Many of you ask if I recommend getting a Twitter account for someone that has a business. Well, what is Twitter anyway? In short, Twitter is a real-time short messaging service that works over multiple networks and devices. Sounds confusing doesn’t it? Without getting too much into details I will just cover the basics, and explain what I personally think of Twitter. It is a web tool that allows you to post a sentence or two (up to 140 characters, in other words a size of a text message) describing what you are up to at the moment. And if someone is interested in knowing what’s happening in your life or business, they can “follow you” by receiving those short messages either on their own Twitter page or have the message delivered to their cell phone as soon as you update your so-called status.
At first it’s somewhat difficult to see how something like Twitter can be useful, and especially how it can help you in your business. Right? So let me explain why I think it’s a must-have for anyone, and not just for business owners. As I mentioned before, Twitter lets you send a short message right from your phone to your own Twitter page, as well as all of your followers. The latter is the key – as well as all of your followers.
Just think about it for a moment. Let’s say you have a car repair business and there are 1,000 people following you on your Twitter page. In a matter of 5 seconds and one short text message from your cellphone, all 1,000 of your “potential customers” will receive your update as soon as it’s sent. You could send a message saying “Oil change special – just $10. Call this number.” Now all of a sudden 1,000 people received your message, and I bet some will surely give you a call to make an appointment. So if you think about it, it’s a really powerful tool, especially if you have a very large number of people following you.
Ashton Kutcher for example has over 4,000,000 people following him (hey, people like minding someone else’s business, that’s why all the reality TV shows are so popular). Oh, and did I mention it’s totally free? How much do you think it will cost you to send a text message to 4,000,000 people in a matter of seconds if there was no Twitter? How would you even do it? Good luck with that! With a little creativity you can move mountains with your Twitter account. Just sit down, and think how you can use it in your business, or even if you don’t have a business and just using it for personal reasons. The possibilities are endless! Don’t forget to follow me 😉
Great article, Pavel. Twitter is definitely the new “IT” thing. The same thing happened with Myspace. Businesses wanting to expand their customer base using online tools should always keep track of what’s hot and what’s not. In a year, Twitter may be old news and a newer social networking tool will have taken its place.