I dont really "get" twitter...

[GeorgR.]

Since everyone and their mama is talking about twitter, i signed up too. My Twitter.
So..now people are "following" me and i am stalk...ehrm i mean following others, but how do you communicate with someone? Can you send messages to other people? Confusing....

G.

[Dan C. Rinnert]

You can send a message (public) to anyone by starting your tweet with "@theiruserid" followed by a space and your message.

If you want to send a direct message (DM), you both need to be following each other. You send someone a DM by pulling them up under your Direct Messages tab. Alternatively, in the regular "tweet box" you can address a DM to someone by starting your tweet with "d theiruserid" followed by a space then your message.

DMs can be longer than 140 characters. Public tweets are limited to 140 characters.

[GeorgR.]

thanks! I just saw there are icons to reply if i click one someone

[raynman]

It is a great place to put links out there. You can shorten them so no one knows for sure what they are clicking. Not a place to spam but it is a place to let a broad range of people know what is going on.

If you have something new that you want to do, it is a great way to get noticed.

People check it more than email and you are likely to get more curious followers who you don't have an email address for.

It also keeps people from feeling like you dropped off the planet.

It's just a good networking tool and a great way to get some more attention to yourself.

[raynman]

by the way....check out twhirl | the social software client .

[Dan C. Rinnert]

Originally Posted by theyoungmarketer

The second is tweetlater, with this when people follow you, you can automatically follow them back while also having a link to your website.

So something catchy like "Hey there look forward to tweeting with you" http://www.yourdomain.com

You can also go to Tweetlater and opt-out from receiving those annoying auto-DMs too.

[waltham]

Its a facebook like app on speed!!!!! Another waste of space and time

[GeorgR.]

it gets more and more difficult to actually coordinate all the different social sites and services.
I see a trend (let's call it web3.0) with new web platforms which incorporate and manage those hundreds of social sites in once. 100+ ways to socialize, myspace, twitter, FB, messengers, blogs... it's just getting ridiculous to have a overview here.

[dsmpublishing]

if u dont get twitter read the free ebook in my sig and you'll soon understand it and you can see which are the best tools to use!

[whawk57]

twitterbar is excellent, check that out too, its a plugin to your browser.
post to twitter from your addressbar....wow. links too

[implrseoetc]

twitter... life doesnt get any duller.

[dsmpublishing]

I disagree twitter isnt dull!

[BrianMcLeod]

Be sure to check out EasyTweets.com for managing multiple Twitter accounts, drip feeding tweets, etc.

http://EasyTweets.com

Just started working with these guys last week and they've really got something cool happening with this app. Yes, it's a paid service, but you can sign up for a free account that will let you manage up to 3 twitter accounts and get a taste of what's possible.

Check it out!

Brian

[SexySarah19]

the trick with twitter is not to spam and to actually make friends and interact with users who share similar interests

[Chase Beach]

Twitter...... Just one more way to build a list, capture a group and create interest.... Get emails... the start up cost is very affortable too

Chase

[Aaron Elliott]

I cant stand twitter bunch of crap, who reads all that?

[BrianMcLeod]

Originally Posted by Kitejunkiee

I cant stand twitter bunch of crap, who reads all that?

Oh, I don't know just a few million idiots...

You're right... It's such a waste of time. I hate chatting with John Carlton like I did last night.

Best,

Brian

[Gren Bingham]

I find Twitter difficult to comprehend. Calling it a micro blog is find, but do I care if someone cares if I just had a glass of milk? I can understand the listbuilding aspect, but can't understand why people really seem to like it.

[Dan C. Rinnert]

Originally Posted by LoudMac

You're right... It's such a waste of time. I hate chatting with John Carlton like I did last night.

I know. Don't those "Notification of Payment Received" notices from PayPal get annoying too?

[James12C]

I guess I just don't use it often enough

[ConnieMuller]

I just find that I don't monitor tweets done my way - so the people whom I am following do not really "reach" me.
That must be true for many others - or am I tripping ?

[Dana_W]

What do you mean when you say you don't "monitor tweets done my way"?

I go on Twitter, I comment on people's Tweets, I respond to people's comments to me, I talk about what press releases that I'm working on, etc. Pretty simple and straightforward.

[ureba]

I have a twitter account & tried to get into it, but it really does not fit my personality well. I appreciate the fact that it can be a helpful tool in promotion etc. But it just feels like another spammy place & time waster for me.

[mysteryleaves]

I use tweeter a lot l have built up 8000 (Five weeks) in my niche l get over 50% of my traffic on one website from tweeter (my user name is biz2day), l had many sales from twitter, it can be hard work to build a following , my target by the end of this year is 50,000 followers which l expect to get.

[dsmpublishing]

That sounds like a brilliant target ive got a following of 20,000 in 11wks and i get a lot of sales from it i get sales just from my automated direct message with is amazing and a lot of blog traffic plus those that view my blog posts via twitter are often digging my posts for me via bookmarking sites which is even better.

Now its a case of what did i do before i found it. I can even post a link to a special offer and get a lot of sales if i quickly want to make some money.

