Earlier this month I listed 5 reasons why your boss will let you use Twitter at work, and here's an excellent example of item one - Networking.
Heidi Miller, Podcasting Princess - host of the podcast Diary of a Shameless Self-Promoter, is one of my friends on Twitter.
I follow her, and a number of other communications professionals to see what they're up to, what they're thinking and what's new in their world -- odds are it may enter my world someday soon so a heads-up is a good thing.
Earlier this week, she 'tweeted' that she was attending a presentation by marketing guru Seth Godin on his new book, The Dip.
Returning from the event, she posted her thoughts (which I haven't read yet -- my current connection is heavily firewalled), and also announced she was giving away four copies of The Dip
Naturally, I piped up and said 'Hey Heidi -- over here', and now I've got a copy of the book coming in the mail (Thanks Heidi!)
So, what really happened here that we can learn from? What did Twitter enable that a regular blog or podcast couldn't?
- Reducing the activity timeframe. Heidi made the announcement and concluded her 'give away' within minutes. The same kind of process would have taken a day or two to conclude with a blog.
- Increased attention. Twitter is the new kid on the block, so to speak. By utilizing this communications channel, she drew attention to this offer within this new channel.
- Increased awareness. Heidi increased awareness of her brand, her offerings (podcasts, consultation, etc) and positioned herself as a cool, cutting edge practitioner who understands how to use this new media. Quite effectively.
Now this got me thinking, what else can Twitter do for you? How else can we use this micro-format to create and grow conversations? What do you think? Interested in what I'm doing? Follow me on Twitter or Jaiku (a Twitter competitor).
Technorati Tags: Social Media, Book, The Dip, Heidi Miller, Networking, Twitter, Jaiku, PR, Communication
Related posts:
- Anti-DRM Bed-time story book — via BoingBoing
- Wondering why people follow me on Twitter?
- To everything, there is a time…but make sure you make time.
- Networking — what’s it all about…
- Mini-Book Review: A Case of Exploding Mangoes
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Yes, I think we’ll be discovering more uses for Twitter because of the immediacy of it. It’s definitely a get-an-answer-now medium.
Hey Heidi, thanks for that comment…agreed. Somehow twitter seems less ‘intense’ than than traditional IM…maybe it’s because of the ability to follow without really ‘friending’. Will have to think on that.