Make sure your Twitter handle conveys the proper image

Playfully pert or purely professional? Set your tone by choosing wisely

Before people on Twitter ever read your 140-character blasts, they’ll be sizing you up by the name you’ve chosen.

Figuring out how you want to use the micro-blogging venue is an essential first step to selecting the appropriate moniker, of course. Some advice, from the Twitterati:

Avoid nicknames

Nicknames can be cute and clever, but experts warn against using them for your Twitter account.

“In my network of corporate and public relations professionals on Twitter, we like seeing some version of a company’s or person’s real name as their handle,” says Ari Adler, a communications administrator for Delta Dental. “It helps you get taken more seriously and the instant messenger-style nicknames tend to raise the spam warning flag for many tweeters.”

Protect your brand

Even if you don’t intend to communicate through Twitter, don’t let your brand get hijacked.