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Mar 08 2010

Rockin the Tweets: Twitter Tools, Twitter Lists, Stats, Discovery #Twitter

Category: code is poetry,community building,connections,how do i?,lifestreaming,social media,tools — jmacofearth @ 8:13 am

Screen shot 2010 03 06 at 4.08.06 PM Rockin the Tweets: Twitter Tools, Twitter Lists, Stats, Discovery #TwitterSo all the BUZZ around Google Buzz seems to be around simplicity and not having too many followers or having too much noise due to those followers. Here's something I want to let you know. It's not the tool (twitter vs buzz vs facebook) it's how you manage it. So here's a few ideas I'd like to share around managing your social media status-sphere. It really doesn't matter if you are trending towards Buzz over Twitter. What matters is how you use it.

First up: Twitter Lists.

What are they? Why you need 'm. And why your Tweetdeck or Hootsuite lists are different.

Here is my page of Twitter list links: http://uber.la/tools/twitter-lists

So what I would like to ask you, as you are starting to re-frame your social media accounts is this, "If I can't add you to one of my Twitter lists I probably shouldn't be following you in the first place."

There is a 500 tweep limit for Twitter lists. So beyond that you will have to create 2nd and 3rd lists to keep your "austin friends"  together in your lists. You will notice I have an "austin friends" and an "austin friends 2" lists. This is not an indication of favoratism, but merely a reaching of the Twitter List 500 tweep maximum. I suspect I will be giving up my "tennis" list or my "cats and dogs" list in the future to build an "austin friends 3" list. But not today. (grin)

RULE of TWITTER ADDITION: before you click "follow" figure out what list you are going to add someone to and then do both. 1. Follow; 2. Add To List.

RULE of TWITTER SUBTRACTION: if you are following someone and you can't put them on a list, perhaps you should consider unfollowing them. 1. Examine who you follow; 2. Add all "friends" to a list; 3. UF, unfollow everyone you cannot place on one of your lists. (Why were you following them in the first place?)

Next: Twitter Tools

Fact: You can't manage Twitter on Twitter.com. You need tools. Aside from the Twitter Tools Matrix, here is the shortlist for Twitter clients I recomend.

1. Tweetdeck; 2. Seesmic; 3. Hootsuite. And more recently, a Mac-only favorite is Nambu.

Next: Twitter Stats and Analytics

While following and being followed in Twitterville is interesting, almost as interesting and potentially more valuable is the tools that allow you to see what people are tweeting about. Example: during the SuperBowl 2010 the hashtags #nfl and #superbowl and #superbowlads were quite popular with tweeters who were rating the advertisements that were paying over a million dollars per 30 sec. slot. So if your ad didn't "trend" within these hashtags you can bet the audience mostly ignored it, or forgot about it. And there were a number of unremarkable ads.

TERM: "Trending." When something is trending on Twitter it means the Tweet volume is so large that it is showing up as one of the top twenty most frequent words being tweeted.

So what tools are my most used when looking at Twitter trends? Here are my top Twitter stats and analytics tools.

1. TwitterVenn (making Venn diagrams out of trends is fun and easy); 2. TwitterFall (a visual browser for seeing hashtags and searches) ; 3. Twitter Trends Map (see the topics that are trending worldwide);

Finally: Twitter Discovery Tools

Finding new people to follow, new trends to track and new hashtags to search for is all part of the beauty of Twitter.

1. Mr. Tweet (who you follow and who they recommend); 2. FriendorFollow (are they following you back?); 3. NearbyTweets (how's close to you and tweeting?); 4. Twittoria (information about your flock)

Take the time to add value to your Tweets. Don't just follow to gain followers. If you can't put them on a Twitter List, don't follow them. Lists will become the new marker of Twitter Authority.

No, you can't ask me to add you to a list. I must discover you and add you manually. Yes, you can ask me, but I'm likely to… consider it first.

@jmacofearth
permalink: http://bit.ly/rule-twitter

See also:

Finally an amazing image of some of the visualization tools linked off of VisualComplexity.

Explaining complex ideas with images and maps

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Jan 23 2010

Twitter Lists: New Social Reputation Monitor (SRM) and Filter – 500 Tweep Limit?

