The rapid growth of Twitter in the past year has many people talking about this phenomenal social media platform. Many companies, celebrities, sports figures and politicians are establishing their Twitter ID’s. Some go on to effectively mass large followings, while others never seem to get off the ground.

When discussing Twitter with others for the first time, many often ask questions like “What can I do with it?” “Why do I want to know what someone had for lunch?” or the big one, “How will this help me make money?” These types of questions reveal a need for a paradigm shift in the power of the web.

In an the article “Twitter As Flashpoint for the Attention Economy” by Andrew Keen (http://tinyurl.com/d4×9yv) (thanks for the RT @twitter_tips), Keen elaborates on what has been coined “the attention economy.” The idea is that the “flow of attention” replaces money as the currency of the internet. It is from this idea of the “flow of attention” that I believe the many question of what is the power of twitter can be answered in one word – Influence. Let me explain.

According to Dictionary.Com, Influence is: “the capacity or power of persons or things to be a compelling force on or produce effects on the actions, behavior, opinions, etc., of others:” If I can summarize, it is the ability to get others to act in a desired way.

The power of twitter is based on the influence you can develop with your followers. It is structuring your tweets so you are engaging, relevant and compelling, creating an authentic relationship with them. Once established, when you issue a thought or make a suggestion, many of your followers will respond. Whether it is a call to social or political action, community involvement, philanthropic giving, ministry or just plain fun, your level of influence will determine it’s success.

So what’s Twitter all about? – Influence

Martin Schmaltz (www.twitter.com/socmediastuff & www.SocialMediaStuff.com) is an entrepreneur, motivator and social medial small business strategist. His favorite office is the local Starbucks.

Many “com­pa­nies turn to social net­works to show their lead­er­ship in their field, to find new poten­tial cus­tomers by com­mu­ni­cat­ing with the com­mu­nity, to receive cus­tomer feed­back and give cus­tomer ser­vice. There’s no bet­ter tool these days than Twit­ter to han­dle real-time cus­tomer ser­vice issues.”

Read more about B2B use of social media: click here

“For the third consecutive year, the Center for Marketing Research at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth has conducted a study that looks at the usage of social media among Inc. 500 companies. The 2009 results confirm that America’s fastest growing private companies adopt social media marketing initiatives at much higher rates than other companies, and that interest in social media has grown since the first study was conducted in 2007.”

Click below for full article
Study: Inc. 500 CEOs Aggressively Use Social Media for Business.

A great resource on how to use twitter for marketing your business. Published by By Marko Saric of HowToMakeMyBlog.com

Great guide for basic set up and use of Twitter for business.
Not sure of the source, possibly twitter itself. Published here intact

I recently read a blog post by Seth Godin (Click here) who describes why it can be so difficult for organizations to use social media. Basically he communicates: it is because social media is process oriented and traditional businesses think events.

One of the steps to achieve some of my midrange goals was to get involved in the real-estate market. I studied, passed the exam and went on to spend a short time as a Realtor. It was a great educational experience. From this experience I learned one thing: to be successful, think long term.

A common term to the real-estate industry is “farming:” which means to pick a particular neighborhood or market and become the expert there. Just as a farmer plants the seed, waters and fertilizes a field: the realtor is to do the same in their “farm” neighborhood.

This farming is done by numerous methods to establish you as an expert and keep your name in front of the families living in the “farm” neighborhood. The harvest happens when they or a friend desire to buy or sell, they will think of you.

The same applies to business and social media: there must be a process mentality and “farm” their social media network. The “farmer” businessperson will plant the seeds of information regarding their products, watering with examples of application and fertilizing by testimonies and examples. Then when the “seeds” mature, they seek to harvest the sale.

The “farmer” businessperson must grasp the concept: “You will reap what you sow.”

Great thought on social media and customer service.
Lead with your glass jaw
– Seth Godin
Here’s one way businesses can profit from a social media presence:

Make it easy to get hurt.

If you’re in a low trust industry (like car sales), a social media presence dramatically increases the opportunity people have to call you out, beat you up, tattle on you and flame you in public. If you have a Facebook page and people can YELL at you there, for all to see, it makes you vulnerable. Do you really think that a Chris or a Guy or Gary is going to risk ripping you off for consulting or wine? No way. Too easy for someone to post a comeback for all to see.

When your staff sees how much power you’ve given random consumers, they’ll freak. And then, magically, they’ll start treating customers differently, because maybe, just maybe, this customer is the one who’s going to use the power. Suddenly, the answer to, “do you know who I am!!” is, “yes sire, forgive me.”

It might not be comfortable, but you can bet it will build trust.

Original Article Here