Do you think that Twitter is just about 13 year olds talking about what they had for lunch and the Jonas Brothers? C'mon, if you're not currently using Twitter, you know you do. If so, you're right. But, that's like saying that the phone is about 13 year olds talking about what they had for lunch and the Jonas Brothers. So, it's not about the phone, it's about the conversation. My suggestion is not to listen to the conversations of 13 year olds, but that's just me. Twitter is the world's best real-time business tool. Now let's agree that anything that is on Twitter (or Facebook or LinkedIn or any other Social Networking site) is open for public review unless certain privacy settings have been set. And if it's private either don't post it or use the privacy settings. So, we're not talking about stalking here, we're talking about common sense. Which, ironically, is the most uncommon thing in the world.
Now that we've covered that, let's talk about effectively using Twitter for a minute. Imagine if you could be a fly on the wall to over 100,000,000 peoples' conversations around the world. Imagine if you could search through these conversations by specific name, word, company or anything else that you can type. Imagine if you could observe people talking about things that you could add value to or help them with. Imagine if you could find like-minded people who have similar interests to you. Now we're getting somewhere. This is a small sampling of what can be accomplished by effectively using Twitter as a business tool.
Let's also agree that just because someone's voice can reach around the world, it doesn't mean that the person is any smarter than when their voice could only reach the end of the bar. So think of Twitter as a database. A very amazing real-time conversational database. That's what it is. The internet is an electronic bathroom wall sometimes and sometimes it's an amazing communication tool. The choice is up to us. Just as in any other decision, the choice is up to us. I recommend being selective about the conversations that you participate in and contribute to so that you and the other folks see value in it.
If we're not already connected on Twitter and you'd like to connect with me, please feel free to connect with me at www.twitter.com/kevinknebl. I have no interest in spamming, stalking or trying to sell you something all the time. I use Twitter as a tool to connect with people who I can add value to. It's always about relationships, whether personal or business-oriented. Just as in offline relationships, you can tell a lot about a person by what they talk about. Just listen. They'll reveal themselves. It's no different with Twitter. This is just a communication tool. At the end of the day, we hang with the folks we like. I'll share more information on how to get the most out of Twitter while adding the most value in future blog posts. Let's connect.