Folk Media 0032 - How Can I Use Twitter For Business?

Wikipedia describes Twitter as “a free social networking and micro-blogging service that allows its users to send and read other users’ updates (otherwise known as tweets), which are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length.”

That’s a pretty good way to explain it. I think I
would also add that it is more like a text based telephone than a
micro-blog. Of course it is a telephone conversation that anyone can
listen to. But I think this is the power of Twitter. And Twitter for
business can be very powerful.

Twitter gives you an opportunity to be transparent as a business
allowing you to build a case for yourself or your company through
dialogue.

I thought Twitter was really stupid until I gave it a try. And then I still thought it was stupid.

My problem was misunderstanding how it can be used
as a tool for business and communications. But I’ve really changed my
mind on this. And now Twitter has become indispensable to me and our
business.

The tipping point personally came when I was
recently speaking at a conference in Las Vegas. If you’ve ever been to
the Las Vegas Convention Center, you’ll appreciate the fact that even a
smart guy like me was able to get lost. The building is a small city
and navigation can at times be very difficult. In order to find my way
around I pulled up Twitter on my cell phone and tweeted out a quick
message asking for directions. Within moments I had an answer from a
stranger who was following me and was able to easily find my way to the
conference hall.

The tipping point for my business came when
clients began contacting me from seeing Tweets. I decided right then
and there to begin taking this Twitter thing seriously and have
developed some strategies for how we are using Twitter in our own
company.

Things your company can do with Twitter

Twitter for business?

Yes.

While Twitter can  be used for actual business
communications, it is important to remember that this tool isn’t for
everyone. It should be used wisely like any tool online. I would say
that about 80% of businesses can use Twitter to:

• Listen to what people are talking about in your market or industry
• Break news related to your industry or customers
• Link to insightful articles that will help your clients
• Offer quick tips to help people with particular problems
• Conduct surveys to get instant feedback
• Spread knowledge by re-tweeting other’s posts
• Ask for customer service feedback and engage those folks

Twitter is one of the most interesting and fastest
growing online applications for personal and business communications.
Even if you decide Twitter isn’t for you,  at least give it a try and
do some experimentation. There are a lot of opportunities to harness
Twitter for your business.

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Folk Media is a new media studio that specializes in helping
businesses produce, distribute, and promote online media like blogs,
audio podcasts, video and Facebook fan pages that drive sales and
promote your business on the Internet. Some of the organizations our
team has worked with include Open Eye Media, ARMA International, Blue
Sky Factory, The Baltimore Business Journal, The Maryland Zoo in
Baltimore, The National Aquarium, and the Maryland Science Center.