[Samuel Lee]

Would agree that Twitter is undoubtedly a great way to put your links in the public eye, shortening them with tiny url is always the way to go, but always make sure you don't spam and mix in some sociable tweets with your business related ones as well. A great social and business networking tool that is great way to draw attention to your business and yourself as a person for sure! It's just a good networking tool and a great way to get some more attention to your business and yourself at the same time!

[Ben Clemons]

Originally Posted by whawk57

twitterbar is excellent, check that out too, its a plugin to your browser.
post to twitter from your addressbar....wow. links too

you should check out our instant tweets plugin (in my sig) It works similar, but with a few more options

[Ben Clemons]

Originally Posted by LoudMac

Oh, I don't know just a few million idiots...

You're right... It's such a waste of time. I hate chatting with John Carlton like I did last night.

Best,

Brian

LOL! good stuff!

[OmarNegron]

it's a hole bunch of people sharing their thoughts! It can get a bit overwhelming if you don't know what your doing, but you will get the hang of it. Just give it time

[morwanneg]

I use twitter to interact with fellow international copywriters. At first, i thought twitter's pointless, soon i realized that without twitter work-at-home can be so boring.

[Steve Longoria]

i still think that twitter will be made obsolete by facebook eventually

[morwanneg]

Originally Posted by Steve Longoria

i still think that twitter will be made obsolete by facebook eventually

Facebook and twitter are two social networking sites that are essentially different so you can't really say that twitter will be made obsolete by facebook.

[Nathan Hangen]

Originally Posted by Steve Longoria

i still think that twitter will be made obsolete by facebook eventually

Not a chance...not only would the Twitterverse never let it happen, but Facebook is clunky and disgusting to use.

[dsmpublishing]

If anything it would be the other way round twitter is a lot easier than facebook and people are more interested in twitter now and facebook isnt what it once was. Its like all social sites that have their day remember what friends reunited was once like. Even though i get sales from facebook its no where near as many that i get from twitter.

[Traffic-Bug]

Twitter is just another pointless site that can be intersting sometimes. Everybody and their aunt is now on twitter, and they think people are actually reading their posts when everybody secretly wants their follower count can go up while following count can go down. But that doesnt seem to be happening any time soon. Check outs ervices like IFOLLOWBACK dot com

[amber01]

I need to get hang on this. Sounds interesting

[drmani]

I dont really "get" twitter...

Actually, it's Twitter that 'gets YOU'

Dr.Mani

[hotlinkz]

Originally Posted by GeorgR.

Since everyone and their mama is talking about twitter, i signed up too. My Twitter.
So..now people are "following" me and i am stalk...ehrm i mean following others, but how do you communicate with someone? Can you send messages to other people? Confusing....

G.

Oh no! You're falling out of the "Marketing Matrix" spell.

Quick...."Look into my eyes...you're getting sleepy...Twitter will make you a million dollars..."

There, now stay in the matrix and stop trying to figure things out (especially the TRUTH)!

[tschlotter]

Originally Posted by Dan C. Rinnert

I know. Don't those "Notification of Payment Received" notices from PayPal get annoying too?

Okay - I'm on board - those notices are what I'm looking for!!

Maybe I'll finally log into my account and take advantage of some of the tools mentioned in this thread to try to figure it all out.

By the way, DOES anyone know of a tool to coordinate social apps so they're more manageable - besides just bookmarking them all and going from Squidoo to Facebook to MySpace, etc.?

Tina

[Steadyon]

Twitter - Bunch of twits if you ask me.

Still, that's what the people want so...

[paullonsford]

I personally have seen some amazing success using my Twitter & Facebook strategies.

Using various approaches, I have developed some major JV's and driven significant traffic to my sites at no cost other than time, which is expensive but for now it is for my education.

I'm getting bombarded by these Adword's PPC Magic Bullet guys about how they figured out how to beat the rising cost of PPC and the major decline in ROI...I dropped that model and using only social media for my online marketing and list building strategy.

The problem I see with most marketers using Twitter and Facebook is that they think they can automate everything...I'ts called Social Media.

You have to develop relationships and let people into who you are. Automated systems can aid you building followings fast, but you still have to show people that there is a real person attached to this profile.

The other thing I see is that people just roll right into selling you something and that will turn Twitters' and Facebookers off and either stop following or un-Friend you.

Having come from a traditional face to face selling background and then for the last 4 years marketing my business online; I find this the best of both worlds.

Talking and interacting with a potential customer can have a higher conversion than just the sales page.

Probably the most powerful part of Twitter is; I can have 50 plus conversations going on in under 20 minutes and develop rapport and start moving the sales process along.

In my old traditional face to face sales environment, that would have taken me days to do.

In the world of PPC, I would have to deal with many wasted clicks, looky-loos and my competitors checking out what I am doing and then finally get someone who might be interested to buy. Not to mention the other 100 websites and merchant guys that they are comparing me too.

To sum it up, Twitter has such amazing leverage and to make it work requires good old fashioned "Getting To Know People" and helping them out.

[BrianMcLeod]

Originally Posted by Steadyon

Twitter - Bunch of twits if you ask me.

Still, that's what the people want so...

You must be a BLAST to hang out with...

Sheesh.

