Using Twitter for Business

Part I: Business Outcomes in 140 Characters or Less

A three-part series

Chances are good that by now most people have heard about Twitter. Whether from professional athletes and celebrities in magazines or on your local evening newscast, it is difficult to escape the phenomenon.

Perhaps what has made Twitter so popular is its simplicity; Twitter requires far less effort than other social networking options, such as MySpace or Facebook. Whatever the reason, Twitter is currently being used by more than 1 million people every day to connect, socialize and stay informed.

For those who aren't familiar, Twitter is an online social network that allows users to connect with friends, family and people with similar interests around the world. New users simply select a username or "handle" and provide a few pieces of information about themselves. From here, users simply provide short status updates in 140 characters or less (that's usually about 20-30 words).

What is the purpose of these updates (or "tweets")? It can be anything, really. From updates about a cool book or movie to making a note about a traffic accident or linking to a cool piece of news or information, people use their 140 characters to keep their followers informed or just to speak their minds.

The next step is the actual connecting. With Twitter, users can choose to "follow" other users if they know each other or if they are simply interested in what that user has to say. When a user logs into his or her Twitter account, the updates for all of the users that they follow are displayed, in real time. Conversely, anyone who follows you will see all of your "tweets" streamed in real time along with the other members of their network.

And that's Twitter in a nutshell. It all seems simple (which it is) and you might be wondering how 140 characters could possibly be useful for business. The answer to that question is almost as simple as Twitter itself.

Reprinted : Web Marketing