Twitter is an important social network with 368 million monthly active users worldwide. When you post a tweet, everyone can see it and interact with it.
That’s fine, you may say, but sometimes your message can get misunderstood by some people. In fact, the ideal situation is that you can communicate only with your most faithful followers to engage in more private conversations.
This is possible with the Twitter circle function, which allows you to communicate with selected followers.
To understand more about this feature, we will explain in this article what the Twitter circle is, how it works and how to use it in an optimal way.
What Are Twitter Circles?
Simply put, they are groups of Twitter users who frequently engage in conversations, retweets, and likes or who share similar ideas. With the Twitter Circle feature, you can select only the people you want to interact with. The advantage is that you can build relationships with other people from the group while maintaining your privacy.
How Do Twitter Circles Work?
Circles allow you to tweet to a limited number of members. This limited audience is called a circle. However, you should know a few things about how these circles work.
- You can add up to 150 people to your Circle and anyone, even those who aren’t following you.
- Users have only one Circle, but you can add or remove users anytime.
- Protected accounts can join circles, but their replies will only be visible to members of their Circle who are also followers.
- Circle members cannot retweet your Circle’s tweets, but they can screenshot and download them.
- Mute should also work for tweets you want to avoid seeing from Twitter Circles.
How to Create a Twitter Circle on a Desktop PC
To Tweet to selected followers, you must first set up your Circle. The following guide will show you how to do this using Twitter on your desktop.
Step 1: Open a web browser, go to Twitter.com, and log in to your account.
Step 2: From the home screen, select More from the sidebar menu on the left side of the screen.
Step 3: From the menu, select Twitter Circles.
Step 4: The Edit Twitter Circle screen appears. Select the Recommended tab. From this tab, you can use the Find People bar to find specific Twitter users or add suggested users.
Step 5: Select the Circles tab on the Edit Twitter Circle screen to view all the users you’ve added to your circle.
Click the X icon when you are done adding users. That’s it!
How to Tweet to Your Twitter Circle From a Desktop PC
To tweet to your Circle from the desktop, follow these steps below.
Step 1: If you’re not already signed in, go to Twitter.com and sign in to your account.
Step 2: On the start page, click What’s Happening? or select the large tweet button on the left side of the screen. Either method will open or enable the tweet composer.
Step 3: When the tweet composer is open or active, you’ll see a small dropdown menu at the top called Everyone. Now select it.
Step 4: From the Choose Audience menu, select Twitter Circles.
You will then return to the Tweet composer and see your circle as the selected audience. Now you can compose your Tweet as usual and select the Tweet button to send it to members of your circle.
How to Create a Twitter Circle on the Twitter Mobile App
You can also set up your Twitter circle using the mobile app. Mobile app methods may vary slightly depending on the mobile device used, but the following general guidelines still apply:
Step 1: Open the mobile app on your device and tap your profile picture to open the main menu.
Step 2: Select Twitter Circles. If you’re an iOS user and you don’t see the Circles option in your main menu, do the following.
Open the Tweet composer and select the Publish dropdown menu. From the Choose Audience menu, select the Edit button next to the Circle option.
Step 3: A screen called Edit Your Twitter Circle will appear. On this screen, select the Recommendations tab. Then, you can search for specific users using the people search bar or add users that will appear in your suggested followers list.
Step 4: Select the Twitter Circles tab on the Edit Twitter Circle screen to see all the users you’ve added to your circle.
When you’re done adding users, select the back arrow icon to finish and return to your timeline.
How to Tweet to Your Twitter Circle From the Twitter Mobile App
Now that everything is ready, you can start tweeting. Here is how to easily do it from the mobile app.
Step 1: Open the mobile app on your device and tap the plus sign icon.
Step 2: Select Tweets from the menu that appears.
Step 3: On this screen, select the dropdown menu called Public.
Step 4: On the Choose Audience screen, select Circles.
Step 5: You will then return to the Tweet composer screen.
At this point, simply compose your Tweet as normal and select the Tweet button to send it to the members of your circle.
How to Edit Your Twitter Circle
Once you’ve created your Twitter Circle, you can edit it from the Tweet box by selecting Publish and clicking the Edit button next to Twitter Circle. On the Twitter Circles tab, select Remove for each user you want to exclude. You can also change who stays in the group by choosing the green notification below the circle’s Tweets and selecting Edit Twitter Circle.
Key Takeaways
Now you know what Twitter Circles are and how to create them or tweet from your desktop or mobile. As a reminder:
- Twitter Circles allow you to communicate only with a list of selected people.
- You can’t retweet in a Twitter Circle.
- Twitter Circles allow you to protect your private life.
What about you? Do you use Twitter Circles? Let us know in the comments.
Denisa Lamaj
