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Are You Getting A Lot Out Of Twitter?

I don’t think a week passes when I don’t read some blogger’s story about how much Twitter has helped them get more blog subscribers, traffic to their site or sites or opened up tons of opportunities for them.

The thing that disturbs me about these posts is that it seems to me that these people already had a large following and getting on Twitter just gave them a new 140-character avenue to stay in touch with an established fan base.

Before I say another word, I want to be clear about one thing: I think anybody involved in internet marketing needs to go as wide as possible and test and evaluate any method of expanding their following. The problem is that one size doesn’t fit all and one method doesn’t work equally well for marketers at all levels

Don’t get me wrong-I have been extremely lax on Twitter during my current active site development phase. Likewise for this blog. What I’m saying is my own Twitter use has not been the kind that would benefit from the service if it really did help people do all the things listed above.

I need your help evaluating the effectiveness of Twitter across the board. Please use the comment area below to answer as many of the following questions that apply to you:

  1. How many times on average per day do you post updates to your Twitter account?
  2. Has your traffic or subscribers jumped remarkably in the last three months as a direct result of your Twitter activity?
  3. Has Twitter replaced any other traffic source (using whatever site statistics package you employ) in the same period of time?
  4. Have you made contact with any high-profile Twitter users that resulted in increased business for you?
  5. Overall, how would you rate Twitter’s effectiveness for your business?

As I said above, my gut feeling is that while Twitter can open doors for everybody the people receiving the greatest benefit from it are people who are already well known in the online world or blogosphere. I also think it’s way too easy to use it just because it “can’t hurt”. Our time is too precious to spend time on any activity we don’t see measurable returns from.

Please take just a couple of minutes and let me know how you feel.

Best,

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[tags]social media,twitter,twitter followers,twitter traffic[/tags]

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. 1. 5-10 times a day
    2. Traffic has increased across the board but its not a HUGE jump.
    3. No.
    4.Yes – and I think this is one of Twitter's biggest benefits.
    5. 7/10 – I use it mostly for relationship building rather than a direct traffic source.

  2. Hi Katherine,

    Thanks for responding and letting me know how Twitter is working for you.

    How do you use it to build relationships? Direct messages? Simply posting quality links? How do you get the attention of the people you are trying to reach?

    Jeff

  3. Hey Jeff!

    Twitter is a great resource and relationship building network. I so agree with you that it's especially helpful for those who already have a large following and takes a “small fry” longer to build up their Twitter mojo. However…

    In using Twitter I have seen some very good benefits. To answer your questions I would say that;

    1. I try to post daily, and when I'm following my plan up to 10 times a day, but have been very busy lately that I haven't had the chance to.

    2. Traffic has increased to my blog, and participation has gone up, but don't think it's a huge jump. I do believe that if I was a bigger “name” that would probably be a much different answer.

    3. No Twitter has not replaced any other traffic source.

    4. I have made some contacts, but it seems that the Twitter elite like to stay amongst themselves and don't have time for a Superman loving regular guy. The contacts I have made though are down to earth, personable, and straight forward. My working relationship, which is turning into a great personal relationship, with my Twitter contacts is better than some clients I've had for years.

    5. I don't know if I'd go as far as rating it with numbers but to say that Twitter is invaluable for building a web presence, building relationships, meeting new people, and for personal accountability.

    Hope your new site is coming along great!

  4. Hi Tim,

    You've hit the nail on the head. So far, my experience has been that the “Elite” do stick to themselves but I also agree that doesn't keep regular guys like you and me from forming meaningful professional and personal relationships.

    It does still frustrate me a bit that the very people telling everybody to get on Twitter and follow them often are the same ones that respond to nobody except their exclusive circle. I understand you can't respond to everybody if you've got 5,000 people following you. Ed Dale's video breaking down how long it would take him to respond to even 3,000 meant he would have to spend the better part of a day just responding to them.

    I've been following Caroline Middlebrook's lead and working hard to build up my StumbleUpon profile and sphere of influence. This has had a direct effect on my traffic and I'm also building relationships.

    I'm ready to put the site up this week and just have a few last minute tweaks before she's live.

    Glad to hear you're back in the swing of things after vacation. Hope it was a good one.

    Thanks for giving me your insights.

    Jeff

  5. 1. 3-5/day
    2. Haven't used it that long but no for the last month
    3. No
    4. Not that has resulted in more business but I have connected with some big Twitter users.
    5. 8/10

    I think its a great service for building relationships. The important part is to follow and try to be followed by the right people. It takes time, don't just mass follow everyone because besides being bad for the site your page will just be filled with tweets you have no interest in.
    Things I have found it most useful for are hearing about live interviews online or tv, new sites, thought provoking questions, and just building relationships with fellow entrepreneurs.

  6. Hi Jared,

    Thanks for your thoughts about Twitter.

    It looks like your experience has been much like other users in that they've been able to connect with some great contacts but it hasn't yet replaced a traffic source or been directly attributable for an increase in business.

    So my take is as long as it's kept in perspective, it can be a useful tool in your toolbox.

    Jeff

  7. Hi Jared,

    Thanks for your thoughts about Twitter.

    It looks like your experience has been much like other users in that they've been able to connect with some great contacts but it hasn't yet replaced a traffic source or been directly attributable for an increase in business.

    So my take is as long as it's kept in perspective, it can be a useful tool in your toolbox.

    Jeff

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