Archive for Twitter
Twitter hashtags are kind of a mystery if you’re new to Twitter or have never used them.
Even if you’re a power user on Twitter, it’s still good to brush up on hashtags and how to best utilize them. They are actually one of the most simple and interesting features on Twitter.
If you’re not familiar, a Twitter hashtag is a phrase or name contained in a Tweet message with the # symbol listed (i.e., #jobs). Basically, it’s a way of identifying a subject so that others with the same interest will read and find your Tweet. All hashtags with the same phrase are categorized so that if you write a Tweet with #jobs in it, your Tweet will automatically be listed with all the others mentioning the same hashtag. As long as your profile is public, your Tweet will be in a searchable list. This is a great way for finding people with similar interests and phrases surrounding a key word.
It’s kind of like putting key words into Google, only you’re doing it through the platform of Twitter hashtags. Because you don’t want to see every Tweet with the words “job,” adding the #jobs hashtag is simply an easier way to search.
There is no formal or official way to use hashtags, but the practice seems to have evolved over time. On Twitter you’ll notice that are trending topics based on hashtags. The trending topics change daily, depending on things going on in the world, and they are especially popular during natural disasters. According to Mashable, hashtags became popular in 2007 during the San Diego wildfires with the #sandiegofires making the rounds on Twitter.
These days, Twitter hashtags have expanded to cover businesses, networking and sporting events, conferences, and pretty much anything in the popular media.
While the trending topics come and go, some hashtags have stood the test of time. For example, #followfriday is a recommendation of Twitter users that are worth following. This phrase, which started as one weekly hashtag on a Friday, turned into an international and daily phenomenon. Do a search for “followfriday” and you’ll see what I mean.
To find more ways about using hashtags, read my article, A Guide to Twitter Hashtags.
Twitter is gearing up to launch a new feature where tweets will have a location associated with them. This opt-in only geolocation tool will allow users to activate their precise longitude and latitude. You will then be able to see what topics are being discussed locally and easily find professionals in your area. Now, instead of getting a worldwide search, when you are searching for, say an “accountant,” you will be able to see tweets from the accountants in your area, as well as their location of business. If this sounds like an interactive yellow pages, it could have that potential as well as an interesting way to keep up with the buzz of what is going on locally in real time.
Twitter co-founder Biz Stone explains, “If people do opt-in to sharing location on a tweet-by-tweet basis, compelling context will be added to each burst of information. For example, with accurate, tweet-level location data you could switch from reading the tweets of accounts you follow to reading tweets from anyone in your neighborhood or city—whether you follow them or not. It’s easy to imagine how this might be interesting at an event like a concert or even something more dramatic like an earthquake. There will likely be many use cases we haven’t even thought of yet which is part of what makes this so exciting.”
Developers are currently testing the new features, which have many implications. While the tool could be a great way to meet people with similar interests or help businesses advertise more effectively, there are obvious privacy concerns. Having someone know exactly where you are and what you are doing is a red flag for opt-ing out of the feature. It all depends on how you use Twitter. For businesses, having a location tool seems like the ideal way to get customers to come to you. But for the average person who tweets from home or elsewhere, it could completely change the way we view personal privacy. Only time will tell.
By now, many of us understand the power Twitter has on business development and marketing. While Twitter is supposed to be a time-saving networking tool, many of us end up spending more time than we should searching keywords and links relevant to our business and industry. What users should be aware of in order to save valuable time and energy is the Twitter Search feature.
What is Twitter Search and how can it help you? Twitter Search (http://www.twitter.search.com/) allows you to view and review the information and people you want to connect with. You can view only the Tweets you want to view in real time. there is no time consuming search, the latest Tweets relevant to your search appear when you type in your desired keyword. In one place, you can simply analyze what your target audience is talking about, the latest trends in your industry and opinions about your service and product.
Using Twitter as part of your overall marketing strategy is an excellent way to connect with people and companies who have seemed unreachable in the past. Now the Twitter Search feature allows you to easily gain access to these connections without having to scroll through the masses. The best part of the feature is its ability to save your searches. Instead of starting your keyword search from scratch each time you log on, Twitter saves your keywords and the information you are interested in. In a sense, it automatically favorites the information, companies and people you are interested in.
