Really good info you shared Andy, thanks for that.
Being a somewhat late adopter of Twitter, I am still learning some of the deeper, more obscure benefits of using Twitter and am surprised at how much I am finding of what seems on the surface to be a somewhat simple looking tool.
Xavier
chrisbrogan
· 1 year ago
There are some really great points in here. Twitter is a crazy beast. I'm thinking the Mashable crowd doesn't need this, but for people JUST starting on Twitter, give it 30 days. You'll go through Maslow's hierarchy of need, I promise.
One cool thing about Twitter is the chance to break through and talk with folks briefly. Note the briefly. It's not IRC or AIM. So, start somewhere, and move it to something more conversational when it goes interesting. Make sense?
Great post, Andy!
brad
· 1 year ago
Poor office depot. Wouldn't want to deal w/ that huge reputation headache. ;)
Jeff Davis
· 1 year ago
Great post, and I think it's fascinating - and a valuable PR lesson - how the Twitter co-founders announced the Summize acquisition via Twitter (no press release tactics needed), letting those who follow them build the buzz. Evan Williams' "Holy Crap" Tweet at 9:01 am on July 15 set off the chain of events.
gaston monescu
· 1 year ago
what a trip that they got back to you like that. and, that office depot email is so well written.
Jeff
· 1 year ago
Very helpful information. I hate twammers (tweater spammers)See how you can utilize these methods in a web considering a web 3.0 evironment... www.gothamtechminute.blogspot.com
John Carson
· 1 year ago
Thanks Andy. I always get something useful from great posts -- today's is TweetBeep, new to me, now in my toolbox.
Cheers, John Carson.
Dani
· 1 year ago
I have the distinction of having recently signed a 3 book deal with a major sci fi house (tor) but also with that, the realization that Tor, like most houses do little if any marketing for their authors. Though I have yet to dive in (I'm no technophobe, just guarded and...according to my wife anti-social) I realize that I'll have to take the leap. This article has gone a long way towards getting me to the end of the diving board. Kudos.
Hamilton Wallace
· 1 year ago
Good advice. My experience: every person you follow, with the exception of people with thousands of followers, will visit your website once, to decide whether to follow you. And while this is NOT an efficient way to build site traffic, it's a great way to build very qualified site traffic.
Blake Cahill
· 1 year ago
Andy:
Useful post just finished an article myself around this. We continue to see more and more brand and social media saavy types engaging with their customers via Twitter to promote or correct post postings. Southwest, Dell and many others are jumping in full steam and getting good press.
Best,
Blake
Andy Beal
· 1 year ago
Thanks everyone for your feedback. I fully expect some of you to practice #1 on me, but don't forget to practice #2 on me as well! :-)
Jennifer
· 1 year ago
Cheers Andy. Twitter is great tool, I always find out about new tools and cool things first on twitter, and yes its a great marketing tool. I am addicted. Of course I following you to receive your daily pearls of social media wisdom.
websalad
· 1 year ago
Once again another smart and valuable post by Andy. I recommend checking out his book - pretty valuable for online business.
WendyJRoan
· 1 year ago
Wow. Excellent advice regarding the use of Twitter. Also, some great comments about Twitter as well. I love hearing positive comments about the service. I used to live in a pretty quiet shell before Twitter came along. Now I feel as though I am connecting with real people in my marketing and it's made the biggest difference for me. That's my personal opinion and experience of course. :) This was a great post! -- Wendy J. Roan
Tweet My Blog
· 1 year ago
Great article- Twitter is a very powerful tool for getting your brand "out there". But you definitely have to think about what your are tweeting, when and how - negative branding will spread as fast as positive.
Alecia Barnes
· 1 year ago
Well, I really didn't know what I had until I read your blog, so I really appreciate the article. I'm off send out some @andybeals! Joking.
Great post Andy. On the note of not flooding Twitter, I highly recommend turning off Twitter Tools if you import an old blog. I made this mistake, it was ugly there for a couple of minutes.
On another note, I presented How to build your brand using Twitter at PodCamp Nashville and PodCamp Toronto. The video is here: http://snurl.com/1ztlg
I think I've got some valuable tips in there if you're so inclined.
Cheers, Dave
Supernetuser
· 1 year ago
Yeah, guess I'm going to join Twitter now.
Carlos Hernandez
· 1 year ago
I utilized Twitter to tweet about a super nice and helpful Southwest Airlines flight attendant! @SouthwestAir is their Twitter handle.
I shared this with the attendant and she was so pleased to hear about the ability to provide instant feedback to her company.
