If you are still trying to wrap your head around Twitter, maybe the following will help.
I often say that if you want to understand Twitter think about that person in your life that is the communicator extraordinaire. For me that’s my Mom … she tweets, she just doesn’t do it on a computer.
For a start, my mom has taken on the role of communicator in our family for at least as long as I have been alive. Guaranteed, a week doesn’t go by where she hasn’t made contact with everyone in her inner circle – not just her children, but closest friends and relatives. (My father often wishes he had shares in their phone company). It would be a terrible mistake to not answer those calls. She would take it personally and then there is the guilt.
On Twitter – it’s also a good idea to communicate with those relevant in your life. It’s not as much about the number of followers as it is the quality of those followers. They should enjoy what you’re sharing and respond, but you don’t need to bring on the guilt – leave that to your mother.
My mom shares often. When I say at least once a week, the norm is often 2-3 times a week. What does she share? She gives me updates on everyone in her circle, what they are up to and if she feels I don’t know this person, rather than omit the update, she simply goes into “history mode.” With many of these individuals being over the age of 75 – the “background” can sometimes take a while.
Mom would be great on Twitter because it’s great to be posting what you deem to be valuable information at least 2 – 3 times a week (2 -3 times a day is even acceptable). It’s also great to share some of that background information from time-to-time.
Here’s something else important: For my mom to be telling me all these updates, she has to get these updates from her circle of contacts. The same goes on Twitter. It’s as much about listening (sometimes more so) as it is about posting.
In a nutshell, just like Twitter, Mom “follows” all the pertinent people in her life, so she can keep her “followers” up to date with the most valuable information.
Now I have a confession: Sorry, Mom, but there are times when I’m not really interested in a certain update or history lesson. So I zone out for certain parts of the conversation and then zone back in when I’m interested. I can do the same thing on Twitter, by setting up my “listening post” to only notify me of topics I’m interested in.
So, you see, Twitter has really existed in your world for a long, long time, just not necessarily in an online format. Maybe like me you can learn more about how to use it from your mother than a 20-year-old computer whiz!
