Okay, so I’m not on Twitter yet but, against the odds, I’ve become intrigued. And I’m intrigued because I’ve decided to look beyond the silly, pointless “sharing-of-random-neural-firings” use of it that you often hear first about it (i.e., all the stuff that no one with anything even resembling a life would give a rat’s heiney about).
But those things sort of miss the point. And the smart marketers realize that. Think about when the telephone was first invented. Imagine if the first publicized uses of were, say, as a doorstop or a paperweight. I know, stupid, but that’s a bit like the way Twitter felt when it first debuted. But that’s changing, and we’re only starting to REALLY see the potential of this baby.
In the past few weeks, I’ve come across some very interesting stories involving Twitter. I shared one in an email last week (in publicizing the Social Media Success Summit 2009) about a fellow writer who, because of her familiarity with Twitter, was likely to be chosen by a Fortune 100 giant rolling out a new product, to cover the event, including Twittering about it daily for three weeks.
What started out as a $5K “maybe” just gelled last week into a $15+K green-lighted project. I have to imagine a company this big isn’t dropping cash like that just to chase a fad. They know that the people they want to reach are on Twitter. And here’s an article about others…
Then, heard from another friend asking advice. Seems a prominent organization at whose high-tech conference he spoke welshed on a deal he had with them, in writing. When he confronted them, both in person and in subsequent emails, their responses – each one nastier and more entrenched than the last – essentially boiled down to “TS. Take a hike.”
Until the day he Twittered offhandedly to his colleagues that he was contemplating “naming names” publicly… Suddenly, they contacted him with a totally different tone. They’re now in negotiations. Love it.
Finally, read about a woman having problems with her DSL. She goes to Twitter (after reading that her ISP had 8 FT employees assigned solely to monitoring Twitter), posts a message, and in one minute flat, she gets a Tweet back from the ISP. They assign a tech to her, who tells her that complaints they get through Twitter go right to the top and that he’ll stay on it till it’s solved. And he does.
As I see it, with Twitter, the operative question is this:
What’s the power and potential of a tool that almost organically connects many thousands of people to a point where, ultimately, little can happen in one place without the whole eventually knowing about it?
Ponder that. Viewed through that lens, it’s actually a pretty fascinating phenomenon. In the short term, it’s shaping up as a wonderful tool to ensure transparency, to keep entities honest and ethical where they once could behave badly, and with impunity. And given the short-and-sweet 140-character nature of the medium, it’s also becoming a way for companies and individuals, if they can master the effective writing side of it (are your ears perking up?), to relatively quickly influence opinions, trends, buying habits and who knows what else?
What are your thoughts on this?
Stretching your imagination, what do you think Twitter’s impact could ultimately be?
Any good Twitter stories?
How can we, as commercial freelancers, capitalize on this intriguing tool?
By the way, check out the Social Media Success Summit 2009. Enrollment has topped 730 so far! And until May 25th, you’ll save $100 off the $497 price – pretty darn reasonable for 11 sessions of quality content, nearly $400 worth of bonuses, access to recording/transcripts of ALL sessions, and interactive forum before, during and after the event. Details here.
All this talk about Twitter is very nice, but I haven’t heard anything at all about building a “following.” I imagine that’s very easy to do if you already have an established blog with a large readership, but what if you’re obscure and just starting out?
I hear all this talk about Twitter and I think… “That’s nice. But what’s that got to do with me?”
Yeah, me, too. I waste too much time now…
Good point. And yes, it’ll be easier to build a following with a platform than without one. But, just being savvy about how the tools work (as evidenced by my friend’s experience), can pay big dividends. And she’s no person of huge influence, just a writer, but in tossing in a few catchy, well-crafted responses to Tweets she’s received, she’s catching the attention of people who ARE more influential. Remember it’s not just who’s following you, but who you’re following – as the communication goes both ways. I know, it’s a bit crazy-making to wrap your brain around all this, but look on the bright side – it’s still a new medium and still evolving. Thanks for weighing in!
PB
“tossing in a few catchy, well-crafted responses to Tweets she’s received…”
Sounds like well-timed, strategic butting-in on a conversation at the pub.
