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21 Twitter Services, Tools & Resources

I've spent a considerable amount of time finding different Twitter Services, Tools & Articles. I've read the articles and tried the services and tools. All of these or many in conjunction with one another can help improve your Twitter usage and marketing efforts.

Services

Twitter - This is a no brainer, if you want to promote yourself through Twitter then you'll need to create a Twitter profile.
Twit Pic - Share your Twitter worthy photos through this website. Great way to get discovered by other Twitter users.
Twitt Groups - Find groups that interest you or that you can connect with and possibly do business with down the road. Create your own group and build up a community group. Plenty of opportunity with this website.
Tweet Grid - This is a recently discovered website thanks to @SugarCube. It is fast becomeing one of my favorite places to find other Twitter users that are topic oriented. Tweet Grid allows you to conduct one or more searches on Twitter and see who is talking about specific topics.
Tweet Works - Another group related website. I like this because you can post directly to the group page OR both to your Twitter and to the group page. I created the 'Marketing' group and plan on posting at least a daily marketing tip.
Twitter Feed - Useful tool if you have a blog and RSS feed. Simply give your RSS feed to Twitter Feed and whenever you post a new blog this service will announce the new post automatically via your Twitter profile. Be cautious using this though as too many automated updates may cause you to lose some followers.
Twitter Poll Daddy - Create a Poll and then broadcast it to your Twitter followers. This handy modification of PollDaddy changes your Twitter status so that more people will see your Poll even when you aren't Tweeting about it.
Twitter Response - Probably one of my favorite Twitter tools of all. This allows me to set up Twitter posts to publish at a specific time and date. This is handy for me because I can't always use Twitter through out the day but don't want to miss out on potential followers that are only on when i'm not.
Twitter Reply - Want to know when someone sends you a response or direct message on Twitter without spending your day glued to your Twitter screen? Twitter Reply sends you an e-mail whenever someone mentions your Twitter username. If someone said, "Hello @10minutes!" I'd get an e-mail.

There is some chance of spam associated with this I can imagine so beware of that possibility if your using a name similar to someone elses OR someone is blindly broadcasting spammy messages hoping to hit and miss.
Qwitter - Over solicitation can lead to people removing you from their follow list. This might also happen if you are not active on Twitter or if you are out right rude or something. This service will alert you to when someone stops following you by sending you an e-mail along with the post immediately before that person stopped following you. Great way to measure what you might be doing right or wrong with your connecting to others.

Desktop Tools

Tweet Deck - This tool is an Adobe Air product that allows you to break down specific parts of Twitter such as direct messages, replies and so on into seperate viewable windows. There are many great advantages to using this particular software if you want to give it a go.
Twhirl - This is the tool I use by default for all of my Twitter activity. This tool allows you to manage multiple accounts which comes in handy if your wife shares your computer from time to time or of you have multiple accounts, one for professional and one for personal. This also has a nice little built in URL Shorten button and when you move your mouse over someones twitter image it'll give you options to reply, direct message, retweet or add to your favorites.
Twitter Fox - This is a Firefox plugin that allows you to get Tweet updates in a small non obtrusive window. I use this at work and it is very handy in keeping me away from constantly refreshing my browser window.
Twitterlator - For all of those iPhone users out there, this is the application you can easily setup on your phone to start Tweeting no matter where you are at. I haven't personally tried this one but did stumble across it so if you have any reviews feel free to share via a comment.
Twadget - My wife is a Vista user while I am still on Windows XP. This nice little Twitter tool is a Windows Vista gadget that I just had to install on her computer and give it a go. Not a bad desktop application to run on a Vista machine.

Twitter Articles

10 Easy Steps for Twitter Beginners
50 Ideas on Using Twitter for Business
Beginners Guide to Using Twitter for Business
Twit Tip - Daily Twitter Tips
Twitter Blog - New Updates, Announcements and more.
Five Twitter Marketing Strategies - My own Twitter post on AR.

Follow me on Twitter - @10minutes | View My AR Profile | View my Linked In Profile | My Trulia Profile

Posted by John Jones on 12/28/2008 10:51 PM

Comments (11)

Twitter Resources, Tools & Services in the Online Marketing Channel

twitter tools, twitter services, twitter resources

Post is included in group: WEB 2.0 Marketing on Steroids for Real Estate
Post is included in group: AR Twitter Users

11 Comments on 21 Twitter Services, Tools & Resources

DEC

I use Tweet Deck. I have Vista too. Is Twagdet better???

