A week ago, I decided to finally sign up for a Twitter account and probably became the last person in Seattle to join. I’m still trying to figure out if it’s a revolutionary new communication medium or merely the CB radio of the early 21st century (to be honest, I haven’t yet decided what Twitter is yet). I think one MSNBC writer summed it up nicely quite nicely, when she stated Twitter is the Snuggie of social networking. I’m not sure if Twitter is truly useful, but there is no denying it’s the hot thing at the moment.
After all, if the Washington State Department of Transportation has multiple twitter account to broadcast updates on mountain passes and Seattle area traffic events. Many of the local TV news networks & anchors have twitter accounts (Jenni Hogan, Bill Wixey, Jesse Jones, & KOMO news are all there). If that wasn’t enough chatter, even the U.S. President is on Twitter (although he doesn’t tweet now that he’s a President instead of a candidate). Heck, even Senator John McCain is on Twitter. I think Twitter hype hit all time this week, when Google’s CEO declared Twitter A ‘Poor Man’s Email System‘ and the geeky gurus in Silicon Alley are ready to anoint Twitter the new Google killer. Ironically, Twitter has proven itself as a great tool for breaking news about gmail outages and down time.
It’s all very interesting, but is it useful? Well, since I’ve been on Twitter, I’ve discovered lots of interesting blog posts & new articles on topics of interest. I’ve learned that tinyurl.com is bloated compared to tr.im. I’ve even played with the Twitter APIs and tweeted myself. But, I’m still perplexed on what the best way of using this new social networking tool in my arsenal?
For example, would potential home buyers / sellers prefer to get updates on market changes via Tweets instead of e-mail messages, text messages, or RSS feeds? If so, should you be sending direct messages to your clients? (which seems like a poor man’s e-mail system to me). I suppose one could update their status, but if one updates their status every 10 minutes every time a new listing hits the market, one’s followers would probably get follower fatigue.
Suppose you have multiple clients, and that they all want the same information, should you create an account that they all follow instead of direct messages to each? What if you multiple clients that want different information, should you create multiple Twitter accounts, each of which publishes a certain information type (say homes in Redmond, Medina mansions, or condos in Renton)?
Of course, if that becomes popular then Twitter account names may become as valuable and as scarce as internet domain names are today? (BTW – SeattleHomes is already taken, although it doesn’t have any followers yet). Perhaps, everybody will use url shortening services like is.gd instead of domain names, SEO & names/brands of the actual twitter account won’t matter?
I’m not sure I’ll shake my fist at Twitter, like Jon Stewart did but I can’t help but wonder if micro-blogging, will beget a generation of people who can only communicate in phrases of 140 characters or less. I’m already growing nostalgic for thoughtful articles written by people in the news industry. Maybe I just need to read more NikNik & Tyr until I get it?
Perhaps, Twitter is best used to convey the daily minutiae our digital lives to interested parties and shouldn’t be taken seriously? In any event, I’m enjoying my time tweeting (or is it twittering?) like everybody else apparently is.
@RobbiePaplin is my 970th Follower on Twitter, where I am @ARDELLd
Some guy in Vail who keeps your RSS Feeds “squeaky clean” with a feed scrubber http://www.feedscrub.com/ has my name on Twitter. I have to stop by and check his Tweets for my messages now and then 🙂
I think “social networks” are for social networking (imagine that) and not for plugging your wares to your “friends”. How gross is the question “How much business do you get from your friends?”
When I saw I had a dozen new “Followers”, I took a peak and was pleased as punch to see Robbie! Hi Robbie! Truth be told, Robbie and I don’t have a lot to talk about, but I love him. So seeing him talking on Twitter even when he’s not talking to me, is a pleasure. Its like being at a party and seeing him across the room talking with someone else. It makes me happy to be “in his company”.
Yesterday Martin Milner in Yardly PA started following me. He is an agent in Yardley PA in an office I worked in back in the early 90s. I asked him to give Amy Levine and Frank Mancuso a big hug for me. We settled on he’d hug Amy and she’d hug Frank 🙂
Social Networks are GREAT!…as long as people remember the social part.
Some of my favorite Twitterers are not in the real estate industry, and are local people whose company I enjoy. It’s a great place to see what people who are NOT in real estate are talking about every day. Social…not (all) business. Not even mostly business.
I love @miacupcake who used to be a roller derby queen and lives on The Eastside.
@carolARC who lives in Woodinville is always Tweeting info about local disaster situations. Floods, fires, etc…and where I got my idea for the “balloon framing” post. She’s my main “ladyfriend” on Twitter, though we’ve never met in person.
Seattle local @ElwoodJBlues keeps me entertained. I would call him “my bro'” 🙂
Major Seattle Twitterati @dacort showed us all a video of his home office when he lost a bet. He’s written some Twitter Apps including TweetStats, TweepSearch, DM Whacker, My First Follow and Rate My Talk. His blog is at dcortesi.com and well worth a visit.