Hmm…
Yes, this is a bizarre medium, but given that what DOESN’T work on Twitter is outright promotion, it’s about getting people’s attention by building a Twitter personality of sorts. And I’ve made all these objections to her and she’s said (and believe me, this is a woman who doesn’t suffer fools OR foolish activities gladly) that she’s having a lot of fun AND it’s not taking up much of her time at all.
PB
“not much of her time at all….”
I’m curious how people manage it. SPECIFICALLY. Are they checking their tweets all the time, once a day, or what? Are they doing so from their PC’s or a mobile device?
I’ve signed up with twitter but haven’t engaged it at all… one more thing to get to… and the thought of another constant stream of more information… well, I guess that’s why I haven’t hopped off the fence yet. 🙂
Here’s an article on building a following with Twitter:
https://copyblogger.com/grow-business-twitter/
Since the last time I spoke about my shock about LIKING Twitter, I have more to share.
First, I’m surprised at how many new follwers I get every day, without trying. I’m at a point where I can’t follow everyone back.
Second, it’s helping enormously as far as opening new marketing opportunities via guest blogs, etc. for the YA book that just released and for the novel that will release later this summer.
Third, I landed a teaching gig through someone who’d somehow gotten my email wrong and the offer kept bouncing back, but the person tracked me down on Twitter.
Fourth, I’ve found some great sources and resources via Twitter that have helped me with things like technical difficulties, customer service issues, and finding people for quotes for articles.
Fifth, I’ve wound up being quoted in other people’s articles because we’ve found each other via Twitter.
I’ve found a lot of resources, met some cool people, and had fun.
Again, I’m finding it more useful as far as fiction, playwrighting, and articles than copywriting, but that’s fine with me.
We’ll see how it reflects in the next set of royalty statements that come out later this year in terms of financials.
I really did NOT want to join Twitter, but now I love it. I keep the TweetDeck open quite a bit and hop on and off every few hours, especially if I’ve posted a question.
I’m careful that it doesn’t eat up my day, but, much to my shock, I found it more positive than negative, and I can control it from being a time suck.
You do have to put time and effort into it, but, for me, it’s worth it. If and when it becomes counterproductive, I’ll adjust, but right now, it was the right choice.
To answer the specific time management question asked earlier:
Sometimes, I check via web at the top of the day because I can scroll back farther. Most of the time, I have TweetDeck up. It beeps at me when there are new posts, and whether or not it’s a reply. If I’ve got a time-sensitive question up, that’s very helpful.
When I need quiet time to concentrate without interruption, I log out of TweetDeck.
On those intense days, I check once early in the day, once around lunch, and once at the end of the day. I’d say those are 15 minute chunks at a time. I can scroll through whatever i want to read, send replies, etc. If I have a lot of repllies, it takes maybe 30 minutes.
I don’t Tweet from my phone yet. Most of the day, I keep my phone off anyway. I hate the telephone, loathe it, and have it turned off when I’m working. It’s in the freelance contracts — want a quick answer, email me. I check phone messages twice a day and respond to messages then.
I might upgrade my phone system so I can Tweet from Prague in the fall during my adventures there, but I may just want to be disconnected for the experience, living in the moment, and Tweet when I return.
I’m listed in various directories, and people find me through directories or my blog or my articles or my interviews or because they’re following people with whom I Tweet and think I sound interesting.
Like anything, if you let it be a time suck, it is. Or, you factor it in as part of your professional work day — as I do — and make it work for you as a tool, rather than dictating your life as a distraction.
Frankly, I consider Tweeting part of my job now, the same way I consider blogging part of my job.
Hi Peter.
I think one has to to dive into Twitter and try it–rather than listening to others and passing judgment one way or the other–to really understand Twitter’s value.
For a long while I looked at Twitter from the outside unable to wrap my mind around it. From every angle it looked like the ultimate time waster.
That was then. Now I adore Twitter and spend at least a few minutes every day–longer when work allows–checking in with the Twitter community.
For me it IS a community. My work as a freelancer is solitary and it’s terrific to be able to gather around a virtual water cooler with some of the most interesting people in the world.
