Hashtags (the letters and symbols that work ad a code staring with a pound sign “#”) have been on Twitter since nearly the start

While they are known for adding silly fun or searchiness to a tweet, that aspect has never been needed. Search can find ANY word in a tweet.

I’ve always liked them for events.  Affiliate Summit, the big show this week in Vegas, could be in a tweet about the event, but sometimes doesn’t fit in the sentence. So without explaining where the tweet comes from, users add #ASW12 and everyone at the event, or following it can easily see what happening in real time.

Twitter didn’t invent hash tags. It’s a hack like comments in software code that was added by users. Over the years, Twitter had made them clickable, and many use them for all sorts of things.

Now Twitter is working on EVENTS.. which will eliminate this necessity

At Twitter, that means associating a tweet with an event, tied to it by a number of keywords. That may mean that the keywords auto-associate to the event itself.

“I think we’re finally going to have the Events feature,” Stone said, in a brief interview. “It’s something we’ve been talking about forever… and now that Ev’s back on products, I think that’s something that’s going to be coming up soon.

“Obviously Twitter electrifies events. You’re connected to it, in this matrix,” Stone added. “You want to be connected to it, if you’re there; but if you’re not there, you don’t want to hear about it… And in a short time, it’s gone.”

My guess would be that hashtags are going to be around long after EVENTS and other features are added.

What’s your favorite tag?

When I started on Twitter, I reached out to people by finding a person in a conversation with my friends and then clicking on the follow button.

That never seemed like enough.. almost immediately I decided to go one step further.

The get to know a new twitter friend process goes like this:

1. Click on the name of a person I don’t know from an interesting thread
2. Read their profile page and look for a  link to their blog or anything that they care about
3. Read till I find something interesting, copy the URL and Tweet about it
4. Include the @ handle at the end saying “thanks” and then the handle
5. Leave a comment if possible on the person’s blog

It wasn’t always blogs, but in the early days, I was there to connect with bloggers, so that was my favorite. I also connected on Facebook or LinkedIn when I could.

It didn’t take long and I had tweets thanking me. Even when I didn’t, I felt great sharing new finds with my friends.

Interspersed with this, and the conversations I had, I’d  often say “Follow @coachdeb. She’s cool” or something like that  (NOTE: that’s pretty close to the first tweet between my future co-author and I).

In January 2009, @micah noticed how many people weren’t spotlighting other like this and suggested we tell others about our friend on Friday. The #FollowFriday (also called #FF for short) hashtag and phenomena was born.

While I often quipped how this was what I did everyday.. I thought it was great that we were sharing that ethos with all the new people coming on Twitter. Trouble was, pretty soon it got very hard to see messages through all the #FollowFriday

In Fall 2009, Twitter added LISTS and @Scobleizer suggested we put our “Tweeps to follow” on lists. I tweeted this several times, and noticed that the fad has died down some, but every Friday, we see plenty of  the tags.

No one wants to complain about the clutter. After all, each tweet is an endorsement. I sincerely appreciate all the people who take time to tell other about me.

An even better alternative…

“Use Follow Friday to Get More Blog Traffic”

In an excellent post, @ChrisBrogan shared an idea that you see used on this post. He suggests that instead of #FollowFriday list tweets, we take a few minutes to write about the people we are suggesting in a blog post, and then tweet the link.

@coachdeb (my co-author for “Twitter Revolution: How Social Media and Mobile Marketing is Changing the Way We Do Business & Market Online”) and I saw bloggers talking about bloggers and it was a staple here back in 2008. When I saw @ChrisBrogan’s post, I dropped what I was doing and wrote this article.

I like the style Chris used to with a list and reasons to follow. I like bullet points and numbered lists because they are easy to read and people reading tend to use them as a checklist and are more apt to follow up.

My own style is usually more narrative. So you are seeing my list as I tell this story.

Please, if you haven’t already.. GO BACK and follow all the  people in this list. While you’re at it, try the process I described above.. leave a comment, say something nice, be creative and get in a conversation.

Then, use this on your own blog. Write up who you would like to recommend, and tweet about it.

Extra credit. Pus a Twitter friend and brief description as a COMMENT here. I usually don’t recommend putting URL’s in comments (the exception being when the blogger asks for them) … but TODAY, I WANT YOUR URL COMMENTS.

Tweet about this post so others can try this.

And by the say.. this method isn’t just for Fridays… it works everyday, and works better the more you do it..

@kidfury demonstrates the power of Twitter…

and the fury of not thinking things through.

Call center employee brings works to a halt with prank with one tweet

My best estimate would about about 4000 followers when this happened. Sounds like all of them called in at once

The language is a little off what I”d hope to hear from a call center worker, but he’s off the clock and very real in his presentation.

Perhaps the most interesting part is the reaction from the big boss. I’d like to think I could end it this way, but just a few years ago, I would have blown this for sure.

