Whether it’s breaking news or a planned news conference, audiences turn to Twitter for fresh and accurate news from journalists. Live-tweeting is now a mainstay in the world of journalism.

With more than 26 years of experience with the CNN networks, Annie Hammock has worked across platforms by reporting and writing for CNN.com. Now, Hammock works with social media in the newsroom everyday as the interactive director for KOMU-TV.

Hammock has 5 tips for every young journalist preparing to live tweet:

1. Pre-plan your hashtags and @mentions. You want to be part of a larger conversation. Ask yourself what hashtags are the people you want to reach using?
2. Make the hashtags part of your copy. Don’t just stick them at the end of the tweet. For example: Protestors in #Ferguson angry that officer Darren Wilson won’t be charged in #MichaelBrown shooting.
3. Know in advance who will be speaking and how to spell their names correctly.
4. Make sure tweets work together, but can stand alone. For example, If you’re tweeting about President Obama don’t say his name in one tweet and then in another tweet just say “he said.” Tweets go by super fast and people who see one may not have seen the one preceding it. Always offer context.
5. If you can have two people available, make sure one person is always listening while one is typing, because the one typing will miss some of what’s being said.

“Let your audience know you’ll be live-tweeting,” Hammock said. “Tweet about it about an hour before, half an hour, 15 minutes and three minutes. If you have a Facebook page and website, report it there was well.”

Incorrect spelling often plagues young journalists on Twitter. Hammock said proofreading is extremely important during live-tweeting.

“Don’t try to go too fast,” she said. “Getting it right takes precedence over getting it first. If there’s time, write your tweet in a Word document that checks for grammar and spelling.”

Hammock said using hashtags and @mentions is a crucial part of getting tweets in front of a larger audience.

“Once you’re done, consider curating them in one place,” she said. “Storify is a good free tool for doing this. Once you have a link, such as a Storify link, tweet that, post it to Facebook and put it on your website.”

Hammock said when live-tweeting, journalists should also use a url shortener like bit.ly or ow.ly.

Check out these resources to discover how young journalists can use Twitter to engage with audiences when live-tweeting:

How journalism educators can teach students to live-tweet campus events

How to create a Twitter account

Twitter 101: A 7-step guide for teachers, newbies and everyone

What every young journalist should know about using Twitter

Tips and tricks for a perfect tweet

For more social media tips and tricks, check out SchoolJournalism.org’s resources.