Why join Twitter?
I was introduced to Twitter in 2007 by a colleague at Constant Contact. Intrigued, I signed up. Within days I was bored. There was nothing to read and very few people were using it. Not to mention I had nothing to say that would fit in 140 characters. Since then, I’ve been an ardent anti-fan of the service, dissuading friends and clients from using what I believed was a service for vain and bombastic people. But recently I’ve begun to change my mind. One word. Egypt. When a country of 83 million can change its leadership with the help of Twitter, who am I to speak badly of it. I decided to give Twitter another try.
Participation not required.
I dusted off my 4-year old Twitter account and began to troll my Facebook and Linkedin accounts for people to “follow”. If you’re unfamiliar with Twitter, “following” a person is simply a way to read what they post on Twitter – their Tweets. Before I knew it I was following 50+ people. I also installed the free Twitter software on my Macs and iPhone. Twitter software makes it easy to read tweets. Otherwise, you have to visit the Twitter website and sign in to your account. Ugh, what a hassle!
So there I was, reading a steady flow of tweets. Some interesting, some intriguing, but most completely useless. I quickly unfollowed the “Tweeters” (yes, there’s a whole lexicon for Twitter) whose tweets didn’t interest me. In the past few weeks I’ve refined the list of people I follow, and now I’m getting some very interesting information. I’m laughing. I’m learning. I’m crying. Oy! But my biggest revelation is that there are actually two ways to use Twitter. One, simply being a voyeur, reading what’s tweeted. Or two, actually tweeting. Hmmmm. To tweet or not to tweet. That’s my next decision.
What’s your Tweeting strategy?
As I refined the list of people who I follow, I noticed a pattern emerge: There seems to be three distinct reasons for tweeting.
- A person tweeting for personal reasons
- A person tweeting for professional reasons
- A company tweeting to promote its products or services
The above is pretty self explanatory, but there are subtle combinations of each that aren’t obvious. For instance, celebrities tweet for personal and professional reasons. People are interested in their personal lives and their professional lives are on screen for all to see. Then there are gurus like Guy Kawasaki who have a lot to share and want to let people know they’re an expert. Then there are Tweeters like Gail Goodman, CEO of Constant Contact. Gail shares her expertise on Twitter, and in doing so she promotes her company. This is my strategy for tweeting. I tweet under my own name and share my knowledge and point-of-view as a professional. And in doing so, I promote my company. And hopefully get some new business!
My point here is that you need to develop a strategy for using Twitter. Carefully consider the things you’ll Tweet about, and the things you won’t. Be methodical and thoughtful. (Shameless plug: We can help you develop a strategy and even tweet on your behalf.)
Should you join Twitter?
If you’re a curious person who wants to quickly know what’s going on in our world, become a voyeur – get a Twitter account, follow some influential people, and simply read. You’ll be surprised how much you’ll learn.
If you’re a professional who’s interested in letting people know that you’re an expert and passionate about what you do, get a Twitter account and start tweeting. You can tweet under your name or your company’s name. As you build your list of followers you’ll learn some interesting techniques for tweeting such as including links to websites and hashtags.
Twitter is here to stay. As time goes by, professionals and businesses will learn new strategies for using the service. My recommendation is to get onboard now, start small, and be consistent. Read your Twitter feed at least once a week. Refine the list of people whom you follow, and people will begin to follow you. KNOW your audience and begin to send Tweets that are relevant to them. And if you’re concerned about privacy (By default all your tweets are public) there’s a setting to keep your Tweets private. But if you’re Tweeting for professional reasons I don’t recommend keeping your Tweets private. Consider having multiple Twitter accounts that have different business/personal strategies.
Have fun and let me know how it’s going. And be sure to follow me @DonLutkus.
