There are dozens of options for pointing your blog readers to your Twitter account, from buttons to widgets to plugins. One of the easiest to configure is the stock widget from Twitter (like you see in my left sidebar). Setup is very simple and the widget can be changed to match the colors of your blog. Here’s how to get one of your own:
1. Go to http://twitter.com/about/resources/widgets and click “My Website” on the left.
2. Click Profile Widget.
3. Enter your Twitter username.
4. Click Preferences on the left to set the options you want.
5. Click Appearance to change the colors. When you click in each color box, you’ll get a visual color wheel, or if you know the color codes (or have them in your blog settings), you can copy and paste.
6. Depending on the width of your sidebar, you may want to change the dimensions of the widget using the Dimensions option on the left, or you can check a box for it to auto-fit to the size of your sidebar.
7. Click “Finish and Get Code” at the bottom of the screen.
8. If you use Blogger, you’ll see a button to add your widget. Click, confirm the information, and it will automatically be placed in your sidebar.
9. If you use WordPress, highlight the code (make sure you get it all) and press Ctrl+C to copy (or Command+C on a Mac). Go to your Dashboard and drag a text widget to the sidebar, then press Ctrl+V (or Command+V) to paste the code. Save the widget.
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Still debating if I want my tweets on the site, but I have the follow button.
I don't know that it makes a huge difference either way. I like having mine on there because sometimes people will click the links in my tweets if they see them on the site. But it's up to you!
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