Do you twitter more to market yourself or for fun?

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Permalink Reply by Emma Marlow on March 26, 2009 at 8:30pm

I have an online fairy store and at first I joined twitter to help market that. But, I have found that I would rather tweet about things that are really happening in my life and not my business stuff so much. That is probaly a blessing! I do seem to stop following people if they are tweeting about every little thing. You know the ones, they seem to have like 20 tweets a day. What is up with that? Are they really that bored that they have to jam up our pages with thier crap?

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Permalink Reply by Karen Stinchfield on March 27, 2009 at 11:41am

I use twitter for both. I don't post tweets very often, only when I feel like sharing something personal or have a good busines tip. I do love reading other peoples tweets though. I think it's great to be able to have all these connections with people, even if you don't know them personally.
I have noticed an increase in my website activity since I have been social networking. My last google report showed my site visits up over 200%.
Karen
bellaandgracies.com
bellaandgracies.com/blog

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Permalink Reply by Baby Green Sprout on March 27, 2009 at 1:31pm

I use Twitter for both. I sign-up for marketing exposure but join other groups as a mom.

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Permalink Reply by Kristen Andrews: Featured Contributor of Style on March 28, 2009 at 6:12am

I do a combo of both probably 50/50 what I do is such a part of who I am so I can't avoid promoting my biz.

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Permalink Reply by JLGergen on March 28, 2009 at 1:33pm

I use it for both and visit to see what others are saying.

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Permalink Reply by Lisa Marsh on March 29, 2009 at 4:21am

I use Twitter mostly to educate myself about the fast-paced world of (in)fertility; what people are experiencing and feeling, what support is available, how the medical field is responding to the emotional needs of men and women under their care, and new research and treatments that become available. I also like to plug in to what is going on with women in the U.S., what their style is, where they live, what the political mood is, where to go on vacation, etc... because I am American, but I have lived in the U.K. for 14 years now. Sometimes I just miss "home."

When I tweet, I mainly follow the formula suggested to me by a social networking expert: add value for your followers 80% and market yourself 20%. So, I mostly tweet about articles I have written or read that I believe are of value to others, any events (of any type...fun at a seminar or museum, day out with friends, free stuff) of which I have heard or participated and nice things someone has done for me. Nothing extremely personal. I also help others raise their profile, so if I have attended a great teleseminar or event, I let others know about the person who ran it. All of this lets other Tweeters know who you are and what you offer, and gives you authenticity and credibility. Less than 20% of the time, I put something in about what I do professionally as a "family-building" coach, actually asking if people need more focused, confidential support from me in face-to-face or telephone sessions. If a Follower already likes what I have to say, they might re-tweet my info or alert someone they know who could use my services.

I have to admit that I was very cautious with Twitter and even Facebook at first. I followed others for several days first so I would get an idea of how far to open up. I made a rule for myself not to show photos of my children or use their names in my Tweets and Facebook updates. I only refer to them in general. It's a safety issue for me.

If anyone wants to know how to access free teleseminars (like a 1-hour class on the telephone), message me and I will alert you when the next one comes up. They have been fantastic for quickly educating me from the cosy comfort of my home.

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Permalink Reply by Abby - monkeybeans.ca on March 30, 2009 at 9:12am

I do both! Our business is so much fun that I cant differentiate sometimes if I'm twittering for work or fun :)

Check us out - monkeybeans.ca

Abby

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Permalink Reply by jazzy on March 30, 2009 at 2:22pm

I use it for both, its great to build relationships with people, I find they are more likely to read your blog posts...

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Permalink Reply by Ashton Crew on March 31, 2009 at 9:07am

I'm very new to twitter and I don't make anything with my blog, so it's all just fun for me really. "Marketing" is too much pressure for me... especially since I don't have much to market except my own brand of craziness. :P

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Permalink Reply by Linda Coughlin on March 31, 2009 at 10:28am

yes, definitly all marketing. my blog tomorrow is entitled promosexual i heard the term last year, wshi had done the follow thru:PROMOSEXUAL
( definition: the act of promoting oneself through the use of media hype, facebook, twitter and such)
Last year, in January, The New York Times ran a story on Clay Aiken who, at the time, was appearing on Broadway in Spamalot, a hilarious show and a great vehicle for Aiken to debut on Broadway. When I first read the story, where I first saw the term, Promosexual, the term intrigued me. However, today, when I think of the term . . .
I think TWITTER. Twitter is a reality phenomenon. It is a tool to let others (followers, prospective and actual) know what you are doing and to get feedback from the world at large on what they are doing - - what matters to them, sometimes on a minute by minute basis.
As business owners, we all want to let people know what we are doing, but this lightening fast 140 bites of info can distill down your activity and drive business to your site (if what you are doing is interesting). I am not sure why anyone would want to know that you are changing your socks (or what color they are or where you bought them), but there are those that are so highly promosexual they believe the most mundane of thoughts is twitterable!
I recently came across more info on Twitter and other social interaction applications at www.easytwittercash.com which turned me on to a minimum of seven different twitter apps that could improve my knowledge of Twitter. So, I spent a few hours today, learning about things like www.strawpollnow.com (a fun app for adding a poll to your twitter), and twitter feed, a blog application.
So, when, in the last few months, have I so enjoyed over two hours on the Web? Go ahead promote yourself at twitter and at www.paralelles.com! Move Over New York Times!!!

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Permalink Reply by Annette Johnson on March 31, 2009 at 1:14pm

I'm fairly new to Twitter, and have been thinking/wondering the same things and I think my use is the worst sort of combination and it leads to maybe some confusion of my followers.

I'm a web/art student and I only have 15 followers, so I have trouble, too... thinking about if I'm writing to talk to them or express what's going on within me. I'm currently working on getting my blog set up and I'm nervous about that, too. Like, how much of my daughter do I include - does it all need to be 'professional' or does everything sort of cross-apply?

My idea is that if I am just unabashedly myself, I will attract the job that is most suited for who I am, but sometimes, when I see how organized and put together other people are/can be, I wonder if I'm doing the right thing.

I haven't exactly figured out how I use twitter. Since my 'twitter community' is so small, maybe its offering a piece of my inner-self so that my followers are invested in my work?

I'd be interested in more of your thoughts.

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Permalink Reply by RachelApop on March 31, 2009 at 2:35pm

For me, I use twitter as a networking tool. Most of the people that I follow on twitter are people that I do not know personally, but are great for networking.

I love to learn new and interesting things from people all over the world, and I think twitter is doing a great job as far as bringing people together for communication exchange.

:)

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