Twitter On
A while back I introduced you to Twitter.
At the time, while I hardly consider myself to be prescient, I did suggest that there were useful things that could be done with Twitter. Remember, Twitter is an online service in which users "tweet" short (140 character) message to those "following" them.
Early adopters (typically, teenagers) tweeted such thoughtful things as, "I just got up," and "Boyfriend broke up with me today." Granted, such information would be interesting to grandparents and friends, but not terribly memorable in the larger scheme of things.
However, I thought that there might be a more interesting use of tweets if, say, a friend or relative was on a trip through Europe; a corporate sales person was making a series of sales calls and wanted to quickly update his company with results; and, as it turns out, people have been successfully sharing the details of being at an event others wish they might be able to attend as well (the inauguration, for example).
Once the messaging went beyond the mundane and could actually be seen as useful, it wasn't long before people found ways to make tweeting both edifying and, maybe, make it pay.
First, tweets were found to be an excellent way for writers and other content makers to cross-promote their efforts: "I just posted a blog entry on (X) subject." "I just released a new song, and you can hear it here." "We're in the middle of making a movie here in Egypt. Daily rushes can be viewed here."
Not long thereafter, Twitter released "Power Twitter," which allows users to post images and videos. The advantage to this over a blog is that users can have their Twitter interface open, and can get updates from many people without having to access dozens of blogs, or even access and sort through an RSS reader. As you post an update and tweet about it, I see your entry and think, yeah, that might be interesting. I'm alerted - via a very short announcement - to what you're doing or thinking.
My blog readership has increased significantly because I tweet my blog entries. Friends and followers, whom, we presume, share my interests, are more inclined to read my posts that they would be to check in regularly with my blog on the off chance that I might have posted something new.
Now there are "retweets," another useful way of making content go viral. Each twitterer has a cadre of "followers," people who keep track of his or her tweets. If I read or learn something interesting from one of my Twitter follows I can "retweet it" to my followers (who, of course, do not share all of the people I follow). Now they've learned what I learned, and are free to retweet it to their followers... thus an idea or subject of interest can make the rounds even faster than with a viral email. And we all know how fast those can spread!
Businesses are catching on to the benefit of tweeting. A new product, service, or sale can be announced to followers via Twitter. Some cagey indviduals are picking out likely-looking users and following them, (the inclination is to follow those who follow you) and then offering these folks business opportunities, prizes, etc.
Finally, Twitter and Twitter users have made it easier than ever to learn what it being tweeted about - and get in on that! By adding "hashtags" to your tweets (a # followed by a word or phrase), tweets can be searched.
As I wrote earlier this month, "Go to hashtags.org to see real-time tracking of Twitter hashtags. Opt-in by following @hashtags to have your hashtags tracked. You can find out what the most popular tweet topics are, or start a tweet topic yourself.
"Follow @hashtags on Twitter. They will follow you back automatically, and your hashtags will be tracked.
"Next, start using hashtags in your tweets, preceding key words. It can be helpful to do a little research first, to find out if the subject you're tweeting already has an established hashtag. Also, check Suggestions and Tips and Example Uses below for ettiquette and general usage.
"Finally, track other tweets on the subjects you're interested in (ie: those containing the appropriate hashtags) by browsing/searching at Hashtags.org or TwitterGroups. You can set it up with RSS feeds as well."
It may be a short-lived phenomenon; the Next Big Thing may supplant it. But for now, Twitter is the online application to try.
At the time, while I hardly consider myself to be prescient, I did suggest that there were useful things that could be done with Twitter. Remember, Twitter is an online service in which users "tweet" short (140 character) message to those "following" them.
Early adopters (typically, teenagers) tweeted such thoughtful things as, "I just got up," and "Boyfriend broke up with me today." Granted, such information would be interesting to grandparents and friends, but not terribly memorable in the larger scheme of things.
However, I thought that there might be a more interesting use of tweets if, say, a friend or relative was on a trip through Europe; a corporate sales person was making a series of sales calls and wanted to quickly update his company with results; and, as it turns out, people have been successfully sharing the details of being at an event others wish they might be able to attend as well (the inauguration, for example).
Once the messaging went beyond the mundane and could actually be seen as useful, it wasn't long before people found ways to make tweeting both edifying and, maybe, make it pay.
First, tweets were found to be an excellent way for writers and other content makers to cross-promote their efforts: "I just posted a blog entry on (X) subject." "I just released a new song, and you can hear it here." "We're in the middle of making a movie here in Egypt. Daily rushes can be viewed here."
Not long thereafter, Twitter released "Power Twitter," which allows users to post images and videos. The advantage to this over a blog is that users can have their Twitter interface open, and can get updates from many people without having to access dozens of blogs, or even access and sort through an RSS reader. As you post an update and tweet about it, I see your entry and think, yeah, that might be interesting. I'm alerted - via a very short announcement - to what you're doing or thinking.
My blog readership has increased significantly because I tweet my blog entries. Friends and followers, whom, we presume, share my interests, are more inclined to read my posts that they would be to check in regularly with my blog on the off chance that I might have posted something new.
Now there are "retweets," another useful way of making content go viral. Each twitterer has a cadre of "followers," people who keep track of his or her tweets. If I read or learn something interesting from one of my Twitter follows I can "retweet it" to my followers (who, of course, do not share all of the people I follow). Now they've learned what I learned, and are free to retweet it to their followers... thus an idea or subject of interest can make the rounds even faster than with a viral email. And we all know how fast those can spread!
Businesses are catching on to the benefit of tweeting. A new product, service, or sale can be announced to followers via Twitter. Some cagey indviduals are picking out likely-looking users and following them, (the inclination is to follow those who follow you) and then offering these folks business opportunities, prizes, etc.
Finally, Twitter and Twitter users have made it easier than ever to learn what it being tweeted about - and get in on that! By adding "hashtags" to your tweets (a # followed by a word or phrase), tweets can be searched.
As I wrote earlier this month, "Go to hashtags.org to see real-time tracking of Twitter hashtags. Opt-in by following @hashtags to have your hashtags tracked. You can find out what the most popular tweet topics are, or start a tweet topic yourself.
"Follow @hashtags on Twitter. They will follow you back automatically, and your hashtags will be tracked.
"Next, start using hashtags in your tweets, preceding key words. It can be helpful to do a little research first, to find out if the subject you're tweeting already has an established hashtag. Also, check Suggestions and Tips and Example Uses below for ettiquette and general usage.
"Finally, track other tweets on the subjects you're interested in (ie: those containing the appropriate hashtags) by browsing/searching at Hashtags.org or TwitterGroups. You can set it up with RSS feeds as well."
It may be a short-lived phenomenon; the Next Big Thing may supplant it. But for now, Twitter is the online application to try.
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