Pimp Your Twitter Background
I've been addicted to Twitter for quite a while now, but my background has always been nothing more than a repeat pattern I found somewhere online. It was pretty, but it didn't say much about me - and Twitter doesn't offer much to help you introduce yourself. So as more and more people come to know me through Twitter without having met me in person, I felt like it was time to give my background image some attention.
I had a few goals. I wanted my background to be simple, and I wanted it to tell people where else they could find me. I'm not a marketer trying to get 1,000 followers so I can spam them with crap and get more site traffic... I just want the small group I do have to be able to follow me elsewhere. Twitter isn't meant to replace social networks, so I had some hesitations about hacking the system to put some personal links (like my portfolio, LinkedIn account, and the Inspire blog) in the background image. For one thing, they'll never be clickable and that feels weird. But more importantly, I felt like I might be breaking some Twitter etiquette by going all Guy Kawaski Twool-ish with it.
In the end I decided that a photo and a few links added value without being too obnoxious. I whipped up a quick template, designed within what I considered to be a safe area on the left, matched my avatar up with the new design, and customized the limited color options found under Settings. To keep from disorienting people, I stuck with the lime green color scheme used in my old wallpaper style.
The result isn't groundbreaking, but I do think it was worth the effort.
Get Inspired
Depending on your goals, there is actually a lot of room for creativity. I found some great examples online at http://twitterbackgroundsgallery.com/. A few of my favorites:
scottclark uses a retro aviation theme. I love the little details, like putting his LinkedIn address on the pilot license. I notice he also includes his Twitter URL, which seems kinda silly since you obviously already know that... but maybe he's using this image elsewhere.
betterinpink has a great illustrated background that closely matches the work in her portfolio. A quick intro paragraph on the left tells you she's a designer and includes an email address. Great approach if you're a freelancer trying to drum up business.
Designmeme and mayhemstudios use the headshot/bio approach I went with, which seems like the most direct approach for a personal account.
Whether you just add a tiled background or delve deeper and get super creative with it, customizing your Twitter background makes you look more legit. So as more and more spammers show up on Twitter, it makes sense to spend a few minutes distinguishing yourself from the crowd.
Design your own
To make life easier for you, I've uploaded a ZIP file with my PSD template. I grouped together all of the elements you're allowed to change through the Settings panel, including the sidebar, text, and links, so testing out new color schemes is simple. Use your own judgment on how far to the left and right you want to carry your design, as well as the height. Your background image can be up to 800k, but who wants to wait for an 800k background image to load? Keep it light - I recommend 300k max.
You can download the template here: http://clients.viget.com/blogposts/templates/twitter_template.zip
Oh yeah... wanna follow me on Twitter? I'm graphicsgirl. Why I didn't use my actual name is beyond me.
UPDATE
There are a lot of left sidebar haters out there, so I thought I'd share some examples that don't use a sidebar at all. Take a look at these lovely creations:
chrisspooner goes retro
kpiper uses a fun illustration with a great color scheme
thrivan shows us his chalkboard notes
jsmibert creates a cool and subtle background out of famous logos
I really love the concept, but please bear in mind that some people with lower-res monitor settings or smaller windows won’t see all of your background info, it will appear cut off. Because I have Twhirl open on the right side of my window, for instance, I have to cut back on my browser real-estate (I like them both open at the same time). This means I get cut off background images. Not trying to discourage their use, but just warning people that it’s not perfect…
Todd is right - there is no way to keep any real estate from getting squashed so use your best judgement as to what window size you’re optimizing for. In the case of my design I figured if people want to see my info they can always resize their browser to check it out.
Hi Mindy, I’ve been following you on Twitter, which is how I got the link to this article. Thanks for the tips. I’m going to have to try this out. My generic Twitter background doesn’t exactly scream “I’m a graphic designer”
At what point does it start to get too self-promotional? I’ve always associated these more elaborate twitter backgrounds with the social media experts and such who can get, well, annoying from time to time with their self-promotional tendencies.
You’re clearly not one of those people, Mindy, but there’s something I find nice about the fact that Twitter’s profile consists of a name, location, super-brief description, and a link. The basics not enough? click the link…
Mindy,
I love this post because you married two things I love Design & Twitter!!!!! This is a great example of designing within constraints and I think you did a really good job of adding some personality without being too self promotional.
@Jackson
twitter is a tool and everyone uses it differently. For those who use it to connect with their friends I think a customized theme is a great way to let your personality shine.
Great post! I’ve always seen the twitter background as a blank canvas that can be used for marketing, demonstration, or just about any other purpose that can be jammed into a graphic file. I use mine to show other methods of contact for my photography. Check it out!
Photoblog: Photo Informatica
I really need to get around to changing my Twitter background. The one I have up now (Patternhead on Twitter) is pretty lame. Ok, you’ve inspired me, new BG coming soon :)
Thanks for mentioning my Twitter background as one of your favorites. :)
- Cal
Hi Mindy,
As a designer myself, i really love what you’ve done here, and the creative streak it’s demonstrated. And it’s great that that creativity hasn’t been abused in the way that most marketers are abusing it these days.
I’m going to download your template, and give it a spin and see what I can come up with.
Although with my attention level, I’ll probably be changing my background once a week :)
I don’t know about this. On a small screen, the right side of the info is hidden. On a bigger screen like mine, it just doesn’t look good, with the info stuck to the left of the screen and a big gap between that and the page content.
For all those upset about the left sidebar thing.... I’m not saying you have to do exactly what I did. I’m not even sure I love it myself, but I know I like it a lot more than my old repeat pattern. That just happens to be the approach I took this time around.
The point of the post (and the template) is to encourage you to get creative with your Twitter page. Design something custom for it that matches your personality, or your portfolio, or the sweater you’re wearing. I don’t care what… just ditch the defaults and make your profile stand out!
Thanks for sharing your approach. I’ve seen this done throughout the twitter-sphere, and it’s about time that give it a go. Keep up the great work.
While I’m here, everyone should follow me @conspirator .
A similar thing about squishing can be said about people who have wide monitors. I always have mine open full screen, and I’ve seen a lot of people’s background end in the middle of the content area. And some look like they’ve tried to add content on the right hand side of their background image.
So you need to also realize that no one persons monitor is the same as your’s. It can be shorter, or it can be wider. Don’t try to be exact with your placement, because you might be the only one who sees it. Thats why I’ve just done a simple color that fades into the solid color of the background.
Great post!
Great showcase of designs, I’m quite a fan of the sidebar trend, I think it’s quite a nifty idea despite not actually having one myself!
Thankyou for the inclusion in the roundup. ‘Chrisspooner goes retro’ makes me sound cool :-)
The only problem with twitter background is the resolution thing. If you are using a background on a 1024x786 resolution, then you might see the good background, but as soon as you move to higher resolution it all ruins :(
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