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Twitter. 
Seems like everybody’s doing it. And everywhere you go, someone is talking about it. There’s really no “right” way to do it, but there are plenty of examples of companies experimenting, listening and learning about what works for them. Want to jump on board? Here are some resources to help you chart your own Twitter course.
What If I Don’t Twitter?
My primary goal for this blog is to have it address the questions and concerns of our Sound Web Solutions clients. So, I take most of the ideas for my blog posts from questions I’m asked by clients. 
Let me share with you an interesting question – devil’s advocate approach – I heard from a client recently. Aware, as most of us are today, that Twitter is the hot new thing, this client felt compelled to do something — but didn’t know what. Should one person in the company become their “twitter expert”? Should all employees be told to start tweeting? Should we host a training session of some kind? Then came the devil’s advocate — what if we don’t do it at all? Is that really going to harm us as a company, brand us as a Luddite, leave us hopelessly behind our competition?
What I told this client and will say again is: there are no hard-and-fast rules here. Twitter is simply yet another way to “get out there” in the Social Media realm – both to hear what others are saying and also to be heard. I guess the downside of NOT doing it would just be the loss of an opportunity for participation. Not a dire loss, and not necessarily something that’s going to hurt you. I personally think the best way to get engaged in Social Media is to author a blog and to read, listen and participate on other people’s blogs in your industry. Twitter is a way to send your blog posts out more broadly, to pick up followers who may then become readers of your blog, and to be alerted to what others in your world are saying, writing, and thinking. A decision to NOT participate in Twitter is a little like a decision not to attend a social gathering at a trade show (or not to attend a party in college) – you can still get the content from speakers at the show (or lectures from your classes), but you won’t be plugged in to the commentary & social chatter that goes on around them. There’s certainly value in the chatter, and you gain perspectives and tips you wouldn’t get from the formal speeches.
As is true for much of social media, it’s hard to know what you’re missing unless you try it. There must be some reason why everyone’s doing it. Rather than decide against it because you can’t commit to daily tweeting, designate someone to devote 30 minutes a day for 1 month (even 2 weeks) and then share their impressions about what they’ve learned. That way you can at least develop a point of view on it. The important thing is to try it before you write it off.
Getting Started on Twitter
I admit I’m still something of a newbie on Twitter, still finding my way on the question of how to use it most productively and usefully. Since many of our clients are newbies also, I thought it might be helpful to share what I’ve learned so far.
I started my engagement with Twitter by following some colleagues and a few industry gurus who I thought would have valuable things to say. I was skeptical, I admit, and expected to see lots of “I’m going to the store” sorts of tweets that would be a waste of my time. There were some of those, to be sure, and a fair amount of grandstanding and chest beating by various tweeters. The first thing to get right, I quickly discovered, was finding the right people to follow.
Finding who to follow was a process of trial and error, and continues to be a dynamic process. I’m constantly evaluating whom I want to follow, deleting those who tweet only drivel, or those who tweet so much that they crowd everyone else out; and adding people who seem interesting, who have insightful things to share, and who are followed by others whom I respect. Yes, it’s time-consuming, but I figure that the 30 minutes I spend per day twiddling with my twitter account is sort of like the time I spend filtering through the contents of my fridge – I clear out what’s moldy or stale and make room for the stuff that will feed and nurture my body, or in Twitter’s case, that will feed and nurture my mind, my work, my life.
What IS Social Media Marketing?
Organizations Using Some Form of Social Media Marketing. Source: Marketing Sherpa 2009
The Buzz is On! Nearly 80% of organizations, according to a 2009 Marketing Sherpa report, are using some form of social media marketing to reach their audience (see chart). According to Lloyd Salmons, first chairman of the Internet Advertising Bureau social media council “Social media isn’t just about big networks like Facebook and MySpace, it’s about brands having conversations.”[1] What does this mean for your company, and how can you get started in the Social Media sphere?
Here is a brief primer on the different forms of Social Media, ideas for how your business can benefit from active engagement, and some suggestions for how to get started. Ask us for our Social Media Marketing Starter Kit if you think you’re ready to get underway or want to know more about what it would take to get started.