Twitter is an effective tool for members to spread the word about your Ning Network and drive membership. You’ve always been able to share photos, videos and any other content using the Share feature. With Twitter integration, you and members can easily and quickly share content or send status updates to Twitter without leaving your Ning Network.
To enable Twitter integration on your Ning Network, go to your My Network page and click “Twitter Integration” from the Tools menu. If you’re using the icon shortcuts, just click the Twitter icon.
Sharing content on and sending status updates to Twitter
When Twitter integration is enabled on your Ning Network, you not only can quickly share content to Twitter but also easily send status updates to Twitter directly from your profile page.
To send your status update to Twitter, check the Twitter icon appearing below the Status box. The first time you and members connect to Twitter on your Ning Network, you’ll be asked to authenticate with Twitter. You can also change your linked Twitter account settings by clicking on Settings and clicking My Page.
You can now share a photo, video or profile page on Twitter directly on your Ning Network by clicking on the Twitter link next to the Share link.
In addition, you’ll also be able to share content on Twitter with short URLs. The URL shortener will automatically condense hyperlinks to shared content. When you enter a long URL in the Status box, a Shorten URL button will display. You have the option to shorten the URL by clicking on the button before sending your status update to Twitter. The URL shortener is a great tool when it comes to sharing content on Twitter since it gives members more room to personalize their post in 140 characters.
Branding your Ning Network tweets
When you tweet from your Ning Network, the timestamp in your tweet reads “from a Ning Network.” You can create your own Twitter App so that tweets from your Ning Network will read “from [Ning Network Name]” and link back to your Ning Network.
Click on the Create Twitter App button from the Twitter Integration page in the Tools area of your My Network dashboard and follow the set-up instructions.
Should you choose to disable Twitter integration on your Ning Network, the Twitter icon below the Status box will not appear and you and members will not be able to send status updates to Twitter directly on your network. Since you’ve always had the ability to share content on Twitter via the Share link, we made the Twitter link more visible for members so that they can still quickly and easily share photos, videos or other content on Twitter.
