Free (but welcome) advice on the corporate use of Twitter
People who have a healthy skepticism about Twitter, like my wife, have the impression that people on Twitter talk about mundane topics like “I ate a slice of pizza for lunch.” But in fact, those of us on Twitter know that there is no more popular topic on Twitter…than Twitter itself.
I shared on Twitter that we were planning to use the @UpTake twitter account more in the future. Many of us at UpTake are already personally on Twitter: @yenlee @patjenkins @elliottng and others. But I was hoping to have @UpTake be a shared account between Pat, Steve Yu, and me for more focused Travel Industry information and discussion.
An interesting and spirited conversation then ensued about the corporate use of Twitter with a number of people in the Travel (and general) Social Media space, including: @NitinK of Software Abstraction Blog, @StephenJoyce of Rezgo, SEKeener of BootsNAll, @ToddLucier of TourismKeys.ca, @nerdseyeview of NerdsEyeView, @chadcat of ZoomProspector, and @chinkerfly (who worked with me on my CNReviews China blog). This is what is so cool about Twitter…an instant water-cooler discussion with some incredible people distributed across the world. And yes, like a real water-cooler discussion, plenty of free advice emerged.
Todd Lucier of TourismKeys.ca
@ToddLucier’s initial tweet reaction to us starting an @UpTake twitter account was a little negative: “Elliot, surely this place is more about people and their ideas than corporate brands.” Todd went further and on a post argued that people should use their own personal name consistently across all Web 2.0 platforms so as to build a consistent Web 2.0 personal brand.
Stephen Joyce of Rezgo and Travel & Tourism Technology Trends Blog
@StephenJoyce weighed in with a tweet that people agreed with: “I think you and Pat have more impact on the Uptake brand then an Uptake twitter feed. You, Yen, and Pat are the human element.” I totally agree with this, but we also expect to build UpTake into a leading online travel company that transcends individual people. Also, our corporate culture is totally allergic to the “cult of personality” (perhaps because Yen is Canadian, Stephen and Todd). So how do you add that personal touch in a way that transcends one person, even the founders?
Sean Keener of BootsNAll Network
Sean Keener tweeted that “Look @ history of goog SERPs as indicator 4 twitter” and then elaborated his idea in a nice video-post on his blog and YouTube:
Sean points out that person-to-person marketing is always the most effective way to get your message out, and that as founder of BootsNAll he has been doing it in independent travel for the last 10 years. “Nothing beats meeting someone, shaking their hand, and talking about something they love.” Couldn’t agree more.
More great links and resources
I received some great links from Sean, Nitin and others:
- Search Engine Guide – Jennifer Laycock – Great Examples of Corporate Twitter Use
- Fast Wonder Blog – Dawn Foster – Using Twitter for Brands or Corporate Identities
- How to Change The World – Guy Kawasaki – How to Use Twitter as a Twool
- Web Strategy – Jeremiah Owyang – Why Brands Are Unsuccessful in Twitter
- Horse Pig Cow – Tara Hunt – Tweeting for Companies 101
These are incredible resources! A great example of Twitter serving as a social computer.
What’s UpTake going to do?
Well for one, we’re not going to overthink it. We’re just going to do our best to develop a shared UpTake account that highlights interesting stuff related to the Travel Industry, Travel Technology, Search, and happenings at UpTake. We’re all going to keep our personal accounts and keep using them as we all want to individually. And we’re going to heed the advice provided above on keeping it personal and enjoying the process of building relationships with people who care about the same things we do. That’s it for now!
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10 Responses
[...] Ng of UpTake discusses the process his company went through in determining their business use of Twitter. Includes thoughts on corporate Twitter handle vs personal Twitter handles aka Personal [...]
To answer your question regarding my tweet about the human element. When you, blog, or generally converse using social network tools, the key point is that it is social (i.e. personal interaction). The reason why we haven’t set up a Rezgo twitter account (and trust me, I have thought about it) is because it would become a mask for whoever communicates through it. My recommendation is to wear an UpTake badge on your sleeve rather than cover your face with an UpTake mask. If you are worried about mixing your personal tweets with your corporate ones then use a trending tag like #UpTake on all your “corporate messages” and consolidate them through search.
