4 Ways Companies Use Twitter for Business

Gartner released a report today that highlights the different ways that companies are adopting Twitter for business use. Although Twitter was originally intended for communication among individuals, a number of organizations have begun to actively participate on the platform. However, not all companies are using Twitter in the same way. Some are tweeting, some are just listening, and some really savvy companies are doing both.

Before any company employees start tweeting, it would be a good idea to remind them that the same rules that apply to other web participation (like blogging, for example) also apply to Twitter. "As Twitter is a public forum, employees should understand the limits of what is acceptable and desirable," says Jeffrey Mann, research vice president at Gartner. "If organizations have not defined a public Web participation policy, they should do so as quickly as possible."

Based on Garnter's research, they have narrowed down the four different ways that companies are using Twitter today: direct, indirect, internal, and signaling। Here's what those mean:

Direct

Some companies are using Twitter as a marketing or public relations channel, much like an extension to their corporate blogs. They will post about corporate accomplishments and distribute links that take people back to corporate web pages, press releases, and other promotional sites.

This method probably seems to be the easiest way to get started, but companies need to be aware that using Twitter like this could actually hinder their image in the Twitter community. A whole bunch of self-serving, self-promotional tweets can actually damage their reputation - Twitter folks like a personal touch.

Gartner also warns that responding to comments can be risky when going this route, but, while that's true to a point, when done right responding on Twitter can be of great benefit to the company. To see some examples of brands that "get" how to tweet and respond, check out what Ford does, or Starbucks, or Dell.

Here are a couple of resources to help your company get familiar with how other businesses do this:

• 16 Examples of Huge Brands Using Twitter for Business
• 40 of the Best Twitter Brands and the People Behind Them

Indirect

The second method some companies use on Twitter is to let their employees tweet instead. As the employees use Twitter to enhance their own personal reputations, the company's reputation is also enhanced by proxy. If this one is hard for you to understand, then perhaps a good example to demonstrate the power of the indirect method is in reverse: imagine what negative tweets about the company would look like. Take the case of the Yahoo employee who twittered throughout the layoffs, for example. How do you think that made Yahoo look at the time?

Now that you understand how employee tweets can affect the company negatively, understand that the reverse is also true. Employees twittering away with excitement about their work, developments in their industry, new products, or other interesting tidbits, even if unrelated to the company itself, can promote positive feelings for whichever business they (indirectly) represent.

Another good reason for having employees tweet instead of the company itself is if the company wants to be seen as employing influential leaders. This list of Forrester analysts on Twitter offers a great example.

Internal

Some companies use Twitter internally to share ideas or communicate about what projects they're working on. If this information is confidential in nature, employees either need to protect their updates or even better, not use Twitter at all. Gartner doesn't recommend using Twitter or any other consumer microblogging service in this way because there's no guarantee of security.

If, however, your company wants to use microblogging at the office, there are tools designed for businesses that let you do just this. Yammer and present.ly are two of the top options for a Twitter-like platform for the workplace.

Inbound Signaling

Some companies aren't as much Twitter participants as they are Twitter "listeners." Using search tools like search.twitter.com or desktop applications like TweetDeck are easy ways to keep track of what's being said about the company, its product names, or even the industry as a whole. Smart companies are tuning in to these micro-conversations to get early warnings of problems and to collect feedback on product issues or ideas.

Recently, Microsoft's PR agency released their Twitter trend-tracking service to the public. Called Twendz, this tool goes beyond simple Twitter searches to also track sentiment, as well.

Conclusion

If your company is thinking about jumping into the Twitter foray (and who isn't these days?), it's best not to do so blindly. Gartner's breakdown of the four ways companies use Twitter is a good starting point, but, in reality, developing a strategy is much more complex than the examples listed above. You can follow up on the ideas in this article by reading Chris Brogan's "50 Ideas on Using Twitter for Business," then subscribing to his blog for more insights. You can also contact Gartner directly for access to the full report.

You can find ReadWriteWeb on Twitter, as well as the entire RWW Team: Marshall Kirkpatrick, Bernard Lunn, Alex Iskold, Sarah Perez, Frederic Lardinois, Rick Turoczy, Sean Ammirati, Lidija Davis and Phil Glockner।

सौर्स: http://www.readwriteweb.com/enterprise/2009/03/4-ways-companies-use-twitter-for-business.php

Web 2.0 in Business

Companies Slow To React To Web 2.0

Despite the fact that Web 2।0 is currently one of the most popular terms on the web, most companies have been slow to adopt it. Many experts feel that the primary reason for this is because the concept of improving company processes with online tools is not a new concept.

Despite this, there are a number of differences between Web 2.0 and traditional online business tools. While the companies who embrace Web 2.0 are likely to be the industry leaders of tomorrow, the days may be numbered for companies that fail to utilize the capabilities of this system.

One of the most fundamental aspects of Web 2.0 is RSS. While many brick and mortar businesses have taken the step of building a website for the company, this is not enough to deal with the ever changing digital market.

One reason that many of these companies aren't embracing Web 2.0 technologies is because the vast majority of business leaders do not understand it. While they know the Internet is important for companies that want to compete in a global market, they can't see the importance of usingWeb 2.0.

Statistics For Companies That are Using Web 2.0

Wired Magazine recently reported in late 2006 that only 10 percent of the largest Fortune 500 companies are currently using blogs or wikis to promote their products or services. This has led many people to state that Web 2.0 is in its infancy.

Despite this, all the signs indicate that the Web 2.0 trend has started, and it is very likely that it will become prominent by the end of this decade. Web 2.0 is critical for companies that place an emphasis on product development, and some experts feel that half of the largest companies in the world will begin using wikis by 2009.

A wiki can be described as a publishing technology that is shared among multiple authors. Some of the best examples of wikis include Wikipedia. A few of the companies which have already taken the steps of embracingWeb 2.0 technologies include Miller Brewing and Johnson Controls.

While big companies may be slow to take advantage of Web 2.0, many online companies are jumping on the bandwagon relatively quickly. Because these companies are already adept to doing business on the Internet, switching to Web 2.0 isn't such as big transition.

The Power of Wikis

There are a number of reasons why companies can benefit from using wikis. First, if you are the owner of a company that already has a traditional website, creating a blog can allow you to drive traffic to it. This additional traffic may become your high value customers.

While most wikis have been designed for the standard Internet user, they have a lot of potential for those who know how to use them properly. Because some companies have seen a decline in their communication levels, they have begin using wikis to facilitate a better level of communication, as well as storing company knowledge.

Wikis are also useful because they can be used to allow customer feedback. By taking the time to review the feedback, the company will be able to make strategic decisions that will allow them to become much more successful. Overall, a wiki or blog can allow companies to communicate with their customers. It must also be noted that it isn't necessary for companies to be on the cutting edge ofWeb 2.0. However, they should at least take the time to embrace Web 2.0 concepts.

Common Web 2.0 Tools

There are a number of common tools that are considered to be Web 2.0 technologies. One of these is a podcast, which is a personal broadcast that can be accessed on demand. It will generally come in the form of a multimedia file that is distributed over the Internet. It can be played on portable devices or on a computer. Another type ofWeb 2.0 technology is a mashup.

This is a website or program that collects content from other parts of the web to turn it into something entirely new. A folksonomy is a method in which users categorize links or other useful information. When combined, these technologies are expected to transform the web.