Monday, January 18, 2010

50 Ideas on Using Twitter for Business


Great article found on ChrisBrogan.com

50 Ideas on Using Twitter for Business

First Steps

  1. Build an account and immediate start using Twitter Search to listen for your name, your competitor’s names, words that relate to your space. (Listening always comes first.)
  2. Add a picture. ( Shel reminds us of this.) We want to see you.
  3. Talk to people about THEIR interests, too. I know this doesn’t sell more widgets, but it shows us you’re human.
  4. Point out interesting things in your space, not just about you.
  5. Share links to neat things in your community. ( @wholefoods does this well).
  6. Don’t get stuck in the apology loop. Be helpful instead. ( @jetblue gives travel tips.)
  7. Be wary of always pimping your stuff. Your fans will love it. Others will tune out.
  8. Promote your employees’ outside-of-work stories. ( @TheHomeDepot does it well.)
  9. Throw in a few humans, like RichardAtDELLLionelAtDELL, etc.
  10. Talk about non-business, too, like @astrout and @jstorerj from Mzinga.


Ideas About WHAT to Tweet

  1. Instead of answering the question, “What are you doing?”, answer the question, “What has your attention?”
  2. Have more than one twitterer at the company. People can quit. People take vacations. It’s nice to have a variety.
  3. When promoting a blog post, ask a question or explain what’s coming next, instead of just dumping a link.
  4. Ask questions. Twitter is GREAT for getting opinions.
  5. Follow interesting people. If you find someone who tweets interesting things, see who she follows, and follow her.
  6. Tweet about other people’s stuff. Again, doesn’t directly impact your business, but makes us feel like you’re not “that guy.”
  7. When you DO talk about your stuff, make it useful. Give advice, blog posts, pictures, etc.
  8. Share the human side of your company. If you’re bothering to tweet, it means you believe social media has value for human connections. Point us to pictures and other human things.
  9. Don’t toot your own horn too much. (Man, I can’t believe I’m saying this. I do it all the time. – Side note: I’ve gotta stop tooting my own horn).
  10. Or, if you do, try to balance it out by promoting the heck out of others, too.


Some Sanity For You
  1. You don’t have to read every tweet.
  2. You don’t have to reply to every @ tweet directed to you (try to reply to some, but don’t feel guilty).
  3. Use direct messages for 1-to-1 conversations if you feel there’s no value to Twitter at large to hear the conversation ( got this from @pistachio).
  4. Use services like Twitter Search to make sure you see if someone’s talking about you. Try to participate where it makes sense.
  5. 3rd party clients like Tweetdeck and Twhirl make it a lot easier to manage Twitter.
  6. If you tweet all day while your coworkers are busy, you’re going to hear about it.
  7. If you’re representing clients and billing hours, and tweeting all the time, you might hear about it.
  8. Learn quickly to use the URL shortening tools like TinyURL and all the variants. It helps tidy up your tweets.
  9. If someone says you’re using twitter wrong, forget it. It’s an opt out society. They can unfollow if they don’t like how you use it.
  10. Commenting on others’ tweets, and retweeting what others have posted is a great way to build community.


The Negatives People Will Throw At You

  1. Twitter takes up time.
  2. Twitter takes you away from other productive work.
  3. Without a strategy, it’s just typing.
  4. There are other ways to do this.
  5. As Frank hears often, Twitter doesn’t replace customer service (Frank is@comcastcares and is a superhero for what he’s started.)
  6. Twitter is buggy and not enterprise-ready.
  7. Twitter is just for technonerds.
  8. Twitter’s only a few million people. (only)
  9. Twitter doesn’t replace direct email marketing.
  10. Twitter opens the company up to more criticism and griping.
Some Positives to Throw Back
  1. Twitter helps one organize great, instant meetups (tweetups).
  2. Twitter works swell as an opinion poll.
  3. Twitter can help direct people’s attention to good things.
  4. Twitter at events helps people build an instant “backchannel.”
  5. Twitter breaks news faster than other sources, often (especially if the news impacts online denizens).
  6. Twitter gives businesses a glimpse at what status messaging can do for an organization. Remember presence in the 1990s?
  7. Twitter brings great minds together, and gives you daily opportunities to learn (if you look for it, and/or if you follow the right folks).
  8. Twitter gives your critics a forum, but that means you can study them.
  9. Twitter helps with business development, if your prospects are online (mine are).
  10. Twitter can augment customer service. (but see above)
Oh, and please feel free to reblog this wherever. Just be kind and link back to the original article.

Monday, January 4, 2010

Interview on Womentorz


, december 22, 2009

Inventor Showcase: Lizzie Lou Shoes

We have been meaning to showcase this invention for some time now and are so honored to have a product of this caliber on Womentorz.  I was thrilled to be given a pair as a gift for our December 21st launch party.  Not only did I look stylish, but my feet were also swimming in a sea of comfort.  With spring and summer in the foreseeable future I proudly put the spotlight on Lizzie Lou Shoes:




Q. How did the design process of Lizzie Lou Shoes begin?
My youngest daughter, Lizzie (often referred to as "Lizzie Lou"), has had an obsession with shoes from the age of two.  She is constantly looking for shoes with "bling."  We were out shopping one day when Lizzie showed me a pair of $200 crystal flip flops and asked whether they came in kids sizes.  Right then it dawned on me:  “Why there isn’t a line of gorgeous flip flops for mother and daughter?”  I took my idea to my cousin, Shilpi, who lives in India.  She had just had a baby girl but wanted to continue working from home. 

My cousin and I worked closely together through the development and design process.  Finding the right suppliers and manufacturer was very difficult.  Shilpi's connections in India and experience in clothing manufacture were essential to finding the right ones.  We continue to keep an eye out for the best parts and supplies to ensure that we import a high quality flip flop.

We worked through several design changes before we finalized our first three styles. After a year of development, Lizzie Lou Shoes officially arrived on the market on Mothers Day weekend, 2009.  We launched our business at a local boutique in Stone Oak, where I live.  We started with three styles of women's shoes and three matching styles of children's.  Since then we have expanded our women's line with six new styles, and three more in development.

Q. Please tell us about the handcrafted elements that make the overall amazing design.
Each flip flop is hand-stitched and embroidered.  Every sequin, bead, and crystal is hand-sewn to genuine leather straps, which are then cut and sewn on to the uppers of the flip flops.  The individual care that goes into this process makes each shoe unique.  It is not a mass-produced product—there are very limited numbers of each style being made.  Having one is like owning a unique piece of jewelry for your feet!

Q. What has been the most rewarding part of the inventing process?

Just seeing that my vision of the perfect flip flop become real.  It was so rewarding to look down at my feet and see them sparkle, and think back on all the time and energy I put into them. 

Q. What has been your greatest success with your business?

So far, it’s been having my shoes sold in several popular, high-end boutiques in my hometown,  San Antonio.  I love being out & about and seeing people wearing their "Lizzie Lous."  My clients and friends are always paying me compliments on comfort and style of our line.  I have enjoyed doing something that I can share with so many people, and especially being supported by fellow moms and friends.

Q. Your shoes are so comfortable!  What makes the soles of the shoe so special?
One of my goals was to make my flip flops comfortable to wear.  So many times women purchase shoes not for how they feel, but for how they look.  Lizzie Lou Shoes offer the best of both.  We found the highest quality EVA  soles available.  Many people don't know that EVA features excellent shock absorbing characteristics and is very lightweight. That’s the reason EVA is used for the insoles that people put into their shoes.  

To read the whole article visit the Womentorz Blog: