Do You Twitter?

Social Media Rocks.

Whether you love or hate the likes of MySpace, FaceBook, Bebo, Digg, Del.icio.us, Stumbleupon, Flickr, etc, they're here to stay. So if you can't 'beat 'em' do you 'join 'em'?

One of the most debated of hot apps is Twitter.

So What Is Twitter?

Twitter is a MicroBlogging platform, described by some as "stupid" or "time-sucking" and certainly the latter can be true - in fact Twitter can be quite addictive!

But the simple beauty of Twitter is your ability to communicate, in Real Time on a global scale with people from all walks of life, young and old, rich and poor. How or where else can you do that?

What people 'tweet' about varies enourmously, from mundane daily taks and occurances to a new blog post or website announcement, offers of private beta invites, quick polls, joint venure opportunities, births and birthday wishes, good news and bad news...

Many bloggers make announcements FIRST on Twitter, even before mailing thier subscriber lists, often giving Twitters a golden advanage when early adoption is paramount.

Let's have a look at few examples of the diversity of Twitter...

In 2007 @nateritter tirelessly tweated updates about the Sandiego Fires. For several days Nate gave out phone numbers of emergency shelters and aid, warned of impending evacuations, kept the world informed on the progress of fires, linked to pictures and help pages and even let people know when it was safe to go home.

@andybeal over at Marketing Pilgrim put together an excellent list of interesting and informative marketers worth following.

@SethGodin follows no-one, but more than 4,000 Twitters follow his wise words.


@drmani raises awareness of his work with The Congenital Heart Defects Foundation.

@CaseStevens keeps the community informed of useful links and additions to his valuable blog 'Affordable Internet Marketing'.


@WarrenWhitlock and @CoachDeb are currently creating 'The Twitter Handbook' - collaborating with Twitter users, via Twitter, for 'Twinterviews' and other ideas for the book.


@JeremyPalmer has a dedicated Twitter account set up for his @blackinkproject students.


Other brands feed Twitter automatically from thier blog's rss feeds, like @bbcnews


So how do YOU use Twitter? Not started twittering? Why not give it a whirl and let me know what you think and leave your comments below?

@Riquochet

...And don't forget to get your copy of The Smart Marketer's ToolBar - May's Brand New Software will be uploaded in a couple of weeks.