On April 1st I set out to give Twitter a fair run, with all intentions of testing it for a full month to determine its true value. While I'm not new to the concept, I had previously labeled it a "time suck" and avoided it - the last thing I need is another distraction, right? But within the first 24 hours I was completely and uncurably addicted, and seeing incredible potential with this one simple site...
If you are not hands-on familiar with Twitter yet, then you may want to start with this post so that you understand how it works.
More Than Just Links & Traffic
Each time you post a tweet, you answer the question What Are You Doing? If you are doing something online, you can include a link as part of your response. The cool thing about it is that Google indexes these tweets. Even cooler is that people do actually click your links to check out what you're doing.
In fact, in the first week of tweeting Twitter.com jumped up to the #2 spot in my list of referrers for the month - second only to my oldest site - showing a decent number of clickthroughs. There's not much meat to those stats just yet, being only a week into it, but its promising as a start.
That said, I'm finding that the power of Twitter goes way beyond the links & clicks. Its in the connections and relationships. You may be surprised at who all is on Twitter, and just how personable they are in the 'tweet' atmosphere... its an opportunity to have conversations with people you might not otherwise find opportunity to connect with on such a level.
Actually, Paul Colligan says it best in this recent blog post - which I found on Twitter just this morning (imagine that!): 7 Reasons Why Twitter Is Not A Waste Of My Time (and might in fact make decent business sense)
If you want to stay in the know, you need to be tweetin' 😉
Speaking of Paul Colligan, he was one of the speakers at the StomperNet event I attended last weekend. During the closing presentation there was a panel of 11 faculty members on stage for a final Q&A session. I was sitting on the 3rd row and happened to notice both Dave Taylor and Paul Colligan tapping away on their mobile devices... so I pulled out my laptop and checked in at Twitter.com. Sure enough they were tweeting!
I typed in a tweet myself, sharing a laugh about it, and within minutes a response popped up in Twitter. Too funny!
Its a way to get involved, stay connected, make friends, get to know the people behind the companies and domain names, and strike up conversations that could be worth gold to you down the road.
You'll know if that person you want to contact about a JV is out of town right now, when they are sitting at their desk checking messages, what their opinions are about certain things, what their schedule and daily routines are, and anything that's going on anywhere - you'll hear about first on Twitter.
Even cooler is that Twitter seems to be the method of choice when it comes to making plans and staying connected at industry events. People are able to find groups that are meeting for dinner, locate each other quickly, and effectively communicate anything and everything - through any cell phone or mobile device. If you're not already on Twitter.com, you'll want to make sure you're signed up and familiar with it before the next event you attend 😉
Here's a quick sampling of my current tweets:
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I'd love to hear your experiences with Twitter, and what you find most valuable about it. Leave a comment below, and be sure to share your Twitter URL when you do!
Best,
About Lynn Terry
Hi Lynn,
Like you I've just started with Twitter and I truly am starting to like it. It's "short and sweet" to use.
How did I find out about Twitter? Actually, Anthony "Tony" Blake suggested I take a look at it and I signed up on March 25th. Been trying to get up tp speed.
I like it as I don't have to write long entries as it only allows 140 characters. Makes it simple for me as I'm not too good at writing things! LOL
I've already connected with a couple of people that I heard of but have never really had any contact with before. So this is more powerful than I ever thought it could be.
And as usual Lynn, you pick up on these things so fast once you get started! Gonna be alot of good coming out of your SMO forum at SSWT. I can feel it! heh heh
Rick Wilson aka CorpRebel 8)
http://twitter.com/corprebel
Hey Lynn, Sherman here. (Twitter me @shermanhu). I've found the dialogue and interactions with SMEs and professional colleagues very refreshing, and sometimes downright funny 😉
2 takeaways:
(1) Much easier connection opportunties with influencers and SMEs
(2) Folks whom I follow / folks who follow me are cool, lead interesting lives, participate in intelligent conversations, and actually answer the questions I poll on Twitter - shocking!
Anyways, back to my Tw-addiction 😉
I agree with you both - the connections are powerful and the potential is unlimited. It puts me in mind, particularly after watching Dave Taylor's recent video interview, of the Target 25 system I'm such a big fan of. If you're not familiar with it, pick up Small Business Success by Mark LeBlanc.
p.s. You can find that video at the bottom of this post: http://www.clicknewz.com/1432/free-webinar-on-social-marketing-today/
See you guys on Twitter 😉
Check out TweetScan - a realtime twitter search. I just got this via @Ed_Dale on Twitter (imagine that!):
http://www.tweetscan.com/index.php?s=Lynn+Terry&u=
Awesome resource!
