Twitter Talk Continues - Exploring the Potential for Business
New tools come and go. Some have staying power, and others get dropped in favour of the next cool thing.
Twitter sits somewhere on the fad-with-potential end of that curve. There is certainly potential for business uses beyond air-headed updates on your social life and random thoughts. But the ability to customize the experience will determine whether it becomes another long-term channel of communications, or yesterday’s blip.
Competing service Jaiku allows some of that customization. Twitter has momentum.
Either way, the kind of microblogging these tools allow has legs. The quick exchange of ideas, tidbits, news and opinions can let you stay connected with dozens of people and news sources without dragging you into lengthy posts about topics (unless that’s what you want to do). Rafe Needleman has a way to use both services, rather than having to choose.
A cafe that serves the digerati early adopters would do well to keep local patrons alerted about lunch specials and special events through quick updates. But weigh your faithful customers down with tacky, spammy promotional messages, and they’ll unsubscribe.
Unlike e-mail spam, if you find the drek being churned out by someone you’ve subscribed to is a waste of your attention, you just unsubscribe.
Come see what my Twitter friends are talking about today.
See also:
Tris Hussey starts to answer the question, How can I use Twitter for business?
Time declares it "the next killer app."
Previous posts:
Twitter "Everywhere, Anwhere Messaging", Speed-dating
Twitter: Business Networking Tool, or Too Much Information?
Tags: twitter, jaiku, communications, business, spam, subscribe, promotion, fads, microblogging, alerts, tech, digerati, updates
Related Stories
POSTED IN: Audiences, Communication Tactics, Social Media, Work
5 opinions for Twitter Talk Continues - Exploring the Potential for Business
Neil Vineberg
Apr 27, 2007 at 8:37 am
Hey Eric,
A popular feature is that each post starts a new conversation. Folks can comment on my posts and I can comment posts of others. Jaiku can also be a single point of presence of the web - where all your feeds are streamed in and folks in your group are updated on new photos, blogposts, music you’re listening to, and even your Twitter posts.
There’s also the mobile feature. Using compatible Nokia S60 mobile devices, you can see what friends are doing right in your phone’s contact list, post Jaikus and have them show up on the Web and in your friend’s phone. And there is the presence sharing (your availability, location and calendar) publicly, or only with selected contacts.
There’s lots of customization. How that all works for business remains to be seen. It’s a space that is evolving, as you rightly point out.
You’ve got a Twitter site. Set up one on Jaiku and give it a try. You can also include your Twitter feed in Jaiku.
I work with Jaiku in the U.S.
Cheers
Neil
Terry Lavender
Apr 27, 2007 at 4:10 pm
A possible application came up at the Persuasive ‘07 conference at Stanford today - Alcoholics Anonymous support buddies could use Twitter together to get support when craving a drink or worried that they might be craving a drink.
Eric Eggertson
Apr 27, 2007 at 6:05 pm
Neil , thanks for the note. I’ll check out Jaiku and see what it’s like.
Terry: Interesting. The possible uses are pretty extensive. The key is to find a service that most of your group is connected to, or can be convinced to sign up for.
Neil Vineberg
Apr 28, 2007 at 6:45 am
Eric, that would be super. I think the conversational functionality at Jaiku would also support Terry’s idea. There would probably be privacy considerations for AA members as well. Cheers, Neil
DaveFleet.com » Twitter: More Than Just An Online Water Cooler
Feb 5, 2008 at 9:59 pm
[…] Twitter to leapfrog from the “fad-with-potential” group to the forefront of social media, more of these business uses need to emerge. Without […]
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: