Twitter's new header photo

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Twitter just announced the addition of a cover image that you can customize and reposition to your liking. Much like its cousin the Facebook cover photo, this is prime real estate to boost your brand (personal or professional).

First, here's the how-to for setting the new header photo on Twitter.com:

• --Click on the cog on the upper right hand corner of the screen.
• --From the drop-down menu (right underneath your profile picture), click on "Edit Profile."
• --On the left hand side of the screen, click on "Design."
• --Scroll down until you find "Customize your own."
• --Here, you can upload a header photo and a background photo. It will take some trial and error to figure out what looks best, so experiment!
• --To see your final product, click on the "Me" icon on the top left navigation bar. You'll see your new header photo in action.
  
  

You can follow the same process on the official mobile Twitter app for both Android and iOS.

Now that you know how to do it, it's time to think strategically about how to use this feature. Because it's brand new, there's room for experimentation. Some suggestions include:

• Pick a header image that adds to your narrative, like a new poster that your campaign designed, or a photo of your volunteers holding up all of the completed pledge cards from their canvass shift.
  
  
• Think about your branding. The cover photo will be the first thing visitors see on your profile. Your header photo will appear above your tweets, so choose something that syncs with your look and design.
  
  
• Use the right dimensions. You can drag your photo to reposition it within the window, but the desired dimensions are 1252x626. If you're creating an image or a photo collage, build it to that ratio.
  
  
• Make sure your background image works with your header. Seems obvious, but you want your background and cover to complement one another, not fight for prominence.

Now you've got a nice little face-lift to your Twitter page - if you change your header photo, let us know what works and what doesn't work in the comments on our blog.

Deepa Kunapuli is Communications Manager at NOI.

Photo by mikebaird, via Flickr.