I agree with the above. The tremendous networking and ability for even the little guy (or gal) to be "in the know" is awesome. Not to mention being on top of everything that's happening.
I've also found, the tremendous traffic potential, when you post links and resources.
Lynn, your awesome on Twitter, great to follow your every move 🙂
Maria Reyes-McDavis
Oops... forgot my twitter @websuccessdiva LOL
Thanks!
M.
Thank you Maria - I'm having tons of fun with it!
Off to follow you!
I am so glad I am following you on Twitter or I would never have found out that you are not a swinger and you don't have a dog (and you wouldn't kick it even if you did)
LOL 😆 And those were things you were really curious about too, I bet! haha You gals cracked me up 😉
Hey, Lynn thanks. I haven't twit before and haven't see the site either. Reason? I thought it more or less like othe sites in its genre.
Now, I know better... I am heading up there myself 🙂
Lynn,
I am absolutely loving it! I think I started a day later than you did, but I'm just as addicted as well, lol.
I'm not sure I'm going to make it a month either before posting an update on my blog, lol.
So far I have just used Twitter on the web, but I think now that I have the hang of it, it is time to check out some of the cool tools for it.
Lynn, it was great meeting you @ Live 5, and I've also decided that Twitter isn't a complete waste of time, *if* you do it right. Your post on that is a great starting point for Twitterphobes.
We had hundreds of members who didn't attend the event, but a lot of them were following several of the "Twits" on the faculty while they twitted away on the stage. Even funnier that you tweeted at Dave while he was up there.
I enjoyed meeting you too, Dan. I have been reading your Fast Start guide this morning - look forward to completing it and posting a review here at ClickNewz. Thank you for all you do there!
The twitter experience was great 'live' - and what an incredible asset! I cant wait to log in and join you guys 'on the inside' at StomperNet. Hope to see you there this evening!
I would like to point out, that I was the first person you followed... that's sort of a milestone you never forget.
Anyway, I am a huge fan of twitter it has helped me more than double attention on my blog. But at the same time i have to admit, I am a bit frightened of it. Things change so quickly, and it really is revolutionary on so many levels. As many commentators here have already said, the networking potential is unparalleled. But it leaves me wondering... what next?
Not to mention it can haunt your dreams.
I will try it if google really index it. Everyday new things are coming online with so many features. This makes me crazy all the time which one is good because everyone is making nice products here. Impressed.
Glad to see you're enjoying twitter! It's one of those sites that you just don't get until you give it a try. 🙂
Don't forget to check out my site that allows to you schedule tweets in advance. 😉
http://www.twitresponse.com
~Shannon
p.s. Thanks for following me as well! lol
I gave proof of that in the post above - but honestly, if that's the only reason you're joining Twitter, you wont get the full potential out of it 😉
I agree Jared, and have had similar thoughts - and yes, have even dreamed about it! The world is becoming smaller and more transparent by the day it seems. It will be very interesting indeed to see the next decade unfold...
As for the following - just look what you started! lol 😀
Hey Lynn. It took me a while to get into Twitter and even then I wasn't using it like I should.
Then Ed Dale introduced me to Twhirl and now I can have my Twitter account open all the time and it's so much easier to keep up with it.
It's pretty cool to meet friends I haven't talked to in ages, like yourself.
It's great to reconnect with you, James! 😀
I'm just starting to use Twitter more and more - although sometimes I find it challenging to write tweet anything very interesting! 🙂
Great post and solid thought-process on how it's a useful business tool.
I am amazed at how open people are to adding as followers, and it's a great way to interact with some pretty influential folks in the IM world! 😉
Follow me on twitter at http://twitter.com/whoissteveyoung
Thanks!
Steve
Nice to meet you Steve! I look forward to following you on Twitter.
Lynn,
Like you the concept of a place like twitter isn't new but it is easy to use. I myself had similar thoughts of the "time suck" issue which god only knows right now I don't have.
I signed up a while ago and actually only started using late last night. People just started following me so I figured I better start using it 🙂
The cool thing is you can chat with marketers in a "not so" stuffy setting make friends and learn about each other. In marketing socializing and getting to know others can be a big part for your business, even if you're not talking "business.
Anyone wants to add me feel free I am at
http://twitter.com/michaelsbrown
Thanks and cool post Lynn 🙂