Twitter could also be likened a huge, noisy crossroads bazaar where merchants, artists, writers, PR pros, con men (not one and the same!), at-home moms and dads, organic farmers, chefs, foodies, equestrians, scientists, celebrities and everyone in between mingles and meets, passively gawks or aggressively vies for attention.
It’s a “hive mind” that, I feel, delivers fantastically useful information and rewarding professional and personal connections.
As with all 20th century distractions, the key to using Twitter is discipline. I don’t enter the Tweetstream first thing in the morning–I take periodic Twitter breaks in between writing copy all day–and sometimes into the evening. And I use a tool called Tweetdeck to help me prioritize, filter and focus.
As you note, Peter, even if you personally dislike the idea of constant connectivity, when you’re a copywriter, it behooves you to grok this media. It truly “adds value” to your work, especially if you freelance for marketing and ad agencies–“old media” giants eager to stay current.
I’ve been on Twitter since February (www.twitter.com/prostylus), and I’m still trying to balance the personal and professional uses of it.
Speaking from experience, Twitter can be a huge time sink if you don’t have a program for it. And, by program, I mean protocols establishing times and time limits for signing on, limits on how many links you’ll actually click on and read, and limits on who you follow and why. Then, there’s the issue of what to Tweet, and why.
I save Linkedin for strictly professional conversations. But Twitter is more like a gigantic water cooler conversation, where I can share ideas, perspectives, laughs and the occasional friendly “I can help you with that” pitch.
Unlike Linkedin, I don’t worry as much about my professional packaging on Twitter. I take more risks. This may drive some people away, but it can also attract professionals of similar mind, opinion and perspective. (Some interesting perspective on this “gravitational marketing” approach from an odd little guy named Jimmy Vee, http://www.twitter.com/5FtHighMktgGuy).
I’ve concluded that Twitters – even the most starched executives – want you to interest them first, and pitch them second – or at least pitch them obliquely.
Michael’s Twitter account provides a good example of how to do this around a specific medium, like white papers or social media.
But you can also attract a following in a particular market. If you often write for clients in the oil and gas industry, for example, Tweet about interesting articles you’ve found on the topic. Rather than just flag them, however, I add a little personal/professional perspective. Adding a little attitude, I’ve found, is what sparks conversations, and conversations can spark relationships.
Lastly, I may be nit-picking here: But I don’t think the value of a marketing medium like Twitter can be measured by how much cash a business throws at it. The $15K green-lighted project makes for a great anecdote. But businesses drop that kind of cash on dead-end marketing projects all the time, particularly in the new and very understudied field of social media. (Speaking generally here. I’m not judging the value provided by whoever landed that account)
Some predatory types (present company excluded, of course) can and do see an opportunity to capitalize on the hype surrounding social media. But the real opportunity for copywriters here may be to help businesses develop reasonable, realistic valuations for copy written expressly for social media vehicles like Twitter and other interactive sites.
It would be interesting to hear thoughts from other commercial copywriters about how they’re pricing for that.
As someone who can write a two-page e-mail and think, “Wow, I sure managed to keep that one short!”, the thought of keeping my Tweets “Twitter-sized” is probably my definition of Hell on Earth.
I wouldn’t deny for a second that people are having success with Twitter. (Small world… I happen to know Terri who was referenced in Michael blog article.) But for me, every time I’ve looked at someone’s Twitter site, I’m stunned by the amount of useless information people share with each other.
To be fair, I haven’t really looked at people in my industry. And I imagine, just like with blogs, among the “noise” is a lot of great information from people that I just haven’t found yet. Obviously Devon and Michael are using it the way a businessperson would/should.
For people like me who fear they have nothing useful to say on their own that a Twitter audience would want to read, a suggestion is to simply be a follower for a while. Instead of starting conversations, you could “try it out” by jumping in with comments from conversations others have started. That’s really not much different than what we do here other than having to keep it far shorter. Or simply “shadow” someone you respect and see what sorts of things they’re talking about. That might be a good start.