Bryan Kress
· 1 year ago
A very nice post with a lot of good content. These are points that I have addressed since I started using Twitter. I learned how twitter worked after attending a conference called SOBCON. I will be sure to talk about these points with some of my colleagues. Feel free to follow me at http://twitter.com/pitchyourbiz
Career Information
· 1 year ago
I have yet to explore the value of Twitter in a professional industry. I might have to look into that. With that said, excellent article and fine points. Spot on!
Kathleen Gage
· 1 year ago
Outstanding article. I really like to one about not twittering every couple of minutes with nothing significant to say. I have found social networks and microblog sites to be exceptional in increasing market reach and credibility. I recommend to my clients that they have specific reasons for being in social networks. Otherwise, it can be a complete waste of time.
When there is a plan behind our participation, it is very beneficial.
Kathleen Gage The Street Smarts Marketer
Hugh Briss
· 1 year ago
Yeah, I bet Office Depot's business tanked after your one bad experience got tweeted to a few people. lol
Jason
· 1 year ago
Andy,
Great points, I especially agree with #3, and building your blog audience. It's working when followers are re-tweeting the post - or news you shared.
Thanks, @jjbuss
Jeroen de Miranda
· 1 year ago
great tips for using Twitter; especially when have just started using Twitter.
Also good to use are tools such as www.twurl.nl - this tool makes it possible to track how many people have clicked on the links in your tweet.
RaaVi
· 1 year ago
Great article, and you have right about companies that don't use yet this tool for their brand... But allways companies come last when they see that a community grow up, and can be a potential client for them... Have a Great Day :)
Dean Whitney
· 1 year ago
Don't get frustrated if folks don't reply to your @messages; some don't check their 'replies' often, I've found a reply weeks after I've received it.
The most value I've got from Twitter has been discovery of information and insights I wasn't even looking for (albeit often distracting). Serendipity cannot be undervalued here.
Fireant
· 1 year ago
Good advice
Mikey
· 1 year ago
Great post
Jim Kukral Small Business Cons
· 12 months ago
#1 is such an amazing point. I mean, in the past, before Twitter, was it really easy enough to connect with people like Guy Kawasaki and CEO's of companies like Zappos? Sure, you could track them down and hope to find their email and/or call and then hope to get a response.
However, there's something about Twitter, right now still, at least that is open and transparent and lets everyone work on a level playing field. I hope it stays that way.
Essai Selvan
· 9 months ago
I am Just now begun to use Twitter and I ended up with this post by a friend. Nice one. I may keep an eye on Twitter. ;)
Nice post buddy...
sidtech
· 6 months ago
All basic brand building principles Andy. You are doing good community service by reminding people to tweak their thinking to include twitter in their marketing plans! Great.... http://www.sidtech.biz
Tony
· 6 months ago
Interesting that you are talking about Office Depot not managing their reputation. I just had an awful experience with them so I decided to create myself a little twitter page and complain about it asking other business owners and students to do the same thing.
I have 16 followers in my first hour... might have me a 1,000+ by end of the week. More than their sorry selves.
All Comments
Working a twitter party can be fun!
Being a somewhat late adopter of Twitter, I am still learning some of the deeper, more obscure benefits of using Twitter and am surprised at how much I am finding of what seems on the surface to be a somewhat simple looking tool.
Xavier
One cool thing about Twitter is the chance to break through and talk with folks briefly. Note the briefly. It's not IRC or AIM. So, start somewhere, and move it to something more conversational when it goes interesting. Make sense?
Great post, Andy!
Cheers,
John Carson.
Useful post just finished an article myself around this. We continue to see more and more brand and social media saavy types engaging with their customers via Twitter to promote or correct post postings. Southwest, Dell and many others are jumping in full steam and getting good press.
Best,
Blake
to get latest updates about IT security
On another note, I presented How to build your brand using Twitter at PodCamp Nashville and PodCamp Toronto. The video is here: http://snurl.com/1ztlg
I think I've got some valuable tips in there if you're so inclined.
Cheers,
Dave
I shared this with the attendant and she was so pleased to hear about the ability to provide instant feedback to her company.
When there is a plan behind our participation, it is very beneficial.
Kathleen Gage
The Street Smarts Marketer
Great points, I especially agree with #3, and building your blog audience. It's working when followers are re-tweeting the post - or news you shared.
Thanks,
@jjbuss
Also good to use are tools such as www.twurl.nl - this tool makes it possible to track how many people have clicked on the links in your tweet.
The most value I've got from Twitter has been discovery of information and insights I wasn't even looking for (albeit often distracting). Serendipity cannot be undervalued here.
However, there's something about Twitter, right now still, at least that is open and transparent and lets everyone work on a level playing field. I hope it stays that way.
Nice post buddy...
I have 16 followers in my first hour... might have me a 1,000+ by end of the week. More than their sorry selves.
Check it out @bad_officedepot in fact check out bad office depots twitter account http://twitter.com/bad_officedepot
Isn't social media great?