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Twitter: Why Do You RT?

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This week, several Re-Tweets of a tweet I RT’ed provided fodder for a blog post oriented to thinking before clicking to RT someone else’s content. I didn’t know it would resonate as it did; it also prompted additional thought on re-tweeting as a practice.

(Just a note here for those not as engaged on Twitter — I absolutely LOVE Twitter for the wealth of relationships, training, community, and engagement it has provided me. Twitter has absolutely changed my professional life.)

Why do you re-tweet?

People re-tweet to:

  • Give credit (as per Jenn Whinnem in the comments to said post above) and as a goodwill or friendly gesture to pals in your tweet stream.
  • Recognize the originating author’s content, such as a blog post.
  • Share news of the day relevant to an entire stream of tweeps (that’s short for people who tweet).
  • Get attention by the originating author as a pal to include in their stream.
  • Raise the bar on a brand (usually one’s own) as a reputable source for content.
  • Share studies, data, pontificating with others interested in the same topics/themes.
  • Send along hot news so you don’t have to find it yourself.
  • Build link love (to a lesser extent)

Re-tweets are so commonplace that rarely do we think about why we do it. Nor, as above, do we check links before sending tweets along. Sometimes that can be a disaster especially if content is a bit weak and no one takes time to read an entire story.

I know in the past I’ve been guilty of doing a bit of buttering up when I RT, but that’s when I was building my stream and creating a brand. That’s probably not anything to feel guilty about, really; it’s what Twitter is supposed to be about, right?

Twitter helps people:

  • Build a brand
  • Create a community
  • Engage with folks of like minds or not
  • Push and pull data and info
  • Monetize (to a lesser extent) and provide value with measurement

So, why do you RT and do you think before clicking send?

Twitter: Think Before You RT

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I learned a valuable reminder

https://www.ordinary-gentleman.com

today. Last night while tweeting on my Blackberry while at a client welcome reception watching Monday night football (Bears win), I RT’ed a tweep’s tweet. She is a respected high-level marketer from a respected large company. In fact, I’ve done business with her, although indirectly.

Here’s the re-tweet I made, and what caught my eye was the hash tag “#quote.” I knew this did not encompass the entire definition of marketing yet I liked the “authentic voice.”

RT @margaretmolloy: A marketing agency’s greatest value is helping the client find and express its authentic voice. #quote #in

Today, two individuals in my stream called me on the content of the RT I sent:

@FocusCom said: @Soulati gotta disagree. The purpose of marketing is to attract interest in products & services that result in sales.

@BruceServen: @Soulati that’s as good as calling it dead and irrelevant.

I wasn’t clear without searching for the original tweet what I had said that prompted these tweets:

@FocusCom: @Soulati It was an RT. “Authentic voice” sounds lovely, but in reality the role of marketing is to sell stuff.

What I read as a quote from a respected colleague made for a different point of view by others. People RT on the fly, they don’t open the links others post before sharing with their streams, and what results are the varying perspectives that make Twitter so rich. My interpretation is not yours, neither am I attempting to make yours mine. We share opinions, perspectives and information; it’s all good.

Thanks to @FocusCom and @BruceServen for your unassuming blog-post prompt and questions pertaining to this tweet. It gave me a healthy pause and prompted this post that encourages everyone to think before they RT and expect healthy rebuttal when someone takes the time to respond.

Anatomy of 20 Minutes on Twitter

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There are a couple of things I’d like to share about this post. For starters, it’s too good not to use as an example of inspiration from Twitter. In 20 minutes, I posed a question, and Neicole Crepeau (with whom I had never tweeted) chimed in. In the flick of a wrist, we had:

  • Debated the definition of “guru” in social media
  • Shared data on latecomers to the party
  • Established our respective credibility
  • Agreed on our consensus
  • Became inspired by the chat to ask others to join us
  • RT’ed a bunch of times to show appreciation and respect
  • Retained the tweet stream to repurpose into a blog post WITH permission from both parties.

The true purpose of this stream is to debate the definition of “guru.” That’s not happening today, but it will happen tomorrow in part two of this post.  Ever the educator, I feel the need to share this powerful chat to showcase Twitter’s hidden gifts. And, if you don’t get this type of engagement on Twitter every so often, you’re not engaged! Simple.

Twitter Chat with Jayme Soulati and Neicole Crepeau:

@Soulati How would you define a #SM guru? Someone just said “it’s too early to define a true guru.”

@neicolec Good question! RT @Soulati: How would you define a #SM guru? Someone just said “it’s too early to define a true guru.”

@neicolec: Guru implies a long time doing something. It implies, to me, that you have developed solid, repeatable processes.

@Soualti: RT @neicolec Guru implies a long time doing something. It implies, to me, that you have developed solid, repeatable processes.

@neicolec: Social networks have only become mainstream (in terms of volume and user demographics) in the last couple of years. #SM

@Soulati: I’ve been presenting 5 times this year on #SM; fascinating to see YouTube born 2005. Not a long time!

@Neicolec: To date, most social media marketing has been experimental. Tried and true best practices (beyond basic use) aren’t there. #SM

@Soulati: I find #PR measurement easier with #SM. Best practices come with dedicated companies open to change, flexibiilty.

