Twitter can be very difficult to use, especially for new users. A lot of the difficulty comes in trying to manage the fire hose worth of incoming information. Just following a small number of people, even 5 or 10 can lead to a lot of tweets (depending on their frequency). Since the idea is to try to connect to a wider audience, most businesses would like to have several hundred (or thousand) followers, which usually comes with following a good number as well (for building relationships, sharing, etc.). So how do you use Twitter effectively and still keep a handle on all the information that’s bombarding you?
1. Lists
Twitter lists can make it a lot easier to group people and keep track of what’s going on. I have a list for my influencers so I can help share their stuff and keep track of what they’re saying. I also have lists for bloggers I follow, local businesses, and local people. The great part of Twitter lists is that they’re supported by most third-party Twitter applications too, so you can use them on multiple platforms and devices.
2. Searches
Twitter has a great search tool for seeing what conversations are happening. The great thing about Twitter is that you have access to any conversation (except those in private accounts). If you’re an insurance agent, you can see when someone talks about their car accident or flooding in the basement. Seeing these conversations gives you the opportunity to provide helpful information (not advertisements).
3. Monitoring
Looking for mentions of your Twitter profile or company name can help keep track of when people are talking to you (or about you), as well as what they’re saying. These can be some of the most important conversations to keep track of (especially for customer service). Monitoring can be done by just using the Mentions tab on Twitter, but also with third-party applications.
4. Trends
Twitter trends gives you a snapshot of the most popular keywords (hashtags) and topics in current conversations. Twitter shows these, as do most third-party applications (HootSuite, TweetDeck, etc.), and there are sites like TrendsMap and Trendistic. Checking these out every so often can give you an idea of what’s important to people.
5. Third-Party Applications
Using only Twitter can make it a challenge to keep up with a lot of conversations, but there are several third-party applications out there that can make it much easier to filter and monitor so you can interact with the right people to build your network. There are several out there (HootSuite, TweetDeck, Seesmic), and they vary in price and functionality. Try them all out and find that one that works best for your needs.
What strategies do you use to manage Twitter?
(photo by Official U.S. Navy Imagery, on Flickr)