Observing Twitter: 5 things you may not know about this brave, new world

Guest post by: Joni Hubred-Golden
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Observing Twitter: 5 things you may not know about this brave, new world - By Joni Hubred-Golden

To anyone unfamiliar with social media, Twitter might well seem as familiar as Pluto. You kind of know what it is, and where it is, but why it's there or what it does, that's a complete mystery. I'm right there with you. But as a veteran e-zine publisher, blogger and avowed Facebook junkie, I've been brave enough to set up an account. Okay, three accounts. And honestly, it's not as foreign a land as you might think. Here are a few old-fashioned ideas that could make you a bit more brave about visiting this new social media world:

1. Twitter is all about people. Even entrepreneurs, networkers and others there in a professional capacity occasionally talk about stuff that isn't quite professional. Part of Twitter's charm is the eccentric nature of the sharing - what's for lunch, what duties people are shirking, what the weather's like, the kinds of conversations people have over nothing and everything. The same folks who shared trade information about the North American International Auto Show this morning, for instance, might also be part of tonight's popular discussion about the Golden Globes.

2. Twitter facilitates friendliness. Rather than "friend" or "connection" invitations, Twitter allows you to "follow" anyone whose updates aren't protected. (And in my experience, that's just about everyone.) You can search for a particular word or phrase - your geographic location, interests, religion, just about anything - to find people whose posts might interest you.

3. Twitter makes you think. Whatever you have to say, you will have to re-think it in order to fit the thought into 140 characters.

4. Twitter encourages innovation. Every day, I find somebody talking about a new application or Web site that makes Twitter a little more interesting or useful. My favorite is TweetDeck, which allows me to keep up with Twitter from my computer desktop, while surfing other Web sites.

5. Twitter operates on the Golden Rule, and don't you forget it. Twitterers encourage each other to share, they discourage inappropriate conversations and they do not tolerate spamming. I have noticed the people who give the most, who share links to informative articles, who provide unique information, who respond when others are seeking advice, those are usually the people with hundreds or thousands of followers.

When I talk about Twitter, and I find myself doing that more often now, the most common response is, "Hey, it looks cool, but what does it do?". Well, the truth is, Twitter doesn't do anything. You'll get out of it about as much as you put into it. Which really isn't such an alien idea, now, is it?

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Observing Twitter: 5 things you may not know about this brave, new world - By Joni Hubred-Golden

About the Author: Joni Hubred-Golden

RSS for Joni's articles - Visit Joni's website
With 20 years of experience in community newspapers, Joni Hubred-Golden brings her experience with "old school" journalism into a new media world. Author of some 2,000 news and magazine articles, she is publisher of Michigan Women's Forum, a free electronic magazine devoted to informing and inspiring Michigan women. Ms. Hubred-Golden has also published a collection of essays, a PR guide for bootstrapping entrepreneurs and has spoken to scores of business people, educators and students on topics ranging from journalism and community affairs to self-publishing and media relations. She specializes in rescuing people overwhelmed by Twitter, Facebook, MySpace and other social media; creating compelling content for Web sites and social media; building on-line reputations and managing your social media presence (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube and blogs).
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