Twitter, used well, will broaden your horizons. Put you in touch with what people are talking about in Redmond or Bellevue or Seattle…you can even zero in on the local chatter in your neighborhood.
And as Robbie said, lots of the people in the know in your industry are talking there, and you can tap into their conversations. @GuyKawasaki, @GaryVee, @MattCutts, @1000WattMarc are some of the bigger conversations that I follow. You don’t even have to talk to them. You can learn by watching their conversations with other people.
Twitteratti to me would be the Top 50 Twitterers in each location, and not just someone on Twitter.
Seattle’s #1 Twitteratti is @ChrisPirillo, @dacort is #2 and @Starbucks is #3. I have a Twitter Grade of 99.8 which puts me at #2 in Kirkland, but only #35 or so in Seattle and #6 in Redmond, #2 in Bellevue.
Tapping into the conversations all around you, whether you join in the conversation or not, is a fabulous learning tool. Go to Twitter for the social and educational aspects…not to find people to “sell” something to, and you will enjoy it.
@RobbiePaplin is my 970th Follower on Twitter, where I am @ARDELLd
Some guy in Vail who keeps your RSS Feeds “squeaky clean” with a feed scrubber http://www.feedscrub.com/ has my name on Twitter. I have to stop by and check his Tweets for my messages now and then 🙂
I think “social networks” are for social networking (imagine that) and not for plugging your wares to your “friends”. How gross is the question “How much business do you get from your friends?”
When I saw I had a dozen new “Followers”, I took a peak and was pleased as punch to see Robbie! Hi Robbie! Truth be told, Robbie and I don’t have a lot to talk about, but I love him. So seeing him talking on Twitter even when he’s not talking to me, is a pleasure. Its like being at a party and seeing him across the room talking with someone else. It makes me happy to be “in his company”.
Yesterday Martin Milner in Yardly PA started following me. He is an agent in Yardley PA in an office I worked in back in the early 90s. I asked him to give Amy Levine and Frank Mancuso a big hug for me. We settled on he’d hug Amy and she’d hug Frank 🙂
Social Networks are GREAT!…as long as people remember the social part.
Some of my favorite Twitterers are not in the real estate industry, and are local people whose company I enjoy. It’s a great place to see what people who are NOT in real estate are talking about every day. Social…not (all) business. Not even mostly business.
I love @miacupcake who used to be a roller derby queen and lives on The Eastside.
@carolARC who lives in Woodinville is always Tweeting info about local disaster situations. Floods, fires, etc…and where I got my idea for the “balloon framing” post. She’s my main “ladyfriend” on Twitter, though we’ve never met in person.
Seattle local @ElwoodJBlues keeps me entertained. I would call him “my bro'” 🙂
Major Seattle Twitterati @dacort showed us all a video of his home office when he lost a bet. He’s written some Twitter Apps including TweetStats, TweepSearch, DM Whacker, My First Follow and Rate My Talk. His blog is at dcortesi.com and well worth a visit.
Twitter, used well, will broaden your horizons. Put you in touch with what people are talking about in Redmond or Bellevue or Seattle…you can even zero in on the local chatter in your neighborhood.
And as Robbie said, lots of the people in the know in your industry are talking there, and you can tap into their conversations. @GuyKawasaki, @GaryVee, @MattCutts, @1000WattMarc are some of the bigger conversations that I follow. You don’t even have to talk to them. You can learn by watching their conversations with other people.
Twitteratti to me would be the Top 50 Twitterers in each location, and not just someone on Twitter.
Seattle’s #1 Twitteratti is @ChrisPirillo, @dacort is #2 and @Starbucks is #3. I have a Twitter Grade of 99.8 which puts me at #2 in Kirkland, but only #35 or so in Seattle and #6 in Redmond, #2 in Bellevue.
Tapping into the conversations all around you, whether you join in the conversation or not, is a fabulous learning tool. Go to Twitter for the social and educational aspects…not to find people to “sell” something to, and you will enjoy it.
Hey Robbie – I think your question about how best to use Twitter is still evolving for the lions share of the community. Ardell likes to be “in the room” where she can hear the conversations of her friends. I use twitter @ochoconsulting to follow some of the brands that I enjoy, such as @starbucks, @livestrong, @wholefoods; some of my favorite authors/magazines like @fastcompany, @incmagazine; interesting people, such as @lancearmstrong, @jimmyfallon; and friends that I’ve met personally or online.
Your post raised the question of how to post market updates, and the concern of follower fatigue. Look at hashtags as a possible alternative. They provide a way to segment your posts into discrete topics. But they are still very much in the domain of the wild west – there doesn’t appear to be any sort of convention or naming schema.
My experience with social networking has accelerated over the past 18 months. I suspect that, while I’m not a leading edge new adopter, we are still on the front side of this particular wave. It is interesting to view the changes in the communication landscape as they evolve.
