DESCRIPTION
Twitter is the world’s most popular microblogging site. Users share real time thoughts in 140 character bites. The service has changed the way people communicate and share on the web. While its been credited with everything from oversharing to coordinating revolutions, the service offers libraries a unique opportunity to connect directly with users. Learn how to find out what people are saying about your library, respond and create a buzz for your library or library special event.TRANSCRIPT
Attribution: dbarefoot
http://www.slideshare.net/chadmairn
@cmairn
Twitter asks “what’s happening” and makes the answer spread across the
globe to millions, immediately.
Source: http://goo.gl/st9DH
Some Terminology
• Twitter - a free social networking and micro-blogging service that enables users to send and read messages known as tweets.
• Tweet - text-based post of up to 140 characters displayed on the author's profile page and delivered to the author's followers.
• Tweeple – Twitter people, Twitter members, Twitter users.
• Tweetup - Twitter meetups.
• RT / Retweet – when you repeat a tweet from someone else.Can be considered citing a source. (RT @mashable Twitter's 1,928 Percent Growth and Other Notable Social Media Stats http://awe.sm/XNu)
• @replies – when someone replies to @yourtwitterusername (aka, handle). The more @replies you have the higher your Twitter influence.
Why should I care?
• Create an account and find out. Experience Twitter!
• Share ideas and events. Spread your message easily!
• Connect with people and ideas. Bring in new users who may never find your services otherwise.
• Think creatively and be the trend setter. Make Twitter whatever you want it to do or be.
• Discovery tool! Follow trends via #hashtags, twitturly.com, twitscoop.com, search.twitter.com, etc. and re-tweet them and/or comment on them.
Why Should I Care?
• Can be used to help circulate news before major news outlets do it.
• Find people you know and follow them. Look at people they know and if they are interesting, then follow them too.
• Associated Press Stylebook added “Twitter” and “Texting” to the latest edition. Follow them @APStylebook.
• Tweet about company successes and flaws. You will be amazed how quickly some companies reply.
• I “attend” conferences even though I am not really there by following hashtags (e.g., #ALA2011).
• This is not an exhaustive list. There are tons more that you can do with Twitter.
Finding People to Follow
• Search by name• Find users via email account• Discover common interests at wefollow.com• Explore your friend’s friends
Do you really need to know what
everyone is doing all the time?
Twitter helps people share and connect ideas. You can also find people that will help you discover new things! Kind of like a library, right?
Clive Thompson (AKA, @pomeranian99) mentions “ambient awareness” in that “each little update — each individual bit of social information — is insignificant on its own, even supremely mundane. But taken together, over time, the little snippets coalesce into a surprisingly sophisticated portrait of your friends’ and family members’ lives, like thousands of dots making a pointillist painting” – filled with blended color and meaning.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/07/magazine/07awareness-t.html?
How can you use Twitter?
I use Twitter to connect with other users and to share content and ideas. I discover something new and useful every day thanks to Twitter!
Note: only 138 characters (with spaces)
Mentions, re-tweets, follows etc.
Expand a tweet for more information (e.g., location)
Searches and Lists
Tweet As A Group Using CoTweet
Block and Report Spam
Give colleagues and customers the option to send direct messages to your Twitter account. It is another way for
them to stay in contact with you!
Tweet issues and get replies and sometimes fixes
Find out what is trending on Twitter and support/enhance it with authoritative resources.
The U.S. Congressional Twitter Directory, http://goo.gl/s1sVZ
New Congressional Committee Must Put National Interest First. http://bit.ly/qUrYJr)
Follow industry leaders and reach out to them.
St. Pete Times article: http://goo.gl/bMi1D
Tweeted Jedi Path video: http://goo.gl/bwSTu
You can auto-populate your ShareSquare space
with Tweets!
Twitter Groups (i.e., Twibes) I belong to: librarians, EdTech, and Drummers.
Try using
for class conversations!
Use class #hashtags#cts1101
What are #hashtags?
.org/
A hashtag is a “convention for adding additional context and metadata to your tweets.” They are basically tags to help better organize tweets. (e.g., The next tweets are the main points from my Pecha Kucha session “Strategies for the Mobile Future of Libraries” at
#CIL2009 #mobilelib)
For more information check out: http://mashable.com/2009/05/17/twitter-hashtags/
Create Lists
Build a widget (http://twitter.com/about/resources/widgets), then create a new page in a CMS or website by simply pasting code.
Promote library news via various channels --
Library Blog, Twitter,
Toolbars, etc.
You can use Yahoo Pipes or other mashup tools to create new/useful content for your users.
This Pipe looks complex (and it is), but you can easily clone Pipes based around Twitter and modify them for your use.
This pipe searches Twitter and returns the results with the username, time, and source embedded in the description.
Twitter Applications
Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/futileboy/3026065024/
TwitterBerry
There are thousands!! Check out http://goo.gl/ptN0C for a good list.
Twitter visualizations
TweetStats
http://mashable.com/2009/03/16/twitter-visualizations/
TwitterThoughts
Twitter Stream Graph
Minsh: underwater social world
Twitter EarthTwitter Blocks
Why are you doing this?
Quick Demo
Virtual Petting Zoo
Let’s Hangout!
gplus.to/chadmairn
Contact Information
Let’s Hangout
!
gplus.to/chadmairn