On July 15, 2006, a company called Odeo debuted a new service called Twttr. Who would known, five years later, that over 350 million people would be on the site? An annoyance at first, a user is limited to just 140 characters. It forces the user to be concise and not run on with an update.
For me, twitter is essentially a news feed where I read and discover all kinds of information from the sources I trust most.
For instance during the NBA draft, I knew who teams picked about a minute before David Stern called the player’s name. When a Colts player is out with an injury, a prominent national sports reporter sends out a tweet with his injury and how long he will be out–long before a news release.
How people continue to use twitter is very different. My close friends use it just to interact with each other, send out funny jokes and basically use it as a public text. I have other friends that understand the impact it can have, and try to send out quality links to become “known” on twitter. They understand their future boss may be watching.
I use it in a variety of ways, with a concentration on Indiana sports. I am very active on twitter, using it as a primary news feed, to share my perspective and a way to stay up to date on media friends.
I am very fortunate to work and be a part of so many great organizations and media outlets. In doing so, I have met a lot of great people along the way including players, coaches and the behind the scenes folks. Therefore in my tweets, I focus on informing my followers as well as sharing my vantage point. This blog is an extension of my twitter, for in-depth analysis on something like this.
My favorite person to follow, is CNBC’s sports business reporter Darren Rovell. He brings it each and every day, keeping my timeline fresh and unique. While watching the Super Bowl, he will present things like the betting odds, time it took to sing the national anthem and of course his headline contests. This week, Rovell posted his 100 twitter rules to live by and they are absolutely worth the time to read. He shares how to effectively use twitter and what not to do.
If you are not on twitter, you are missing out. It is ignorant to say “I don’t need that” or “it doesn’t add anything,” because they don’t want to take the time to learn it. Two years ago, I was getting laughed at by my fraternity brothers, for being the only one they knew on twitter and using it a daily. Now I’d say over half of them are on and use it often.
By many accounts, twitter is the top social media platform over facebook. I don’t think twitter has topped facebook quite yet because they are very different. Facebook is where I go to talk with friends, see their recent photos and see who’s birthday is coming up. Twitter is my resource for breaking news, articles by media members I value, and interesting tidbits. It’s important to separate the two, and not to treat your twitter account like a facebook.
As with any social media outlet, I remind you to be very careful. Do not get very personal like cussing someone out or noting what you are doing every minute. Make your timeline interesting, unique and professional. And don’t post anything you wouldn’t want a potential employer seeing.
Best of all, make the most of your twitter and enjoy it. It truly is a game-changer if used properly. An idea that was counted out immediately by many, has now become the “go to” stream.
Tweet responsibly.