Category: community building,connections,lifestreaming,social media,tech opinion — jmacofearth @ 5:14 pm

Along the way towards creating the BEST social media list of people I hit the wall today. 500 people and I cannot add any more social media folks to my list. WTF Biz Stone? How is this a good idea?

I was a bit dubious about Twitter Lists in the beginning, but I'd have to say I've started gathering and filtering people using Twitter Lists, but now I'm stuck. Do I have to build a socialmedia-2 list? What?

Screen shot 2010 01 21 at 2.38.21 PM Twitter Lists: New Social Reputation Monitor (SRM) and Filter 500 Tweep Limit?

What is everyone else doing?

I guess I can delete folks from the lists who might be better served on a different list. But what is the deal? So far they are not spammy.

Oh well.

@jmacofearth
permalink: http://bit.ly/list-fail

See all the uber.la Twitter writing on The Twitter Way page.

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Jan 16 2010

Crazy Little Thing Called Love: If You Can't Say Something Nice… Well, Shout It

Category: community building,lifestreaming,social media,tech opinion,trust & reputation — jmacofearth @ 5:05 am

ben stiller and ironman in tropical thunderPeople call it going negative. Others understand that people don't forward a boring email or promote a vanilla digg. Well, think about it, do you?

IMFHO – If you aren't falling you aren't learning. If you don't loose followers on a regular basis, then they are not paying attention and you are not making yourself clear. I am not for everyone, call it an acquired taste; Like a David Letterman (the 80s – 90s version, before he got bitter and regretful) or the Onion, either you get me or you don't. And if you don't follow, that's cool. If you block me, I might ask why (@omarg I understand, @LaniAR, I don't understand) and then follow up with an "I'm sorry" if appropriate or a "Sounds fair" if I disagree with you.

But… And here's where the kid gloves come off: If you attack me (long form or short form) be prepared to defend yourself. And not just from a flame war, from facts, figures, references, documents, historical participation on social media sites like LINKEDIN, and mainly your own content. Where do you put your attention? What is it that you are constantly going on about?

I'll give you my top 3 from that little list over there >>> to the right.

#1 social media
#2 tech reviews and opinion
#3 about me
(verify these counts in a second before publishing…)  ;-0 )

And I've done a bunch of posts on sentiment, or how negative am I really. Maybe I need to update the meter, but I'm pretty up and happy and on the sunny side of things. Until I'm down. Then I see dark clouds overhead, I rant a bit, and I go dark myself and don't surface for days.

What I discovered at Dell and occasionally in social media was it doesn't really matter if your right. And though I may not like it, sometimes it may not be appropriate to go directly to the person who is having the conflict with you. (At Dell, I'm pretty sure it was a legal thing, an ethics thing, a sensitivity thing.) Okay, so don't go direct with the person, talk to their manager. And don't drop the f-bomb. EVER!

As a wrap, let's take one example of where jumping in with guns blazing (Well, my guns weren't hot until I was attacked after the first post.) was seen as inappropriate by some, offensive and worthy of counter strikes by others, accurate and praiseworthy by a few, and privately praised by many. And some of those private supporters, those who PM'd me on LinkedIN to say, "Keep it up." finally commented on the thread themselves. This particular thread demonstrates how even a former victim can become a supporter of the abuser if it's in the best interest of the victim.

Now I am not saying I'm right, or that my techniques and linguistic dexterity is always ON or appropriate. What I am saying, is that if you say something back it up with Passion AND Facts. If you attack, be prepared to meet the social media ninja.

And don't drop the f-bomb. EVER!

@jmacofearth
permalink: http://bit.ly/goingnegative

    [As a response to some of the comments here, and more so the comments I got as part of the LinkedIN viral discussion, I have launched a NING community site to rally around the best ways to deal with TROLLS who attack. And more importantly the Trolls who threaten. Please join us at Social Media is Not Hate (Ning) You might be member #2!]

    The whole post thread. Watch for Trolls along the path, cause they are hoppin mad today!