Also,

What is the best service to use for my phone. I have a Mogul - a PDA style phone from Sprint.

Hi John, You have given me a lot to 'chew on' about Twitter. I've been looking into it. Haven't made the jump yet.

I am sort of new on twitter and am still learning there is so much for to this great social media thing that just my few comments here and there. It will be great having all of the above sites at my finger tips to check out (as time permits)! Thanks for the list. You can follow me @Tleighton if you like.

I have been on Twitter for awhile. There are still so many things I don't use. Gonna bookmark this so I can come back to it and study it a bit more. Thanks.

Hi John, thanks for all of the great information and websites. I've set up an account for myself - so I am new to twittering and have a lot to learn. Has anyone set their phone up to twitter? Does it get overwhelmed at any point with messages?

Marlene Pellegrini,

Twagdet is a simple app while Tweet Deck is a little more robust. Twagdet is good for someone who might not always think about logging into different applications since it auto loads. I'd suggest Twagdet for anyone needing a very simple easy reminder to Tweet every now and then to keep social with other Realtors and people within their own community.

I don't Tweet via my phone due to my data plan and my cheapo cell phone that I'll get to upgrade my April. However I'd point you directly to http://twitter.com/devices.

Marian Gregor,

There are certainly a lot of resources and tools out their for Twitter. The trick is to find what works best for your specific needs and run with that. I don't really use Twit Pic because I don't always think my pictures are share worthy.

One of the hardest things about starting with Twitter is that you simply need to jump in and stay committed to the process. Eventually you'll develop the mindset that Twitter is an every day thing like checking your e-mail, brushing your teeth and so on. Twitter is a mindset.

Terrie Leighton,

Following you on Twitter and even sent you two messages though no laughing at the picture of me from 2000!

Social Media, be it Twitter, AR, Trulia Voices, Blogging Networks and so on are HUGE time traps. They can also be highly affective when used in proper ways. I never encourage any of my clients to jump into social media marketing if they can't commit to the process for a very long time with no results. The truth of the matter is that half hearted activity is worthless and even more of a waste of time.

Find what works best for you and run with it. I tend to use a combination of AR, Twitter & Trulia over the last three - four weeks with fairly optimal results that I was targeting.

Audrey June-Forshey,

I wouldn't have enough hours crammed into a day if I utilized everything in this post or even other posts. I do use a select few social websites for promotion purposes and I also develop habits such as checking Twitter at least three times daily. One habit I am aiming for is adding my Twitter URL to each of my posts.

Great stuff - thank you for sharing. I do twit but some days find it very overwhelming! I find it hard to follow a "conversation" on Twitter so I've been looking at tools to help with that. You've done the work for me!

DEC

I have been on Twitter for a while but don't really use it except for the Twitter Feed. Thanks for the post...I'm going to check these out in the next few days.

Debbie DiFonzo,

You'll probably really enjoy Tweet Deck to help you follow certain conversations but you are right in that if you are not following a person that someone else is talking to that it can be easily confusing in regards to following conversations.

One great thing about Twitter though is if you see someone say, "@10minutes, Thanks for the great tip!", you may not know what that tip is because you don't follow me BUT you can always easily follow me and then see what that tip was.

Lori Mode,

Tweet Grid is going to be a nice little tool for you if you leave your computer on all the time like I do. You can quickly and easily keep track of people that say specific words on Twitter. For example, I track conversations for the following keywords:

Real Estate
Riverside CA
Inland Empire

Thanks John: I joined your Twitter marketing group and sent an invitation to be linked in Linkedin. I use Tweetdeck and have created about 6 groups to follow my favorites. I had been wondering about Twirl and what it offers. I definitely bookmarked this as I am fully engaged in learning all I can about Twitter - GREAT POST!

Good morning Cathy,

If you are already using Tweet Deck there is probably / most definitely no reason to also use Twhirl as they both accomplish the same tasks.

Thanks for joining my marketing group on Tweet Works. I'm curious to see how many unique / non similar tips I can come up with for how long. If you come across anything that you think might contribute to the cause feel free to send me a link!

So you officially confirmed that my 20 - 30 minutes creating a Twitter background with useful links that lead to more information about me works. I'll be happy to add you to my Linked In profile just as soon as I get a second or two to log into that account.

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