All of these technologies are opening up companies and the way we communicate with them, for better or worse (mostly better). I think you should be celebrating the fact that Uptake is made up of great people. Even though some of them may not be with the company in the future, let them celebrate their participation now and let others see their involvement and engagement. The transparency is refreshing and exciting. Adding a brand mask only enhances the perception of companies as faceless entities.
What can I say… I enjoy people.
Stephen Joyce’s last blog post..Vote Now and Vote Often for Open Web Awards Travel Category
Elliot,
Glad you are considering how Uptake will continue to use Twitter. I really think that the magic of Twitter and the social Web is the exchanges that take place between individuals. If we look at online travel and indeed, services like Uptake, most people get most value out of the stories and recommendations shared via blog feeds and comments. Imagine for a moment that the comments and stories were instead branded with business names.
The result would be for most readers to discredit the content as being valuable.
Look at Google’s new wiki search results and consider the same. If company Google account users leave comments with business names, the value of the content will be compromised. Individuals with complete google profiles who comment will build interest that flows over into other social biographies and subsequently into the organization.
Nameless company blogs don’t see the light of day.
Instead, individuals make the organizations look good when their individual voices are heard. More importantly, individuals who respond to social conversations based on what others are discussing with valuable links and content is what matters most! Organizations can’t do this, only people as individuals can.
On Twitter, the people behind the brands are who I’m looking to be inspired by and to inspire, to learn from and to lead, to provide value to and take value from. It doesn’t mean that individuals should hide their affiliations, it just means that their voice should be their own.
Thanks for keeping the conversation alive . . .
ps. wouldn’t have given this a read if it had been typed by Uptake.
best regards,
t.
@toddlucier’s last blog post..toddlucier: rt copyblogger Sorry Seth, I have to agree with Alex, it is elitist! – http://tinyurl.com/656aln
Yeah! Thanks Todd, I’m not the only one. BTW, sorry about the terrible grammar in my previous comment. Sheesh, it’s painful to read.
Stephen Joyce’s last blog post..Vote Now and Vote Often for Open Web Awards Travel Category
I continually struggle between the personal and corporate nature of twitter. Should I talk about industry trends and my kids latest funny phrase? some of my audience cares about only one or the other. I started using Twitter to keep in touch with friends, now it is a corporate platform more often than not. An UpTake account might help me focus my tweets. But then again business is often mixed with pleasure, even with the simple phrase, “how was your weekend?” on a Monday morning. The personal may help the business side of things.
If it were any other company I think I would be more concerned but you guys (Elliott, Yen, Pat, etc.) are all over the social media scene and you know how to use it “the right way”. I was thinking about my comments last night and realized that the mask is only a mask if it is used to conceal the person (or people) behind it. I don’t doubt that unlike some companies, you will use your corporate twitter account with transparency and openness. So, go for it!
Stephen Joyce’s last blog post..Vote Now and Vote Often for Open Web Awards Travel Category
[...] adding the widget to their corporate blogs to make the interactions a little more personal. Uptake.com for example just launched their twitter feed in an effort to connect in a more social way. Although I was against the idea of a corporate twitter account, I realized that the account is [...]
[...] adding the widget to their corporate blogs to make the interactions a little more personal. Uptake.com for example just launched their twitter feed in an effort to connect in a more social way. Although I was against the idea of a corporate twitter account, I realized that the account is [...]
I still feel so green as a blogger–thanks for explaining a little bit about Twittering. Pat kindly pointed me in that direction a couple of months ago… will have to explore it so I can hopefully get some more traffic to my blog. Uptake seems to be very much on the rise…. I have been planning a camping trip in March to Jekyll and Cumberland Islands, and Uptake has come up in the top 10 of several searches. Congrats on things going well!
Lunchbox Obsessed’s last blog post..Lunchbox happy-sacks: Reusable Sandwich Bags
[...] this year, I had a lively Twitter and blogosphere conversation with Stephen Joyce, Todd Lucier, Sean Keener, and Nitin Karandikar, and others about what to do [...]