Things You'll Need:
- Twitter Account
-
Step 1
Sign Up For A Twitter AccountYou can get package tracking updates sent to you through your Twitter account. You can view them on your online Twitter page, or have them sent directly to your cell phone!
If you don't have a Twitter account, go to www.twitter.com to sign up for one. -
Step 2
To be able to get tracking information through Twitter, you will first need to follow PackageTrack. PackageTrack is the company that provides up-to-date tracking using Twitter.
To follow PackageTrack, find them on Twitter by clicking on "Find People" at the top of the page. Type "packagetrack" in the search box, and you will be taken to PackageTrack's page. Click on "Follow".
You are now following PackageTrack, and in a few minutes, PackageTrack will be following you! -
Step 3
Send A Direct Message To PackageTrackNow that you are following PackageTrack, you can get package tracking information sent to your Twitter page and cell phone / smartphone. To start getting package alerts you need to send a direct message to them.
If you are logged into your Twitter page, click on "Direct Messages" on the right side of the page.
On the Direct Message page, select "packagetrack" from the drop down "Send A Direct Message" menu.
In the message box below that, type your package information in the following format:
nickname:123456789
Nickname is anything you want to use to uniquely identify that package. For instance, you can use such words as
"Amazon", "Ebay", "camera", "shoes", "xbox360",
or anything else that specifically identifies that package to you when packagetrack sends the search results.
After the package's nickname, put in a ":" (colon, but with no quotation marks), and then enter the tracking number.
Packagetrack will know whether it is a USPS, UPS, or FedEx tracking number.
Click on SEND.
Within a few seconds, PackageTrack will Direct Message you back with the status of your package! -
Step 4
You can also Direct Message PackageTrack from your phone. First, make sure that your Twitter account is set up to take updates from your phone. Log into your account and at the top of the page, click on "Settings", and then click on "Devices". Under "Devices", you can input your cell phone number so that you can send and receive Twitter updates.
To get tracking information on your phone, you need to send a text message to Twitter Updates. You send text updates to this number: 40404.
In the message of your text, you use this format to direct message packagetrack:
d packagetrack nickname:123456789
You must put the "d" at the beginning of the message to get the information sent directly to PackageTrack.
Send your message, and very shortly you will receive a text back with the most current tracking information on your package!
These updates will also show on your online Twitter page.
Comments
harrisdy said
on 8/8/2009 this is something new... thanks!
chrisanimelo444 said
on 8/2/2009 Interesting article. Very descriptive! I'm new to twitter, though this may come in handy. Thanks!
kittynurse said
on 8/2/2009 Very helpful... thanks! 5*
sanderdoe said
on 8/2/2009 What an excellent idea! Using twitter to track a package is an awesome idea! 5*
mikes197131 said
on 8/2/2009 I had no idea you could do this, thanks for the great info.