Joe,
I don’t like #hashtags generally. Feels to cliquey. But they are great for following where everyone is at a NAR Convention and for reporting great “take aways” while in sessions.
This way you have your own notes of those takeaway one liners, and everyone in Twitterville can be a fly on the wall as well.
Were putting are dibs in for #nar09 vs. #NARSD for the NAR convention in San Diego this year. @tcar is the NAR’s new social media guru, so the tag will likely be his call.
Joe,
I don’t like #hashtags generally. Feels to cliquey. But they are great for following where everyone is at a NAR Convention and for reporting great “take aways” while in sessions.
This way you have your own notes of those takeaway one liners, and everyone in Twitterville can be a fly on the wall as well.
Were putting are dibs in for #nar09 vs. #NARSD for the NAR convention in San Diego this year. @tcar is the NAR’s new social media guru, so the tag will likely be his call.
It took me a while to “get” twitter and now…I can’t imagine not having it around. Consumers have really appreciated the transparency of the rate updates that I provide (@mortgageporter). And I receive a great deal of my news via Twitter.
It’s like anything, it is what you make it. I enjoy the conversations and people I’ve met in the Twitterverse.
Unless I’m quoting a rate or information about mortgages (guidelines etc) I do try to limit myself from “hanging” out on Twitter too much during the work day… I will treat myself to a tweet during a break… I’m allowed a lunch break and 2×15’s right? 😉
It took me a while to “get” twitter and now…I can’t imagine not having it around. Consumers have really appreciated the transparency of the rate updates that I provide (@mortgageporter). And I receive a great deal of my news via Twitter.
It’s like anything, it is what you make it. I enjoy the conversations and people I’ve met in the Twitterverse.
Unless I’m quoting a rate or information about mortgages (guidelines etc) I do try to limit myself from “hanging” out on Twitter too much during the work day… I will treat myself to a tweet during a break… I’m allowed a lunch break and 2×15’s right? 😉
Top 20 Twitter Cities:
#1 London
#2 Los Angeles
#3 Chicago
#4 New York
#5 San Francisco
#6 SEATTLE
#7 Toronto
#8 Atlanta
#9 Boston
#10 Austin
#11 Washington DC
#12 Portland
#13 San Diego
#14 Vancouver
#15 Houston
#16 Sydney
#17 Dallas
#18 Tokyo
#19 Paris
#20 Brooklyn
Philly is #22 and climbing 🙂
Top 20 Twitter Cities:
#1 London
#2 Los Angeles
#3 Chicago
#4 New York
#5 San Francisco
#6 SEATTLE
#7 Toronto
#8 Atlanta
#9 Boston
#10 Austin
#11 Washington DC
#12 Portland
#13 San Diego
#14 Vancouver
#15 Houston
#16 Sydney
#17 Dallas
#18 Tokyo
#19 Paris
#20 Brooklyn
Philly is #22 and climbing 🙂
I think that Twitter is still evolving. I see people using it wisely and people spamming it just like they will do with any tool that reaches out and talks to people.
For me, it is a great way to connect with a different group of people. I don’t push my listings or hammer my followers with ‘buy real estate from me’ statements. I do make myself available for people to interact with though and put out useful information from time to time. Social media seems to work best when you combine time + consistency + soft selling.
I think that Twitter is still evolving. I see people using it wisely and people spamming it just like they will do with any tool that reaches out and talks to people.
For me, it is a great way to connect with a different group of people. I don’t push my listings or hammer my followers with ‘buy real estate from me’ statements. I do make myself available for people to interact with though and put out useful information from time to time. Social media seems to work best when you combine time + consistency + soft selling.
Robbie, Ardell, & everyone else – you bring up great points about Twitter, social networking and marketing. I think ultimately it comes down to if you are contributing to the community, or just using it.
What goes around, comes around – if I were on Twitter trying to get everyone to “click my junk” I’d fail. If I were on Twitter trying to help people then everyone wins.
I wonder how often people consider “intent” and how often one’s actions are read favorably or unfavorably when there’s very limited context?
Robbie, Ardell, & everyone else – you bring up great points about Twitter, social networking and marketing. I think ultimately it comes down to if you are contributing to the community, or just using it.
What goes around, comes around – if I were on Twitter trying to get everyone to “click my junk” I’d fail. If I were on Twitter trying to help people then everyone wins.
I wonder how often people consider “intent” and how often one’s actions are read favorably or unfavorably when there’s very limited context?
It seems that twitter is everywhere these days. Even when I watch sportscenter I hear about how Shaq twitters and attracts a more loyal fan base. My point is that if you are not using twitter (like me) you may want to try it out, that way you can potentially grow your loyal fan base and grow your company.
The big WHY is so important, and if the why is always “what’s in it for me”…well, as Seth Godin says, you’re just not in “my” tribe 🙂
That is the future! The Big Why is not all about self.
Pingback: Top 3 Reason to Love Facebook Pages | Seattle Real Estate | Rain City Guide