Look, it's pretty simple. If you are not a SOCIAL person, social media is probably not going to appeal to or work very well for you. This should not come as a surprise.

If you ARE a social person, which I happen to be, then Twitter is a pretty remarkable service and the friendships and relationships that develop can be both profitable and personally meaningful.

That's about all there is to it.

It's not a magic bullet nor is it a shortcut to riches. It's just a social network, albeit the most popular one on the planet for the time being (until something else comes along to displace it which will almost certainly happen eventually).

Best,

Brian

[Akky]

@GeorgR,

Twitter basically lets others know what you are doing right now, so in order to do that, you have to update your status, so people know what you were doing then. Hope you get the idea, you can reply to twitter users by mentioning their username in this format:

@usernametoreply

Following means : People whom you are following, so you can see their statuses in your home page.

Followers means : People who are following you so they can see your statuses on their home page.

I hope I gave you a quick start and If you ever plan to market through twitter, then use the tools which are out there .

G'day,
Akky

[Lisa Gergets]

This is why I love Twitter marketing:

This morning, I Tweeted about a pair of fingerless gloves in my Etsy shop. The views on that particular pair of gloves went up by 22 within a few seconds, the pair was sold, and it got at least 22 people into my shop to view my items. There are times that, when I'm listing new items on Sundays, if I Tweet each item as I list it, they just sell...bam, bam, bam, gone!

Of course, I also have a very rich relationship with my customers via Twitter. I know their names, whether they are repeat customers, how old their kids are...I remember all of this and it builds unbelievable loyalty.

Take this and apply it to ANY niche marketing...Tweet about your free e-book or e-course, they'll visit your site and at least SOME of them will opt-in, if you've marketed to the right audience. Build your list, sell on the back end...

Yup...that's my Twitter! I LOVE IT!

[um1001]

Social sites can be a good traffic generator but a pain to manage them all individually. Use the One Ping to rule them all and in the darkness bind them....er...I mean inform them

[John Cabral]

Originally Posted by Aaron Elliott

I cant stand twitter bunch of crap, who reads all that?

I sort of agree with that, in that it becomes almost impossible to read tweets once you start to build a following.

Unless you are following a small number of peoplle you will never have time to read all those tweets.

Lets face it if you are following 2000 people do you really have time to read 2000-3000 or more tweets per day?

If your tweet is not on the front page forget it.

Great communication tool? Not in my book. All these social site lose their luster once you start to have too many people on them.

Unless you are only following friends/family it become useless. In order to have a large following you need to also follow them and thats where things start to go south.

I have 3200 followers and follow 2900 do you honestly think I can read 2900 tweets? And thats if the 2900 only do one tweet/day. If they do 10 than thats 29000 tweets, can you read 29000 tweets? I only look at the tweets on the main page.

Now imagine if all your followers are following 2000 people do you honestly think they are reading thos 1000's of tweets?

This is why I don't feel tweeter is a good marketing forum unless you are tweeting every every few minutes so that your tweet has a change of being seen on the first page.

But if you do that than you are spamming.....

Another is that majority of accounts are there to do just that and never will read your stuff. Too many bots etc.

I used my account to generate 2000 clicks to CB affiliate programs without 1 sale and I was promoting a wide variety of programs in several niches.

Also Twitter now has limits and ratio's and you can no longer get 1000's of so-called followers as easy so your chance of getting 50K followers in one week or month is slim to none as once you follow 2000 you will be limited to following only a few hundred more than are following you

I am not gun-ho on it...

[Kevin Barnes]

Its all about automation. I spend about 10 minutes a week on my twitter... and still got 3,000 + followers

think smarter not harder..;p

[John Cabral]

Originally Posted by Kevin Barnes

Its all about automation. I spend about 10 minutes a week on my twitter... and still got 3,000 + followers

think smarter not harder..;p

I am sure you could work 10 min a month and still get tons of followers as long as you are using software to follow and unfollow which is the only way to get ton's of followers who are doing the same thing you are and will never read your stuff.

With everyone trying to get tons of followers its only going to insure your message will not get read.

[MichaelHiles]

Originally Posted by John Cabral

I am sure you could work 10 min a month and still get tons of followers as long as you are using software to follow and unfollow which is the only way to get ton's of followers who are doing the same thing you are and will never read your stuff.

With everyone trying to get tons of followers its only going to insure your message will not get read.

Which begs to the question, what's the freakin' point? A big circle jerk of people following and unfollowing?

Everyone talking at once. Nobody really listening.

Automation tools talking to automation tools?

Not impressed.

Pure chaos.

[John Cabral]

Originally Posted by MichaelHiles

Which begs to the question, what's the freakin' point? A big circle jerk of people following and unfollowing?

Everyone talking at once. Nobody really listening.

Automation tools talking to automation tools?

Not impressed.

Pure chaos.

My point exactly. So you have 50K followers who maybe a handfull will ever read your post.

In order for you it to work all 50K woold have to be real accounts that people actually read tweets and they all would have to get less than 50 tweets a day or whatever shows on the first page. Maybe second page...

When you google for something do you look at 300 pages or maybe just the top 5?

Same concept applies to all social sites.