I think one key with information overload (which can happen with Twitter) is how well you’re applying the information you’re getting. Thus, I would think it’s important to be very particular about the people you follow.
I don’t know… I’ve gone from “No Twitter, No Way!” to “Well, maybe.”
Perhaps those of us here who are on the fence should try it for a month and then re-evaluate things. At least then we’d be making judgments based on our own first-hand experience.
Here’s a question for the Twitter Pros: Should you create your Twitter name based on your own name, your business name, or what you do?
Thanks to all for sharing…. great info and ideas. I had to laugh at Mike’s “hell on earth” perception — that’s me, too! 😉
For now, I am a crazed commenter on the NYT and someone from the Times even emailed me and thanked me for my lively input. Yeah–free.
Hi, nice posts there 🙂 thank’s for the interesting information
Thanks to all who weighed in on here – comments across the spectrum. What’s interesting to me is that those who haven’t tried it yet (that’d be me as well…) are all resistant to some degree – from a little to a lot. Many of those who’ve tried it seem almost to be surprised by how much they’ve enjoyed it – contrary to what they might have expected. Heard the same things from friends who’re on it – and some non-nonsense friends who you’d think would find it a waste of time, but don’t.
I think a lot of it comes down to how you view it. If you see if as “One More Marketing Thing I Have to Do,” you’re likely to want to hold off as long as possible. However, if you see it as an interesting way to connect with others – AND embrace the succinct “nuggetized” 140-character vibe of the whole thing – don’t put pressure on yourself to turn it into business as quickly as possible, and simply see where it might go organically, it can be a lot more enjoyable. That’s how I plan on approaching it.
PB
Hi Peter, I’m late chiming in here. I’ve come to like twitter. Leo La Porte – https://leoville.com/ – points out Twitter is spam free which isn’t true of much of social media. Many of my readers seem to like following me there. I post a link to every blog post and when I run into something interesting about writing or anything else I post a link to that.
I love the 140 character limit… forces people, including me, to get to the point. Easier to find out if I am interested or not. Doesn’t work for everything, but for lots of stuff.
A
Thanks Anne!
I keep getting good reviews of Twitter so I’m guessing I’ll have to give it a shot at some point. Thanks for weighing in!
PB
>> But the real opportunity for copywriters here may be to help businesses develop reasonable, realistic valuations for copy written expressly for social media vehicles like Twitter and other interactive sites.<<
I am writing Twitter and Facebook copy for one of my clients, a mental health agency. We’re still developing our plan, but in essence we’ll be building a “conversation” with various stakeholders — clients, donors, media, legislators, other mental health professionals. We’re just getting started, but we’re having a lot of fun with it.
@catherinedold on twitter
Susan, I use TweetLater to keep my Twitter time confined. This lets you post good content or questions when you think of it or find it, and set up a specific day/time to have it launch. I usually spend about 2 hours a week total on Twitter and TweetLater, most of it looking for content that others haven’t already tweeted a thousand times. And, I’m now using it to promote a blog I just started.
While I’ve been terribly skeptical of Twitter’s value, I have to admit success in getting a new client from it. I did one tiny job ($150) for them *but* this is my first client outside of my geographic area. It’s one of my 2009 goals to spread my clients out to avoid being tied to any one local economy too much. Now they’re talking about hiring me for several other projects, all much bigger than the first. Guess I’ll have to dial down my skepticism!
Jessica
Twitter @jjpool and @houstonkids
I can’t believe it… I just joined Twitter.
Since my actual name was taken (by a guy who lives about 30 minutes away from me… small world), I went with my occupation: dmdesigner (direct market designer)
I still don’t know how I’m going to work with this. I run into interesting resources for designers, so I guess I’ll start there.
Twitter is already being dishonest with me… no matter what I throw up as my picture (and I’ve toyed with many), Twitter always tells me, “That’s a nice picture.” Soon it will be telling me how good I look and asking if I’ve lost some weight. I can see the next order of business is coming up with a background that doesn’t looks so… blah.
As I think about it, this blog and any other is sort of like Twitter, but without the character limit. I think if I approach Twitter in a similar way – contributing what is hopefully a useful opinion on topics I’m interested in – I may be able to ease myself into it.
