‘Twitter
Power: How to Dominate Your Market One Tweet at a Time’
by
Joel Comm
Lately, you’re feeling
like a bit of a birdbrain.
Some time ago, somebody told you
to get a MySpace page, so your business got one. Then, you were told you needed
a Facebook page, and you got one of those. Now,
everybody is all a-Twitter and you just don’t get it.
You’ve got lots of room
on those social sites, and you can add as much content as you want. So how can
you possibly post anything of real importance on a Web site in 140 typed
characters or less?
Furthermore, is anybody
truly interested in the mundane details of your day?
Yes, says author Joel
Comm. In his new book “Twitter Power.”
Comm shows readers how to advance their
businesses and careers in a few tweet moves.
You already know about
the power of the Web. If you’ve ever used one of those social sites, you know
how fun and addicting they can be. Comm says that microblogging — such as Twitter — is fun too and can also
prod your creativity because they have content limits.
Becoming a Twitterer is simple and begins with the sign-up page. Enter
your name and your e-mail address, but be careful choosing a username. Make it
easy to remember so people can find you, don’t do anything too clever and try
to somehow tie it to your business or Web site.
Now that you’re
registered, you can begin tweeting right away, but you probably shouldn’t.
First, finish your Twitter homepage with a photo, a brief bio and links to your
Web site. Once you’re done with that, be sure you understand Twitter etiquette
so you don’t turn away potential followers, then give
your followers something interesting to read.
Getting followers can
be easy: just follow someone else, or join in a conversation. Comm believes that the beauty of Twitter is that it’s a
series of real-time, simultaneous conversations between millions of people. If
used properly and creatively, some of them could become your new customers.
I’ve been on Twitter
for nearly a year (@bookwormsez) but didn’t use it
much. It was just … there. So, I thought I’d see what happened when I used some
of author Joel Comm’s advice.
Admittedly, I was skeptical.
But I updated and upgraded my Twitter page just a little bit, and darned if my
followings didn’t go up 30 percent in less than 5 hours.
While this book is
obviously useful and very easy to follow, the one thing I noticed and that Comm fails to point out is that all this takes time, lots
of it, even more, if you’re not completely tech-savvy.
No doubt about it,
tweeting is fun, but if done the way Comm suggests,
the preliminaries may turn some time-starved businesspeople away.
Still, this book offers
many ideas you may not have considered on your own as well as plenty of
convincing success stories. So, if you’re tired of pecking around online with
no results, read it. “Twitter Power” may give your business new wings.
“Twitter Power: How to Dominate
Your Market One Tweet at a Time” by Joel Comm
c.2009, Wiley • $24.95 / $29.95
Canada
245 pages, includes index