This story is 2010. I’d imagine that while the attention to a single status update or tweet continues to fall, let’s not forget that the collective power of your customers is growing faster than ever.

Are you listening to them?

I was asked by a Facebook friend why he should bother with Twitter.

Right away, I could tell he was in Stage 1.. so I wrote back:

I’d only recommend using Twitter if networking is important to you business. If you need to meet new people, build closer relationships with your network or keep in touch with a lot of people Twitter is the tool for you.

Most people go through 3 stages getting into Twitter.

1. It looks like a complete waste of time and “why would anyone want to know what people had for breakfast”
2. Friends say “use Twitter” and you get an account to secure your name while you can and still think it’s a waste of time
3. You get into a conversation with someone, pick up a new recruit, learn about some news and start saying “how did I live without this?”

Stage 1 is still most of the world. I’ve seen people in stage 2 for years.

FYI, these same three stage occurred in other technologies. For instance, when telephones came out, most executives assigned someone to make calls (if they had a phone at all). The same thing happened with email, Facebook, etc.

If you don’t use Twitter, that’s ok too. Most of my friends are also in Stage 1. I even know a few that refuse to use a phone. No sense worrying about getting everybody to do things the same way.

As we say.. NO RULES in today’s marketing. Just give people what they want, whenever, wherever, and in whatever format they desire. We all demand that today.

This video is a dramatization of the speed of Twitter.

But in real life, social media is not spreading news in real time.

Whether it’s an earthquake, weather, new product or angry customers causing your next crisis, you won’t have time to plan on a profitable social media strategy.

Today, like it or not, we need to be ready to react in real time.

I picked a outrageous claim in my Twitter box auto DM for the “Dumb Auto DM of the Day” today.  (I post one of these with the tag #DADM on most days when I can to remind people who might have forgotten that they set up one and how they never are personal).

I don’t put any personally identifiable information on my #DADM tweets. My intention is to share a smile, teach a bit and initiate conversation, not belittle the person with the Dumb Auto DM.

Today’s tweet assumed I has just joined Twitter, which I laughed at.. but since it’ has the work “finally” I would think most of the people who could build the users network would be insulted.

Then there is the suggestion that an attached link has the secret to making money online. If anyone reads that far, that’s certainly a red flag. People won’t follow the link and likely will drop you if you spam them with a sales pitch instead of a personal greeting or real conversation.

My #DADM was Re-tweeted (RT) by several people and I got some @ replies and had the daily conversations where people tell me they hate automation and drop people for it and I remind them that sometimes real people use them and are just learning.

Then a BOT picked it up and @ replied with another offer to make money online. The account is NOT the one with the auto DM.. this is a separate scam from and account that is likely already shut down

There’s a lesson here. Funny to see the tweet, but I’m posting to have a piece to refer people to when they ask “Are some auto DM’s Okay?”

My answer: Maybe. You can use Twitter however you want. If you say “Thanks for following” you won’t get many believing it was you.. and some will hate you for it. But it’s your choice. Like we say in Twitter Revolution: NO RULES

Automation is wonderful. The same API that spammers and bots use allow us to integrate Twitter with other sites and reach out to people we want to meet. Like all good tools, it can be used for good or bad.

Warren Whitlock

February 1st, 2011

Watch Twit Tippin Tuesday on eMarketingVids

The premier episode started with the co-authors of the first book on Twitter @CoachDeb and@WarrenWhitlock (who else?)

Find clients in real time Tip from Deb Micek

Engage your followers on Twitter Tip by Warren Whitlock

We think webisodes like those from EMarketingVids will be the future of television and were happy to support @Colligan with tips.

Be sure to follow Paul, and comment to let us know you are watching TwitTipsTuesday

Warren Whitlock
Profitable Social Media

Listen to this interview by chief visionary Natasha Davis-Bowen here:

Q & A Coaching for Success. What’s Your Questions? Today’s Featured Coach is Mr. Warren Whitlock, the Twitter Whiz & Master who has authored "Twitter Revolution" & "Profitable Social Media". Warren teaches business owners, authors, & individuals the art behind making Social Media work for you to its maximum capacity. Have your questions ready for Mr. Warren Whitlock!

From the start, I’ve advocated connecting with people on multiple networks to find where they like to interact and increase the odds of having a meaningful conversation.

I wound up on Twitter back in 2007 when I found that those I wanted to network with were there. While I ended up working with @CoachDeb on the first book on Twitter, I’ve never been an advocate for “hanging out” on one favorite web site. After all, we are doing this to talk to people.

When I started building my social media network, I’d got to blogs, web sties, email address books and  in person meet ups to find the right connection. Today, I use tools like Gist, Rapportive.com and now HoeverMe

The tools change, but one thing stays the same… most people welcome hearing from you when you talk about what they are interested in, share what they are promoting with your network and add value to their conversations wherever they are having that conversation.

@WarrenWhitlock