Twitter is a phenomenon. A lot of our StomperNet Elite have been early adopters, and at the last StomperNet LIVE Event, one of the favorite presentations was from Perry Belcher on how he got 60,000 followers on Twitter… that's like having a LIST.
Only better.
See, people are kind of "meh" about getting email. It's certainly not a novelty anymore. You have to really have good content on a regular basis to do well with email.
But man-o-man do people love checking out Tweets. It's new and hip, and it's got its own unique feel. It's like all the people following along can actually look over your shoulder and see what you're up to.
Now sure, not everyone really cares what you've got going on with up-to-the-minute updates. But SOME DO. Those people are what we like to call "Crazy Super Hot Prospects". 
As marketers, it's AMAZING that we can use a tool like Twitter to keep in constant contact with our biggest fans and cheerleaders. But BOY, the folks at Twitter, don't make it easy on us.
And that's understandable. I mean, their tool isn't really FOR us business folk, really. It's meant to be simple and easy to use, and 99% of their user base doesn't need the kind of detail and data that we would like.
Fortunately, several tools are out now that make it easy for the business-minded Twitter-er to make the most out of this incredible influence engine and do what we came to do: Make More Money.
This isn't an affiliate promotion or anything. All of these are Free to use, and should run fine on most Windows PCs or Macs.
But before we get started…
IMPORTANT: Don't dismiss this. Whether or not you're the kind of person to hop on the "next big thing" you need to consider that Twitter is HOT, and it's hot right now - it's got an audience of millions that grows every day.
One of the foundational lessons of Internet Marketing is to go and find where your prospects hang out, right? So the fact is, if you're not using Twitter as part of your promotional mix, you aren't doing as well as you could be.
So let's fix it. Go get started with Twitter today and you won't ever look back. :) Then, once you're set up, join us back here for a little "Tool Time".
For all you folks already reaping the benefits of Twitter-power, let's get started now.
Twitter Tool #1: TweetDeck.com
This is the one I currently use. I really like the multi-column interface. It's like you have a "dashboard" for all your Twitter stuff: friends, replies, direct messages, and groups. (Note, if you prefer single-column, it can do that too.)
Another feature I really like is the ability to filter tweets for my @AndyJenkins username into their own group, so I can proactively monitor whenever I'm being mentioned. That way, I can show up and save the day. Like Superman.
IMPORTANT: No guarantees that I will show up or save the day if you Tweet about me. But I AM watching. You should be too! This feature makes it too easy NOT to.
TweetDeck is a desktop app, also. It runs on Adobe Air, so it's cross platform on Vista, XP or Mac OSX. I like the fact that it's a desktop application because I have a multi-monitor setup, and I can put the whole TweetDeck interface over to my right in full expanded view, and still edit video on my main screen.
Now, I haven't really had any issues using TweetDeck, but Stompers have reported some issues, so I'll defer to StomperNet Faculty Sherman Hu.
Sherman wrote a "Good, Better, Best" review of several Twitter tools for Volume 1, Issue 7 of "The Net Effect". One of his own TweetDeck pet peeves is that it seems to be a resource hog on his computer.
Admittedly, my own computer is a hoss, and I haven't noticed. :) Sherman also tells me that TweetDeck will max out your API limits more frequently than other tools that are available.
(That's what it means when your Twitter Status says "Rate Limit Exceeded".)
Sherman also pointed out to me that TweetDeck gives you the most URL shortening options (you can choose from 13 services). Also, when you Tweet a link to an image, TweetDeck will automatically upload it to TwitPic, too.
Those aren't features I personally use too much, but worth mentioning.
Now since I've only ever used Twitter.com and TweetDeck, I'm not informed enough to give much insight into the other options available to you.
Lucky for you, I'm going to "steal" generously from the rest of Sherman's review and let you know about some other tools you can try besides TweetDeck.
Most of the opinions expressed below are based on Sherman's extensive experience, testing and expertise. I trust his recommendations, so I think you can, too.
Twitter Tool #2: Twhirl
Twhirl is another desktop application, again built with Adobe Air. It's got a lot of similarities to TweetDeck.
You can also do "ego searching" and filter out Tweets that mention your username, and Twhirl will search through Twitter itself and TweetScan for you.
You also have a choice with Twhirl when it comes to URL shorteners, but it's a lot fewer than TweetDeck. Twhirl only offers 4 options, though I've only ever really needed one.
Now there's one thing that Twhirl does that is unique. When you have it open, you can activate another window and open another Twitter account and manage both at once.
That's really handy if you Tweet frequently from multiple accounts. Some business owners I know have at least one personal and one business account, and that feature is obviously very appealing.
Even though we're talking primarily about Twitter, I should also mention that Twhirl can also log into and manage iaconi.ca, FriendFeed and Seesmic at the same time. And it can do multiples of those accounts, just like Twitter.
If you're using any of those sites for social activities, Twhirl might be your way to go.
Twitter Tool #3: PeopleBrowsr
Unlike the previous two options, PeopleBrowsr is not desktop based, but rather you log in through their website. This has the advantage of being accessible from any web-connected computer, and you don't need to download or install anything.
The downside is, you're kind of at their whim as far as using their tool or not. Plus, they're only in Alpha release, meaning they are still in early development of the site and software.
But with the pretty staggering amount of features and benefits the service has, I think they'll be around long enough to make it to a major public release. Whether or not they will charge to use the service later, I can't say.
If I had to guess though, it looks like they might. Heck, I would.
NOTE: They appear to also have a downloadable Adobe Air version of PeopleBrowsr, but I haven't used that option, so I can't really comment on it. If it works at all like the web version, you'll be impressed.
The "Lite" version is web-based and has a multi-column look similar to TweetDeck. You have several view options though. You can create and save complex custom Tweet searches too, and Reply, DM, and Retweet all in one click.
Pretty simple.
But that doesn't even BEGIN to scratch the surface of the options that are available with this tool. Sherman's much longer review didn't do it justice, much less my little recap here.
Here are some of Sherman's favorite "Advanced" Features:
Multi-Stack Views: if you want to go crazy with the multi-column view, PeopleBrowsr supports opening more than 10 at once. Sherman calls this the "landscape" view and can really give you an amazing view of your social efforts all on one screen.
Reports: This one is a social marketer's dream. 18 different reports are available so far, just in Alpha. Stuff like "People Retweeting Me", "Recent Followers", and "Top Twitterers" are all at your fingertips.
Search & Export: Another one I'm excited to check out myself. You can do complex searches by bio, location, and more. Best of all, you can export those search results via RSS, HTML, or even a Retweet.
And one more feature I think marketers will appreciate:
Tweet Later: Save drafts of your tweets and even schedule them for later. If you're conducting a launch, are going out of town, or even if you want to "set it and forget it", this feature will be an incredible benefit.
I should note that this is what Sherman currently uses the most, though he's used all of the options mentioned here from time to time.
A helpful hint: If you want to check out PeopleBrowsr before setting up an account, you can play with the interface a little bit if you press "Skip Login" on their homepage.
That's it for this "Cheat Sheet" - I hope that not only will you start taking advantage of Twitter in your business, but that these tool recommendations help you find the right combination of features that will help you make more money, AND give you more time to enjoy it!
Until Next Time,
Keep Stomping!
~Andy Jenkins and the
StomperNet Faculty and Staff
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