I have provided the link above, but Twitter Search is also available on your Twitter profile page. For a while there, this feature was only available to a select group of users. However, after much trial and error, Twitter has made it available to all. All users now can see a Twitter search box to the right of their homepage under your account information. Once you type in a search, Twitter saves this information underneath the search box, creating a helpful list of topics and information.
Have you used the Twitter Search feature on your profile homepage? I find this tool very useful and would be interested in learning your thoughts and opinions as well.
Source: Mashable
This is a bit of a shocker. Facebook, who has seemingly been in a race to emulate many of Twitter’s features, just announced that it’s launching the ability for Facebook Page admins to simultaneously update both their Page and Twitter.
Facebook explains how this will work in a blog post:
“If you manage a Facebook Page, you now will be able to decide whether to share updates with their Twitter followers, and you also will be able to control what type of updates to share: status updates, links, photos, notes, events or all of them.
If you have multiple Pages, you will have the option to link each of those Pages to different Twitter accounts. This new feature will only link Facebook Pages to Twitter, not your individual profile. It will soon be available at http://www.facebook.com/twitter”
While that makes a lot of sense from a convenience standpoint – many big time Twitter users also have popular Facebook Pages and vice versa – it’s surprising to see Facebook so openly acknowledge Twitter’s reach. That said, by giving users the ability to update both services via Facebook, they’re clearly hoping that the Facebook Page will become the first stop for admins.
That would mean lots of “via Facebook” messages showing up in tweets, and in fact, it’s not hard to imagine Facebook quickly becoming one of Twitter’s most popular clients. However, I wouldn’t expect this functionality to be extended to user profiles anytime soon, which would clearly be a bigger win for Twitter than Facebook.
We did suspect that Facebook might be working something along these lines last month when messages “via penguin FB” showed up on Twitter by way of a Facebook engineer. But now, we know the details, and it definitely creates a lot more intrigue in the ongoing Facebook vs Twitter battle.
Twitter has evolved from an instant messaging type tool into one of the most popular forms of social media marketing today. Businesses, big and small, are looking to Twitter as an avenue for sharing products, gaining customer feedback and marketing themselves to a vast global audience.
The possibilities for success are endless with Twitter. Reaching out to the very people who were once inaccessible can now be done with the click of a mouse and a simple ‘tweet’. Networking is getting to be more simple and less time consuming than ever before. Working almost as a pseudo instant press release tool, Twitter allows users to post comments, information, and promotions as many times they want, in 140 characters or less. What better way to establish yourself online than with a tool that takes little or no time, yet reaches out to hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people on a daily basis?
While Twitter provides an excellent platform for marketing your business, product or service, there are best practice methods to keep in mind. Propel your business to success and establish meaningful connections by exercising the following:
Provide a Relevant Bio
Your bio should reflect who you are professionally. Provide information relating to who you are as a person, but also include information about what your business does and how it can help your followers. Be sure your bio is well written, with no spelling or grammar mistakes. You want your prospects to respect you and be enticed to learn more.
Provide Relevant Contact Information
Just as you would with your website, it is important to provide a call to action on your Twitter profile. Present your ‘followers’ with a business email or phone number.
Respond to your @ Messages
Check your @ messages on a regular basis and respond. It is important to treat your ‘followers’ the same way you would want them to treat you. Provide prompt and valuable responses and you will find they will reciprocate when you wish to be heard.
Be Interesting
Provide your followers with information they will appreciate. Provide information that is interesting to read and that will entice readers to want to read more and continue following you.
Do Not Spam
Yes Twitter is an excellent marketing tool, however this does not mean people appreciate continual sales pitches. Do not chase people down with repeated posts and unappreciated sales talk. Allow relationships to form naturally. Your product or service will speak for itself.
In order to achieve marketing success through Twitter, it is important to follow general rules of etiquette. Following Twitter best practice methods will allow you to use your time effectively and establish meaningful relationships. Please read my article, “Twitter Etiquette – 8 Best Practices to Improve Business Relations” for further information.
