I have to admit, like many others I was a total skeptic of Twitter when it first came out. After visiting the site and reading what it was all about, I was still confused and therefore decided that it was dumb.
Fast forward to today and I not only have an account, but it is among the first sites I visit each morning and where I now make daily updates. So why they change of heart? Here are a few reasons why having a Twitter account can help you professionally and a few tips for starters.
Twitter essentially is a micro-blogging forum that allows for users to post short, 140-character blurbs on what they doing, reading, working on, etc. You have the ability to design your own background, upload a photo, provide a brief bio and place a link to your site. You won’t have “friends”, you will have “Followers” and your updates are called “Tweets”.
Some people use Twitter to provide the world with an updated status of what they eat, when they nap, who they are mad at or how great they are. I don’t follow these people. The ones that I do follow update their status with useful information, blog updates and online marketing related content.
So why do I find Twitter useful? There are several reasons. The first is that it is a great way to connect with people in your industry and share ideas, resources and contacts. Twitter has helped improve my networking and stay in touch with people that I don’t see on a regular basis, or ever for that matter.
The second reason is that it is an easy way to stay up-to-date with online trends. It also has a search feature, so it can double as a live search engine.
Lastly, Twitter is helpful with branding, SEO and site traffic. My profile has a link to this blog and I get a large majority of my visits here from Twitter. You can use it to grow traffic to your site and get your name known. For SEO purposes, you can focus on certain keywords and build links.
So if you think this could help you, you can sign up here. If not, at least now you know what it is.
Also, if you already have an account, be sure to follow Epicenter: @EpiKim, @EpiMonica, @EpiGarrett
Twitter is one of the best traffic generators out there. Almost as good as search traffic.