Using Twitter To Spark Discussion

Having been adopted by such celebrities as Oprah, Ashton Kutcher, and Shaquille O’Neal has made Twitter into the current rockstar of the Social Media services. Even with all this exposure, there are still two questions that are constantly being asked regarding the service…

What Is Twitter?

Twitter is a service that delivers text based messages 140 characters at a time. When it was originally founded and made public in 2006 (11 months before the 2007 release of the popular iPhone) the service bridged the gap of communication between the web and mobile cell users using the Short Message Service (SMS) feature of their phones. It was the 140 character limit that enabled this compatibility.

In a few short months, Twitter became the defacto watercooler for the Internet. It allowed users to update their “status” that their friends would subscribe to, and vice versa. It enables users to hold conversations utilizing the at symbol (@) before the Twitter Username indicating a reply, thread conversations using the pound symbol (#), and re-broadcast a message using RT @TwitterUsername (message).

One of the things that has endeared users to Twitter is it’s history of feature updates based on how the users actually utilize the service. Replying, re-tweeting, and threading by hashtag all began through user habits and were added into the feature set of the service later on.

How Can I Use Twitter Effectively?

Here are some initial actions for you to take in using Twitter:

• Sign up for a Twitter Account
• Add yourself to the WeFollow Directory using tags appropriate for your Agency:
  • EMS Tweeters
  • Firefighting Tweeters
  • Police Tweeters
  • Hospital Tweeters
  • Emergency Management Tweeters
  • Emergency Preparedness Tweeters
    
• Subscribe to the top 25 Tweeters in your categories and your location
• Import the RSS Feed from your Hub into Twitter using Twitter Feed to drive traffic back to your Hub
• Follow @smpiotraining and send us a message

After you have established your Twitter presence it is important to interact with the community by engaging in conversation and providing relevant content. If someone asks a question that you know the answer then go right ahead and answer it. Ask questions yourself to spark conversations and build content for your Hub from them.

@EveryDayEMSTips is constantly sparking conversation by asking questions and then delivering the answers in unique and valuable content to their readers not necessarily involved with Twitter

Twitter Resources

• The Twitter Blog – The official blog by the Twitter team
• Twitter Status – Status of the service features and availability
• TwiTip – Blog chock full of Twitter Tips
• Twitter Tips, Tricks, and Tweets – A paperback guide to Twitter
• Facebook’s Twitter App – a Twitter application for your Facebook account

To get the most out of this series it is highly recommended that you sign up for our Free E-Mail Social Media Bootcamp if you haven’t done so already since we will be referencing techniques and terms introduced in that program

Related posts:

1. 3 Free Tools For Measuring Twitter Success
2. Some Tips For Using Twitter During #Crisis
3. Northwest Ambulance Service Brings Public For Ride-A-Longs Via Twitter