    Nice Shot – How long's it been since you've seen the Matrix?
    Social Media Proves Successful as ROI for Business, LinkedIN Group Flames On
    Challenge ROI, Challenge the Model, but Social Media Means Real Business
    Social Media Being Challenged: CRAP? For Business? Really?
    A Bit 'o Humor at the Experts Expense: The SEO Expert said to the SM Expert
    The Red Badge of Courage: Haiti Needs Everyone's Help (JAN 19-10 update 5)
    My MLK Manifesto 2010: I have a dream… I wish social media could be used to…
    A Pirate's Life for Meeeee: Now about this Duck Song Thing? (Waddle Waddle Waddle)
    Crazy Little Thing Called Love: If You Can't Say Something Nice… Well, Shout It
    Drawing the Circles Around LinkedIN Contacts – Social Media for Business of Any Size
    Does LinkedIN Create Business via Social Media Networking?
    LinkedIN Gets Social: Is it Viral or CRAP? You Decide.

      The Twitter Way (a gathering of all the Uber.la Twitter posts)
      Twitter Lists (my list making on Twitter – you need to understand and WORK Twitter lists)
      TwitterTools (the Twitter Matrix of apps and sites to make your tweeting more productive and fun)

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      Dec 12 2009

      Oh Twitter: What Have I Done to Deserve This? And What is a Twitter LIST?

      Category: social media,tech opinion — jmacofearth @ 5:41 pm

      So I'm setting up my new mbp, loving the idea of starting fresh. No unnecessary FF addons, no apps I don't use, only what's necessary. And I'm doin my thing this morning and Tweetdeck (one of my essentials) comes up with this message.

      Screen shot 2009-12-12 at 3.38.18 PM

      Ah, I bet many of you have seen these messages right? Well, I had tweeked my Tweetdeck to poll things more judiciously on my personal machine. So now I'm locked out of my usability tool for Twitter. Yuk.

      Okay, so I'll do some reading and responding from Twitter.com. And right there at the bottom of every page is a teaser:

      Screen shot 2009-12-12 at 3.50.08 PM

      Oh is that right? I wonder. Maybe if you're following about 10 people. I understand that Tweetdeck is available on an iPhone, but I'm a BB thank you very much. So when I go swimming in the river of tweets on my phone, it's useless. I recall back in 2006 when Twitter launched at SXSWi, I, like everyone else that year, subscribed and attached the stream to my phone. But I didn't get it. And I didn't want to get it on my phone. I'm not that interested in where you are going for coffee at 2am. I wasn't back then and I'm still not.

      Okay, so what about these lists Twitter has added? What are they used for?

      Here's what the Twitter blog says about them. (I'm sure Mashable has a very good how-to about them, but I haven't looked for it.)

      Screen shot 2009-12-12 at 4.18.04 PM

      So it is kinda cool seeing that folks have added me to lists that they have created. As long as I'm not on one called **sholes! How would Twitter deal with that? As in negative or slamming Twitter lists? Oh well…

      So here's the little button that I caution you before you start following LISTS rather than folks.

      Screen shot 2009-12-12 at 4.10.41 PM

      I tried a few list follows and my Twitter stream went all wonky. Suddenly tweets were showing up and I couldn't unfollow the person. Tweetdeck kept telling me, you are not following "@MoMoney." And so according to the explanation above you can follow lists, but you can't unfollow individuals from those lists that you follow.

      So now, lists to me are interesting distractions if I'm looking to see who has put me in a group and who else they have added to that said group. Again, I am just waiting until the negative groups start getting attention. I'm sure they are already out there. But that will be another story. I'm sure we could all think of a few people we could add to a list like that.

      Update: Twitter admits folks are getting random tweets in their timeline. Here's the post on their blog about it.

      @jmacofearth
      permalink: http://bit.ly/lists-on-twitter

      A few more Twitter-related posts:

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      future posts

      ∴ A Collaborative Space: WebEx, Go-To-Meeting, Skype, Basecamp (Teaming/Meeting Tools)
      ∴ Twitter Problem: How do you find enough interesting people to follow? Then how do you keep up with them?
      ∴ The Agile Mind: Construction, Evolution, Care, and Feeding Instructions for Mental Flexibility

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