I appreciate the mention of tools that people are using. I’ll have to look into all of them. That TweetLater is interesting.
Thanks to all who weighed in! And Mike, you jumped in! Have to keep us posted… Also, Marketing Experiments is having a free webinar on 6/10 entitled: “Twitter Experiments: Getting beyond the “now what?” Appears to be more geared toward larger entities, but worth checking out (and the price is right!). Register here.
PB
I am not yet on Twitter, but I soon will be. I have the same misgivings that Peter had about it, but I’m starting to change my opinion on that. I really can be an interesting tool to find out what people are thinking and what motivates them. But with Twitter and many other popular forms of social media, by main concern is time management. I want to keep up with all of this, but I have my business to run as well. I’m also attending the Social Media Success summit, and I believe there is a session next week on social media time mangement. I’m looking forward to that one.
Thanks for the link, Peter… it went straight to a “tweet” on my account. 🙂
I also updated my blog to outline my personal guidelines for using Twitter. For anyone thinking of joining Twitter, I recommend doing something similar.
It was an interesting process to really stop and think about why I intend to use Twitter and how I think I should use it. I don’t want to mindlessly post a stream of thoughts for the world to see without having a least a minimal outline as to what my ultimate goals are.
It’s sort of funny. I came here, having dug out my copies of WFW again, to see if you’d made it onto Twitter yet. I’m about to relaunch my corporate writing career so I figured a refresher wouldn’t hurt. 😉
To answer your first commenter’s question, it’s very easy to build a following, with or without a platform. You just search for topics that are relevant to you, see who’s talking about said topics, and follow them. There is no fancy etiquette to negotiate, as you notice as soon as you are followed by a metric ton of “internet marketers” and misc. scammers. You don’t have to follow them back.
I maintain separate Twitter accounts for different purposes (one for my blogging/book/travel life, one for my historical site, and a personal one); I view them on Splitweet (www.splitweet.com) which does what I need. I can read all or some of my streams there. Others use desktop clients like Seesmic, but I don’t. They require Flash, and I don’t run Flash. I check in at least twice a day to make sure I reply to my direct messages (the ones that aren’t spam) and direct replies (public replies) and use http://www.topify.com to manage subscriptions, new adds, etc by email.
I’ve noticed an increase in numbers of visitors to my blogs and sites; I have also been able to plug into what people are talking about and feel more connected–that water cooler effect is quite valuable. Additionally, feedback is easier to come by. I have been auto-tweeting new posts, but I am learning that you get better results if you actually go out there and promote them personally.
I think Twitter opens doors where they might be closed before; for example, as I run a history site, I like to follow museums, and when they follow back you start a dialog, and find ways to help each other out, and that’s really an exciting thing.
I’m a big Twitter fan! It took me about 3 weeks of playing around with it and watching how other people do it before I found my groove. It is the highest traffic generator to my blog, more than the message boards for my niche and more than my so called “friends” over on Facebook. LOL
When I needed a logo for my site, I tweeted that I was looking for someone to design it. With an hour I had three offers. I ended up working with a designer from Sweden! (That’s a long haul from NYC!)
I’ve struck up relationships and conversations with interesting people from all over the globe and networked with people in the film music industry that I never would have met otherwise. Where it will all lead remains to be seen. But I’m enjoying the ride as long as it lasts. 🙂
Just wanted to add my two cents, even though it’s a little late. I joined Twitter a couple weeks ago and have been using it to follow people I want to work with, people I already know, and people I’ve prospected.
The number one benefit I’ve found with Twitter is that it is a cheap and easy way to remind people that you exist, and what you do. It’s great if you have some grand marketing plan for Twitter, but you don’t need one. My Twitter username is cm_writereditor, which tells anyone seeing a Tweet or a ReTweet who I am and what I do, very quickly, plus a headshot of me. And if they follow me to my Twitter homepage, they’ll see my full name and a link to my homepage. And I don’t have to write some huge, insightful blog post everyday to remind all my followers I’m there — just 140 characters. It’s also a good way to practice concise writing.