How I Use Twitter

Carrie Anderson — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 05:02:01 +0000

Like many, I have started Twittering. Like a good little newbie Twitterer, I sought out some instruction – Twittering 101. Craig Cannings, my Social Media Marketing guru said, “bring value to your Tweets”. Value, value… what could I possibly say that is of value? Apparently, what you order for lunch is… uh… frowned upon

At the same time, I attended Social Media with Curves this past week – at the first of two preview calls, the question was posed: Are women changing the face of social media? Well, if my experience thus far is any indication – it is. To me, social media is the softer side of what I always felt direct marketing was – the hard sell. To me, social media is the feminine side of marketing – it’s more touchy-feely. Maybe I have direct marketing wrong – let me know what you think!

Darren Rouse said, “When you start using Twitter for the first time it can feel a bit overwhelming, almost like entering a really crowded train station during rush hour on a Friday afternoon”. My feeling: Forget entering the train station, the thought of Twittering gave me stage fright and it was more like entertaining a really crowded train station during rush hour! Eek!

“…the thought of Twittering gave me stage fright and it was more like entertaining a really crowded train station during rush hour!”

The feelings I had about it, I put them aside… held on to Jeremiah Owyang’s blog post, “How I Use Twitter” and just jumped! Slowly but surely, I am finding my voice – my tweets are evolving and I use Twitter for reasons, meaningful to me:

1. To Connect – This was the reason why I started to tweet… really, as intelligent as my dogs are, they can only carry a converstation so far before I need some human interaction during the day! Twittering is for the moment… I like to live in the moment, it works. Twitter nutures feelings of community and being a part of something bigger than we are.

2. To Help – I like to give. I like to help people. If I think I can fix a problem or point someone to a solution, I will try.

3. To Learn – I learn about a lot of events taking place. Hopefully, some day I will be the one announcing them, but not yet! I also learn a lot about gadgets and applications – sometimes I even put my two cents in on an app I find worthy of sharing.

4. To Contribute – Lots of people use Twitter as an unscientific survey tool. People like to be asked what they think – I do too! It really is a great tool for engagement.

5. To Drive Traffic - Jeremiah said Google Analytics indicated Twitter was one of the largest referrers of folks to his blog. I’ve noticed it registering on mine too and hey, as a small biz owner I DO require clients

In the short time I’ve been Twittering, I’ve also met some pretty amazing and intelligent people! They are inspiring, positive, and they nuture my soul. So, in the spirit of Jeremiah’s blog I will ask, how do you use Twitter and how does it make you feel? Comment below or tweet me: @CarrieAnderson

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How I Use Twitter