January 21, 2010, Volume 4, Issue 1

Though some feel the noise to content ratio on Twitter is getting a little tiring (do we really care you are at the mall?), no one can deny there is marketing value to Twitter. But what’s in it for you? Read on to see some new Twitter tools to reignite your passion for the 140-character message.

To Tweet or Not to Tweet

Need to know more about what is being said about your brand or an issue on Twitter? The folks at Twimpact can help. Their site offers Twitter trends and user impact in real time. That means that at any time on any day you can find out if people are Tweeting about something related to your business, industry or even your bottom line. On Twimpact, you can search for trends at that moment, the past 24-hours, the previous week or even over the last month. So take a look, see if something speaks (or in this case Tweets) to you.

Search Global, Tweet Local

Trendsmap takes Twimpact a step further by letting you drill down and follow Twitter trends at the local level. When you pull up the site, you’ll see a map of the World with a cloud tag over it. Just click on the city, state or country you’re interested in and you’ll see what people are Tweeting about. You can check Tweet trends in your backyard or as far as way as Sydney, Australia. Once you click on the cloud, the latest Tweets related to the tag will pop-up so you can follow the thread. You can even use the site in reverse by picking a tag from their list of “Hot Topics Around the Globe” and see what cities are trending toward that topic. We think there’s definitely some potential for using Trendsmap to tailor your Twitter marketing efforts. Way cool. (We could do this all day!)

What can Twitter Search do for you?

Did you know that Twitter has a robust search function? It does! Before you start searching, check-out this amazingly simple video from CommonCraft which explains the Twitter Search in “plain English.” According to the site, Twitter Search “creates new opportunities for business feedback, tracking real time news and discovering trends.” Their fun, animated video uses the fictional town “Twitterville” to explain how the Twitter Search function allows you to search every Tweet to instantly find people and information. Be sure to check-out their other videos. If you’re a newbie, or need to explain Twitter search to a client, this is a must see. (And CommonCraft has some other great videos worth your while.)

Catch You Later

If you liked this issue, tweet the link! We’d be grateful. Meantime, we’re excited to bring you the latest tools for maximizing your research experience on the Web all year long. See you again in two weeks!

Happy 2010 from the Scherer Cybrarian Team!