3 Wonderfully Useful Ways to Use Twitter
Twitter has been around since 2006, but it's still difficult for many to understand how or why they should use it. You may feel like it's just more noise or provides no real benefit for your everyday life. One of the main reasons for this perception is because it's such a broad tool that it can be used in so many different ways.Twitter offers a platform of engagement that gives you the power to choose what you follow and who you communicate with that can be surprisingly helpful.Here are 3 of the most useful ways Twitter can work for you.
1. Customer Support
Businesses have phone support with frustrating automated options, and when you try to contact the business via their website it could take a long time for a response. Use Twitter instead for customer support. Companies often have dedicated social media people ready to help, with an expectation of a quick response time. Next time you have an issue with a flight or have a question about a product, try contacting the business through Twitter first.Tip: Some larger companies have a dedicated support Twitter account different than their general company one. Search for the business name in the search bar and options for the company will pop-up.
2. Expert Access
Ever been reading a book and wanted to ask an author a question? Congratulate your favorite sports player on their big win? Twitter can connect you to that person as if they were one of your phone contacts. You'd be surprized that many people will often respond back to you.Find your expert’s twitter account using the search bar. Once you are on his or her profile page, click ‘Tweet’. In the compose tweet box, you should see their name appear after an @ symbol. Now simply compose your message after his or her name. You only have 140 characters, so get creative with spelling and abbreviations.Tip: Before you tweet, be sure to read the person’s description under their profile to confirm that they are the real account. A check mark next to their name also helps verify their identity.
3. Immediate Emergency Coverage
During emergencies and emerging stories, you can follow live updates straight from eyewitness accounts by finding the #hashtag surrounding the story. A hashtag is a keyword with a # symbol in front of it. Hashtags let Twitter organize topics easily. You can click on a hashtag to see all related tweets.A quick story. There was a crash in the D.C. Metro. I was in Wyoming, but my girlfriend worked in D.C. and took the subway every day to work. I saw a news alert that a train crash happened, and before the news media reported anything, I was able to find out through Twitter that the crash happened on a line she didn’t take for her commute. I was instantly relieved.Disclaimer: You will have to sift through a lot of noise, rumors, and unrelated information. This is the raw feed but it can be very useful.
What Twitter Isn't and Is
The biggest confusion about Twitter comes from new users who sign up and follow a bunch of friends, news organizations, and celebrities. They look at their feed and it's just a bunch of mixed up thoughts all jumbled together. It's like sitting in a busy restaurant with everyone yelling out their immediate thoughts. You would leave the restaurant.Twitter is the raw output from millions of different people. To participate, but not be overwhelmed, it helps to approach it with intention. Twitter is best utilized when you zero-in on a specific industry, topic, or current event you are most interested to make your experience your own and one that is most helpful to you.Happy tweeting!Want a practice run at tweeting? Tweet us at @EdwinHelp with topics you'd like us to cover in the future.