@Neicolec: While there have been successes in social media and there are big names, I don’t think that equals a guru. #SM

@Neicolec: A guru should be able to teach others those best practices so they can repeat them. Not seeing that much, yet. #SM

@Soulati: There are always leaders. In the case of #SM, perhaps good to delineate “leader” “mentor” “guru.” Good convo; let’s do blog post.

@Soulati: Hope you’re following Neicole and me right now. She’s got some good insight on how we define guru in #SM. We’re not there yet.

@Neicolec: I agree with you re: best practices. A post the other day said social media is now moving from revolution to evolution stage. #SM

@Soulati: Did you catch that nuance — to “evolution?” Hoping it becomes part of the channel, and slow adopters get on board.

@Neicolec: I agree with that. Best practices will be built during this stage. I also agree that there are leaders in social. Not gurus.

@Soulati: OK, you’re on. This is definitely a blog post; I will capture our discussion from this afternoon. OK to include your tweets?

@Neicolec: If you do a blog post, please DM me with the link. I’d love to see your thoughts on the topic.

@Neicolec: Did you see the latest stats on marketing spend. https://ow.ly/2wPFm I think those late adopters are coming on board.

@Neicolec: Absolutely! Enjoyed the tweet talk. A great example of the joys of social media!

@Soulati: Fully agree; thanks Neicole!

JetBlue Flight Attendant, Social Media and Jobs

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Slater quits JetBlue after luggage lands on head

Just read the current Bloomberg Businessweek to arrive in the mail (I do like magazines). Its first story about the “Mad As Hell” JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater caught my eye and that of the rest of America, too.

To bring you up to speed, he quit his job in a flamboyant way, over the plane’s PA system to “curse a rude customer whose bag landed on his head, politely thanking other passengers, grabbing two beers from the galley before sliding down the inflatable emergency chute and sprinting toward home.”

What did America do in response? APPLAUD! And, social media erupted.

Facebook pages attracting 18,000+ fans with 211,000 likes lauded his gutsy move to quit a 20-year career in the airline industry. Others lamented their lack of nerve to do the same.

While Slater ponders a possible seven years in prison for criminal mischief and reckless endangerment, companies should ponder the entire real-life situation. Social media is not attacking JetBlue in this case; luckily the employer had nothing to do with this incident – or did they?

 I think there may be some culpability on the company’s part; however, not in a financial or legal way…here’s how.

Everyone is aware of the state of the ever-worsening economy. Those with jobs are coping with workloads overflowing and work-life balance in disarray.  Companies with a majority of frontline sales and customer service reps need to examine how they keep employees’ tempers in check when hazards of the job cause stress eruptions.

It may be easier for teleservice representatives to maintain composure, but the airline industry, retail, health care and professional services, for example, should look at new programs to de-stress frontline employees.

When was the last time you interacted with a customer service rep face to face? Was the experience professional, calm, satisfactory? Hopefully, it was because employees are not trained in social work or psychology and really don’t know how to handle other peoples’ stress beyond their own (even that’s suspect).

  • Perhaps workers who engage the public as frontline ambassadors should experience a friendly course in anger management for non-offenders.
  • Maybe employers can pop for a hotel getaway on the company to help de-stress frontline workers.
  • What about engaging a company-wide spa day? That would jolt a niche of the economy, wouldn’t it?

What do you think about Steven Slater’s decision to toss a job down the chute and contemplate prison garb in the not-too-distant future?

This is fascinating, and he, too, has hired a publicist; just like the post I wrote about Mark Hurd of H-P who has a PR firm on board to manage their celebrity.

(photo credit courtesy of Facebook)

Google+: How Social Media Will Fall (Updated)

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This post first appeared July 16, 2010, and what prompted me to head back through the archives to find it again was this post by Antonia Harler about Google — A Successful Road to  Failure. She shares all the write ups about Google + that we all have seen. And, she hit on what I suggested a year ago — no one has more time to develop yet another social network, do we?

See if this resonates from a year ago with you…I felt pretty strongly about developing more networks a year ago; I may be less against it today, but my time is more limited. Share your thoughts!

 

It’s all about community, connectivity and social networking, and people are joining in droves. Apparently, 96 percent of GenY have joined a social network. The fastest-growing segment on Facebook is women 55 – 65 years old.

The more cool social networks, publishing networks, and professional networks that launch to accompany Stumble, Posterous, YouTube, Friend Feed, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIN and the like, the more consumers will weary. No one has time to find friends to add to a network. Do you?

I learned today that Stumble requires a network of Stumblers who share cool sites with one another. I’m always interested in seeing cool sites, but I’ve no time to develop a network of connected Web site lovers. When I launched Friend Feed, I thought I could consolidate my social media into one platform (which I can), but it, too, wants friends to connect on the same platform and be networked. On Twitter,  new followers invite me to join them on Facebook. Why? I don’t even know them.

And, that’s it.

That’s the reason social media will fall flat on its pitoot. People cannot spend eight hours a day creating community and populating it with more and more friends. There are only six degrees of separation from all of us, but seriously, folks, who has that many “friends” for real?

Not I.