So, I succumbed to the Twitter phenomenon, and I have to tell you – I think there's something to it. But more on that later. If you're a small business feeling the need to learn in this last phase of the early adoption of Twitter (similar to those who got on Facebook over a year ago – now it's standard and you're losing money if you're not there…), I compiled some great reading material that's helped me get a pretty good jumpstart in less than a week there. By the way, there are folks like furniture stores (@furniture) and dry cleaners (@thedrycleaner) on there. There's a reason… read up and consider your strategy for making the most of Twitter.
Random reading about Twitter and small business:
Seriously, there's a dry cleaner on there. Ann Handley pontificated beautifully on the subject earlier this week.
First you'll need to know what a "re-tweet" actually is. I recommend just downloading "Tweetdeck because it manages the madness – and allows quick "re-tweet-ing". (Which is sorta just like forwarding an e-mail.). But once you get the "re-tweet" concept, here are some tips for making it successful for you.
Check out Twickie. This isn't reading material, it's another service. But I watched Robert Scoble use Twickie the other night and it was really terrific – especially if you're another blogger or writer who wishes to compile content – or a business owner or non-profit exec who wants to poll via Twitter and quickly compile responses…
How Twitter Can Help at Work – New York Times article
Once you get started on Twitter, you might decide you want to see where you've been and predict where you're going. For that privilege, simply use TwitterCounter.
Download John Jantsch's Twitter for Business guide… his stuff is always worthy of a read.
Last but not least, for some pithy comments and frank banter on the Twitter phenom, check out this chat with marketing genius and straight talker Guy Kawasaki as he describes his own Twitter habits.
