure is good to know that I can do it without losing my followers. I just stumbled in here (no not Stumble, stumble as in to trip or falter) and I’m glad I did. I’ll be back!
I’m confused. So you actually do lose all your followers if u change your name but supposedly the way to keep your followers is to re register your old name and make one tweet that your new twitter account is xyz and to follow you on your new account.
If this is how it works them most of us will still lose MANY followers. I follow a lot of people but if they never pop up again in my Home tweets then I’ll never miss them. I definitely won’t miss them enough to remember their original twitter name to even go there to find a tweet saying to follow them on their new twitter name. Does that make sense?
This is the second article that claims it has a way to help you keep ALL your followers but I think thats misleading. Re registering your old name and leaving that tweet is a GREAT suggestion but doesn’t mean we won’t still lose followers.
ALL apologies. I just read the replies and found my answer. We do keep all our followers and it is as thought nothing has happened. Good to know yet for some reason I’m still worried to go for it but I’m going for it anyway! Wish me luck
Hi Kim,
thank you so much for the very useful information.
I may need it sometime, since my twittername has a ‘U’ in it.
My son used to say she is not Yourinda she is Myrinda.
Will check out your community too.
Love and Joy
from
Yorinda
Oh that story is so cute! Your son is a precious one! That’s a fun story and will make for a great blog post
Other than having forgot to change it on the TSA sheet “forever”… where it is still wrong (*making a note to go deal with that*) I haven’t had any hiccups at all with the changes and have changed IDs three times, progressively shortening it up and getting it to match my branding!
Kimberly
Kim, glad I found this. The students in my social media for Journalists course are for the most part just learning to Tweet, but some have begun accounts without knowing this valuable info, so I have sent your link to the class. Thanks.
Thanks Kim for the twitter tip………
Hi Kimberly – Awesome advice as usual. I don’t know why but I never thought about my name using part of the total characters. That is really something to keep in mind when choosing a Twitter name. Thanks for this great post! I appreciate you:)
You knocked it out of the park again. I found out about this in 2008 after changing to my current name. However, you also keep the same “Born on” date as well for your original name.
You knocked it out of the park again. I found out about this in 2008 after changing to my current name. However, you also keep the same “Born on” date as well for your original name.
Hi Kimberly
Very nice and useful post. I love that kind of tips. I don’t hope I will be needing to change my twitter name, but now I know har to do. Thank you.
This is great information Kim! I jumped into Twitter just last fall, but got so busy setting up my blog and Facebook that my poor Twitter account languished, sadly neglected. Now that I’m involved with TSA I’m determined to change that and your tips on Twitter have answered several of my questions and provided good management resources I hadn’t discovered yet. Thanks!
You also might wan’t to stick with the same profile pic for a while after the change to help followers get used to the new name.
Finally don’t forget to check your old username for missed replies and mentions every once and awhile.
Here’s another walk through with a few extra tips on changing your twitter name.
Thanks for sharing.
Those are great tips Jon and very true. We are visual recognition creatures for the most part and the visual congruency really helps!
Kimberly
Hi Kim, This is very, very helpful information. I have been debating changing my user name. I have been on Twitter for over two years but have been blogging for two months. I don’t have a huge number of followers, but some of the ones I have are stars. My current Twitter name is @carpathia16, but if I changed my Twitter name to my blog name, I would actually increase the number of characters in my Twitter name. I have temporarily solved this issue but starting a new Twitter account with my blog name, @wonderoftech, but it isn’t easy building up a new Twitter account.
Really appreciate the great advice!
Hi Kim,
Great stuff…it seems easy enough to have a change of your user name and not even loosing your followers. I suppose the only hassle is to make sure that you do not forget to update any clients that you are connected to Twitter and your affiliate (client), Tweetspinner (management), Socialoomph (free keyword tracking and auto-DM)), also needing to be logged into and have its login credentials changed. Other than that like you as you would say it a piece of cake…thanks for the heads up.
Hi Kim – good information. Here is my situation, a little different. Maybe there is an easy solution for this from your bottomless bag of tricks. When I came on to twitter, I was mainly trying to connect with other “Training, Learning, and Training Development” professionals. I have a number of those that I follow and that follow me. As I moved into internet marketing, I began to add many people from that arena. Eventually, I decided that I would do better connecting with both groups, but especially the TLTD professionals, if I separated the account into two accounts. So I created a new account using another short version of my name for the TLTD folks (now the distinct minority of the total number). That’s as far as I got. About all I can think of is to start over in that account by following all of the same TLTD folks I followed in my original account in that new account, but getting them to follow me back will be a long slow deal. Is this really the only way to do it?
Thanks Kim,
You know I was actually thinking about my 2 Twitter accounts: [SeaySon_Credit and PortalDirector] and how long they are. I don’t have a lot of accounts tied to them, but my HootSuite and TweetDeck would be the main ones I would need to change. That part about “Reclaiming” the old name(s) is right on time. I really wouldn’t want someone using them against me.
I will let you know when I have done it.
Charles Seay
http://www.seaysonenterprise.info
http://imtoolsuite.com/go/?p=NJPortal&w=imtoolsuitety
lol- wish I knew this earlier- I actually started a whole new account when I started coaching and wanted a different Twitter name.
Of course, now I have two accounts I can tweet to if desired!
Great information Kim. I have been thinking about doing the same thing myself. RetireWithCarla is pretty long. I also have CarlaMcNeil but haven’t been using it. But as you mention a drop in the # of characters just might be worth it!
I never have taught this one before. Thank you for the information. I would better try this one now.
Thanks so much! The same happened to me as I’ve changed careers. So now, I’m still trying to decide whether to change my handle or stay with it. But at least now I know how to do it if I decide to make the change.
Catherine Buck Morgan invites you to read…Queen of the Free
Hi Kim, just wondering if you can tell us how to put all those social media buttons and links in your header ? They are really cool and useful
thanks Paul
Hey Paul, the buttons in my header are custom coded. Its a version of an ad-box up there. Such as how many themes can run a 420px ad up there. I added html to a similar box for the button icons and links. Sorry I can’t be more helpful its one of the things I custom coded.
Kim
its still so hard for me to change the name. please help
At what step are you having trouble Ruby? What’s going on?
Kim
Again, you have given more good information. I was thinking about changing my Twiiter name ,but you pointed out that it would be too long. (NoNon-centsNanna would take up space.)
Two years ago I joined Twitter using my legal name. I closed my account for months knowing that I could not use that user name on Twiiter again. A few months ago I re-joined using ‘unwrittenbook’. The name got a lot more heads up than my legal name did with only about 5 followres. Unwritten book has 500 in just a few months.
Thanks again, Kim for the valuable information.
Thanks Kim for this article. Very informative and helpful.
Good work on your blog!
Thank you Kimberley. Its safe and I can switch anytime.
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