Social networking and widgets have been called the root of Web 3.0.  In the next few weeks I am going to explain and demystify the endless social networking sites and how they can be useful to your business. My descriptions will start out short and sweet but then they will evolve with deeper definitions and video showing how they work and why they do or don’t matter to you.

First up: Twitter.

a. What is Twitter? Twitter is a micro-blogging service that allows users to send short text based posts to the Twitter website, via cell phone, instant messaging, or a third-party application such as Facebook. On the other end, friends sign-up to “follow you” receiving updates whenever you post them. For those familiar with Facebook, it is very similar to “Status Update”.

b. How can Twitter be useful to me or my business? While company’s certainly don’t want to spam their followers, Twittering can be very useful in conveying timely information. Companies could take advantage of Twittering by:
i. Sharing new product launch info or even “leak” pre-product launch info to its followers.
ii. Announcing upcoming events, coupons or special offers, or web site updates.
iii. Reminding fans when a new show will premiere.

c. Twitter Bottom Line: Twitter is a great way to keep your most loyal customers/fans in the know with insider information. Be authentic and relevant and only share information you think will benefit the user. Twitter has a huge user base and it is rapidly growing.