Microblogging is a networking service that allows mobile users of cell phones and other Internet connected devices to stay abreast of activities within a group by receiving frequent published updates, typically of 140 characters or less. Text messages are uploaded to a microblogging service such as Twitter, Jaiku and others, then distributed to group members. All parties subscribed in the targeted group are instantly notified of the microblog, enabling groups to keep tabs on one another’s activities in real time. A Microblog can also be public, with arbitrary subscribers joining and dropping microblogs at will.
Microblogging is quickly becoming one of the most popular technologies on the Internet with adoption of tools like Twitter growing at an exponential rate.
As the number of people using these technologies grows, the way people take advantage of them is becoming more sophisticated: they are being used more and more as a business tool. This article explains what microblogging is and introduces the most popular microblog sites. It discusses how these are being used from a business and marketing perspective and provides tips on safe and effective use of these forums.
Here are seven micro-blogging tips I’ve developed from personal experience, after using these platforms for a few months.
1. Build a Strong Network of Friends
- People will only receive your updates when they add you as a friend. Your main goal is to get as many people to befriend you as possible. The more friends you have, the bigger your network and the increased potential for secondary links or traffic.
One common way to get more friends is to go around adding everyone you come across. This brute force method is practiced by some and it will work because some users will befriend you, even if they don’t know who you are.
Bear in mind that this practice can be fairly irritating to most regular users of the micro-blogging service.
2. Synchronize Updates with your Website
- Most microblogging services allow you to put badges or widgets on your site to show your latest updates and they might be useful for getting more followers. They can be particularly useful for first time visitors who reach your site through a search engine.
You can also set up your blog to send new blog posts as updates into your microblog. I personally don’t think syncing is really necessary in order to build up your microblogging network but it does have some benefit.
3. Develop a Natural User Profile
- Some of the people I follow have links pointing to their website in every update and I do think that can be a turn-off for some users. My own Twitter account is a bad example because I’ve only used it to insert links to blog posts on Dosh Dosh.
Try to update with interesting stuff and make your account look like its actually written by a human instead of a auto-linking bot.
4. One Account Vs. Multiple Accounts
- I would recommend focusing on building one strong account because it requires too much work to establish several accounts. You can however, create an individual automated account/micro-blog for each website you own.
Sync your website with each specific micro-blog so that your new articles will show up as updates. This allows you to get traffic from a handful of users over time.
Maintain one strong profile for your personal brand or flagship site and use it occasionally to direct traffic to your other websites.
5. Cross Post Your Updates
- If you have accounts in different micro-blogging platforms, you can choose to post to most of them simultaneously in order to save time. This can be done via a simple hack as outlined in this article.
6. Network with Other Users
- Services like Twitter and Pownce allow you to send private messages to friends. Sending them a simple message about their updates only takes less than a minute and it’s a fast way to say hi and start a relationship.
There are a fair number of authority bloggers on these services and this is a great way to communicate with them directly.
7. Ask Questions for Information
- If you already have a substantial number of friends following your updates, you can start posting questions to acquire information and recommendations on specific topics of interest.
Questions can also be asked to acquire feedback on your websites or a possible course of action.They are also a great way to generate interaction and responses from your network of friends and fans.
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