Have you heard folks talking about Twitter and Twittering but you’ve been afraid to ask what it is?  I tuned into a Network For Good webinar hosted by Jason Cormier on November 5 date to find out more.
Twitter.com is a free website, where members answer the question, “What are you doing?” in 140 characters or less. Followers receive the updates or “tweets” as the user makes the changes. Organizations take advantage of Twitter by using it to promote their missions through posting tweets that give their followers current information.
    By using this feature, Twitter acts as a conduit to keep people up to date on an organization’s activities. Users that post information about their organization are enabling Twitter to advertise for them, because all of their followers will receive this information. Another feature that makes Twitter user friendly is its ability to link to various social networks like Facebook and MySpace. This enables members to check tweets without visiting twitter.com. Moreover, statuses can also be also sent to mobile phones.
    Since the Twitter website’s formation, the cliental has drastically increased. Originally the membership was comprised mostly of individuals who provided personal status updates. However, now the website’s uses have been substantially expanded. The Barack Obama campaign regularly posted updates, including information about upcoming rallies, on Twitter. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that doctors post office hours on Twitter. Meanwhile, Zappos.com (an online shoe retailer), uses Twitter to communicate with over 450 employees.
    Many environmental organizations use Twitter too. GreenPeace and the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) have Twitter pages. NWF currently has 1,774 followers, who receive their updates. The tweets range in topics. Some tweets give links to merchandise while others advertize new videos on NWF.com or other twitter profiles to check out.
    In addition to these large and well known organizations there are hundreds of small environmental groups or even individuals that use Twitter to communicate with their followers. Most of these less known organizations use Twitter to advertize their new blog posts. Many of the tweets include a headline and a link.
    Twitter is looking to expand its services to include event postings. Members will register for events and view the other attendees who plan to attend them. Additionally, the event administrator will post updates regarding the event details.  As Twitter continues to grow and expand, it will become a better, more useful tool for your organization to use.
    For more information on Twitter visit http://twitter.com. Also check out Jason Cormier’s post on his blog, Capture the Conversation. From his blog you can get to The Wall Street Journal article, titled “Twitter Goes Mainstream”.
    Do you Twitter on a regular basis either for personal connection or to move your issues?  If so, please share your experiences with us in a comment.

--Michelle Kohn