If you don’t get Twitter or still think it’s a waist of time perhaps this post will enlighten you. I still run into others out there who just don’t get it… this is for them.

As a former Twitter skeptic, I can say I didn’t really understand what Twitter was about at first myself. It seemed to me that I didn’t really need to know what all my friends were doing at every point and time. Now I see that there is more uses for Twitter. I think it is a valuable tool for any company who wants to boost their on-line presence.

Top misconceptions about Twitter.

• Having to read every tweet
  You don’t need to catch it all. You can’t really. Just scan the tweets sometime and follow what you’re interested in.
• Needing to care about people’s trivial tweets
  Some people tweet about random nothingness, others tweet about information, most tweeters are in the middle. If you don’t like someone’s tweet style, unfollow them.
• Needing to spend hours on Twitter
  Spending a few minutes a day can help you keep connected and can be a great way to break into new arenas.

10 Great uses for Twitter

1. Tap into new markets and meet new people.

   You can’t be everywhere at one time but you can connect with people from all over the place on Twitter. You can even connect with people who you’d never get a chance to connect with any other way such as CEOs, business owners and celebrities.

2. Discover new resources and connections.
   

   That is one of the great things that I found out really quickly on Twitter. You can meet new people and find out new tools or web sites that you probably would have never found out on your own.

3. See real feedback on products/brands/services.
   

   Instead of getting information about how great a product is from the company that made it, read what people are saying in Twitter in real-time.

4. Get answers to questions.
   

   Have a question you need an answer to  shout it to your twitter followers and get replies. If your tweet doesn’t get much response, try connecting with people directly. Example, does anyone know a program that would edit pictures for less than $100. > Pixelator….

5. Get new ideas from others in the Twittersphere.

   There are so many great ideas going on all the time with Twitter. Search a particular topic and see what the buzz on the topic is. Chances are you’ll get some ideas about the topic that you hadn’t thought of before.

6. Create a dialog and connection with your followers / clients.

   See what your followers / clients are up to. You may catch one of there tweets that mentions they’re in need of a service or are having an event. By following them you’ll be in the loop to what’s going on in their world.

7. Self Promotion.

   If you have a company, blog or personal project that could benefit from people checking it out. You can use Twitter to share your stuff with others. Just don’t abuse Twitter with spam, people don’t like it and won’t follow you.

8. Get breaking news and read interesting articles.

   See what’s going on in the world in regards to various topics. Remember you don’t need to read them all but you can do a quick scan and catch a lot of things. Following the news, weather, shows, celebrities, blogs and other tweeters can be fun and interesting.

9. Get feedback from ideas before putting them into action.

   If you have an idea that may take time to execute or money to invest, perhaps you could get a little feedback from some Twitter followers before you take the plunge. Example if you’re creating an ad to run in a magazine maybe you’d want to get several ideas together and then share with your followers. See what get’s the best response, you may be surprised.

10. Share news in little bite-size clusters.

    Creating good blog content takes time and effort. Tweeting takes seconds to do and can get ideas across really easy.

Remember to:

• Have fun
• Be yourself
• Engage with others

There are plenty more reasons to use Twitter but this should be enough to get you going.

Helpful links:

• 60+ Twitter Tools: http://mashable.com/2007/09/29/twitter-toolbox/
• Firefox Twitter Toolbar: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/4664
• Tweet Deck: http://tweetdeck.com
• Tweet Deck Video Tutorial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRpZLQhq7ig

Next I’m working on some YouTube videos showcasing some Twitter Techniques, subscribe to http://youtube.com/keytheory or http://facebook.com/keytheory to keep up to date with new posts.