Should I Twitter?

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Permalink Reply by Gerry Baird on July 24, 2009 at 3:05pm

Kathleen,

I just signed up for Twitter last week and had some of the same questions. I did some random Tweets about things and noticed that the more I updated my status on Twitter, the more followers I started to get. When I mentioned that I was going to a Toastmasters public speaking meeting, I noticed that someone with the user name "Toastmasters podcast" started following me. Then I noticed the search bar to the right and realized that anyone can search Twitter for a specific term and start following people who mention that term. This is the key, I think, to marketing on Twitter.

For example, if your new book is about weight loss, start tweeting about that topic -- you can include quotes, advice, references to your web site or other internet resources, etc. and people interested in weight loss (or in marketing weight loss products to you) will start following.

Next, you can search for tweets related to weight loss (or whatever your book is about). Start following people who mention a desire to lose weight and perhaps send them a short message about your product.

It helps to have a good user name, like "loseweighttoday" that relates to your marketing message. That way you might not even need to send messages to people -- just start following them and they may come to you.

Hope this helps!
Gerry - www.findyourpassion.com

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Permalink Reply by Andy Corp on July 24, 2009 at 7:13pm

Hi Kathleen

Twitter is a great place to find people of similar interest and experience. Like Garry said if just tweet about whatever is
on your mind some else is thinking about the same thing.
A few tools because twitter search stinks
http://monitter.com you can search for keywords in a local area.
http://seesmic.com It will remember your searches and any mentions
http://mashable.com/category/twitter-lists/ more twitter info than you could ever handle
http://twitter.com/localseoinc yeah that's me

One of the most important things to remember about the social web is it is "social"
not a place to shout every 5 minutes that you have something to sell.

Andy

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Permalink Reply by Colin Bulla on July 25, 2009 at 2:10pm

Twitter allows for an interesting spidering of information dispersal. I've learned that while 'tweeting' things out is funny or interesting, thinking about the words you'll use in the 140 characters will put you into peoples search spaces who have an interest or mentioned it at that particular time.

I often tweet about playing my cello, karate, Business Technology Coaching and in doing such I've created an interesting following of people from multiple continents who share similar interests. When I went diving last weekend and posted about that I gained more followers and connected to friends who dive who didn't know I was on twitter.

I do the same stuff on Face Book status updates, but with more characters there I can share more.

There is a little bit of etiquette to be involved with this as well. I run with a rule of I don't mention business but about 1 in 5 or 6 other posts. I've noticed over the years in moderating a forum that the more community presence a person has without blowing the tuba about what they do the more they're respected among the digital community they're involved with and their name is associated with the branding of their business.

The question is what value can you add by incorporating this technology into what you do. By looking at what you want to create and what value the use of the updates and networking will bring towards achieving that goal, you'll be able to start experimenting with the 'tweets' and updates. Monitor the results and adjust as needed. :)

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Permalink Reply by Kathleen Rokavec, MD on July 25, 2009 at 7:54pm

Thanks for the info!

I just did my first tweet! Does that make me a twit?

(twitter name: lavadoc)

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Permalink Reply by Cecile Aschwanden on July 25, 2009 at 10:21pm

Hi Kathleen,

I had just made a comment to Robbie's blog and seen that you had asked a similar question. In Twitter, I could have used the #Kathleen and #Robbie tags and I would not have to repeat my answer.
First I recommend to read articles on proper tweet conduct, how to use twitter most effectively for marketing, etc. I found www.ezine.com a good resource.
I can only tell you how I use twitter. For once I use it as a short-term memory tool. I post relevant information regarding my business or the crafting industry which I then can easily access through the updates folder. The fact that messages can only be 140 characters long forces you to be very concise in your posts and it is perfect for summarizing the content of your recommended links. Additionally, you can use it very effectively as a search tool. I have also successfully posted a question on Twitter regarding importing certain goods into the U.S. and was able to solve the problem thanks to the input of a fellow Twitter user.
These are the ways Twitter works for me. However, I can't say (maybe it's too early and I need to wait a bit longer) that it really has improved my sales overall. The products I sell are seasonal (mostly Christmas) and it could be that I will see an increase in sales during Christmas.
I mostly sell through www.knitsforkids.etsy.com or EBAY. Most of my hits I get directly from the site itself because people will go to EBAY or Etsy because those sites are well known. Probably not because of my two or three tweets a day.
By the way, you can follow me on twitter either under Knits4Kids or LaCheapa. :)

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Permalink Reply by John Albert Thomas on July 26, 2009 at 9:52pm

I'm really happy with PeopleBrowsr.com. They even have a desktop app you can use. You can follow your FB, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube, etc. friends all in one place, plus follow hashtags on different popular topics. Setup campaigns to monitor positive and negative sentiments about your product or industry.

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Permalink Reply by Mart Murff on July 30, 2009 at 3:44pm

There's a least one other good 48days.net discussion about Twitter, and I wanted to re-post the discussion here

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Permalink Reply by Mike Sparks on July 31, 2009 at 7:36am

Kathleen i don't get the Twitter stuff, I can see Facebook and understand it as a viable medium, but twitter with just a short sentence I dont undertsand why folks would use it over Facebook. Facebook is every interactive from photos, videos, updates the possiblities of facebook are endless, i just havent figured out a way top sell cars on it yet-LOL.
thanks
Mike Sparks
www.MidTnAUTOS.com

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Permalink Reply by Eric Tompkins on July 31, 2009 at 9:37pm

I have been on Twitter for about 5 months now. I don't have a huge following, which is okay, but I do have a GREAT following. I have learned with Twitter, quality followers are better than a large number of followers. I actually interact with my followers and the people I follow in such a way that we communicate. We have made great business connections, and deals that have all started via Twitter.

However, I do not Twitter junk. In fact, I am highly strategic with my Tweets. I have both long term and short term strategies for Twitter, LinkedIn, Plaxo, I-Meet, etc. Nothing I do is haphazard as I have learned putting thought into a strategy turns some pretty excellent results. Think of it in these terms. You wouldn't go to a Chamber of Commerce meeting and discuss you trip to the grocery store. You are there for business. Same goes for social networking.

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Permalink Reply by Eric Tompkins on September 15, 2009 at 1:10pm

How to use Facebook to fine-tune your web site

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Permalink Reply by Rob Apodaca on September 16, 2009 at 10:32pm

Twitter is another tool that allows you to communicate with your audience, your community.

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Permalink Reply by Dustin on September 17, 2009 at 9:38am

I just started my Twitter account a few weeks ago shortly after I launched my first website. I'm starting to get the hang of it, and it has connected me with some like-minded folks (and numerous spammers). I'm looking forward to learning more as I go, which has been the case with this whole online adventure. It truly is like trying to drink water from a fire hose!

If you want to contact me on Twitter, I'm @EngagedMarriage

Dustin
EngagedMarriage.com

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