I remember getting invited to check out Twitter about 2 years ago. Next, I remember thinking that it seemed useless. Months passed....I got emails that said things like, "@delicioushair is now following you on Twitter". 
WHAT?!? Why?
The notion of someone following me used to strike me as both odd and off-putting. I guess it sounds catchier than saying that someone is "paying attention to you on Twitter", but that's basically exactly what this means. I prefer to think of my subscribers, friends, contacts, and followers as part of my online audience. The better you are at building an audience, the more likely you are to convert this to actual business growth, in my opinion.
Over time, I got the hang of it, and I finally jumped in with both feet just over a year ago, and I'm thankful that I did.
As of a couple of days ago, I have over 10,000 people paying attention to me on Twitter. What's the significance of this? Well, by itself, not much. I had a brief conversation on Twitter with Derek Overbey (@doverbey) after crossing this milestone. He mentioned that quality is more important than quantity, and I agree wholeheartedly. I think having BOTH is pretty nice, too. :)
I consistently see Twitter users with 20,000 or even 50,000 followers who have really only built a very big house of cards for themselves. They never converse with anyone, and they are still trying to use Twitter like a traditional marketing channel, by broadcasting information rather than hanging out and listening.
A few nights ago, I was happy to be able to attend a local "tweetup" (Twitter-based meetup) with author Shel Israel. I even got to sit next to him at dinner, which made my day. Shel is the author of the newly released book "Twitterville" and co-author with Robert Scoble of one of the seminal books on blogging, "Naked Conversations". During dinner, we had an interesting discussion with my local friend Mike Chapman about the fact that no politician has truly utilized social media yet, including President Obama. Obama's campaign certainly did a very effective job of using the tools to broadcast their message, but that's not the same thing as listening and joining the conversation. Shel noted that it would be newsworthy (and bookworthy) for a candidate to do this.
As with the candidates who jump on the bandwagon to appear hip, the same thing goes for anyone attempting to use Twitter to build his/her business. You must listen! Sending links from your blog posts, or just having a profile is not enough. What if someone responds to your post but you aren't even there to see it? In much the same way, having a giant number of followers means nothing if they are all spambots, or if you are never around to speak with them. Raw numbers are not the important part - engagement is.
I am happy to hit this new plateau, but I also recognize that the key to success in any social medium is being consistent.
Over the past 24 hours, I had two of my agents contact me, excited about new prospects that they have. One of them is looking to spend up to $3 million for a waterfront home (fully pre-screened - it's his friend's fiancee), and the other is considering homes priced in the $1 million range. If they both close, I would stand to make $22,500 or more for our company. Why am I bothering to tell you this? Because I met BOTH of these agents on Twitter. It's a phenomenal recruiting tool if handled correctly.
P.S. Just a quick tip: If you want to get serious about using Twitter to build relationships and your business, I would highly recommend using TweetDeck, Seesmic Desktop, or something similar. It makes it easier to pay attention to the people you care about and form bonds with them.
If you enjoyed this post, why not connect with me elsewhere or subscribe via email?
If you're looking for a home in the Austin area, you can also visit my primary Austin real estate website at www.austintexashomes.com. If you're interested in social media training, visit 210 Consulting. Thanks!
Woohooo! Way to go Jason!
Congrats on the milestone. I do agree with Derek about the quality issue as the masses have rushed to see what twitter is all about. And yes it is true that constancy does play a big part of any online marketing initiative. Thanks for sharing.
Jason, I agree with you wholeheartedly about Twitter. I see so many using it as a broadcast tool and not as a conversation tool and they're missing the point entirely.
I just went to TWTRCON in DC on Tuesday. Take a look at the hashtag #twtrcon to learn about everything from the conference. About 300 people, many of whom paid $595 to be there for the day (fortunately I had a discount). I got to have a great conversation with @pistachio (Laura Fitton), author of Twitter for Dummies.
Yesterday, I was at another event, Blog Potomac, where Shel Israel was the keynote speaker (he sure does get around!) Got a copy of his new book Twitterville and am looking forward to reading it.
Twitter is all about engagement. One of my favorite quotes from the conference was that "Now you don't have to yell at your T.V. anymore, you can tweet about it!" That sort of embodies what Twitter is all about.
While I've only got a quarter of your followers, I'm working on deepening the engagement with each of them.
Thank you for sharing this info about Twitter and how to get get business from connecting with people there. I put off joining Twitter for fear of being another follower just to be there. I joined about 2 weeks ago and although I don't know if it is helping yet, it is really great to open one of my other networking sites that I have syncronized with Twitter and see that my status has been updated already. That is neat. I plan to use your ideas and see what happens. Thanks again and have a great weekend.
I joined Twitter in 2009; I plan to put it to work for me in 2010 by engaging more and broadcasting less.
Goodness, that's a lot of followers! I wish I had a better understanding of Twitter. I have my blog posts and Facebook business page post to Twitter. I have noticed a lot of fans to my FB business page that I can't figure out where they come from......maybe it's the Twittering?
GOODNESS... Had no idea of the impact!! I have to get serious then huh?? Great testimony!!!!
Jason, what a great & true testament to twitter & its' power -- when used in a good & consistent way! Great job!
Hi Jason! I have my auto-feeds to Twitter and KNOW that I need to spend time there but, can't seem to manage it! I need to start blocking time for it--I spend WAAY too much of my spare time on AR! But, I just LOVE it here...
Definitely on my list to start this campaign! Thanks for giving me even more reason to do it today!
The key to being successful at anything is consistency.
While I've not embraced Twitter to its full extent. I recognize the importance of working it regularly.
Great job Jason.
I hope those leads turn into commissions for you.
Congratulations.
I'm going to follow you and see if I can get interested in Twitter. So far I'm lukewarm about it.
Jason,
That is awesome that you recruited those high producing agents from Twitter. I have gained a better understanding of Twitter from this blog post.
Jason,
First, Congratulations.
I'm going to have to take your word for it. I have tried to get my head around what goes on. What you are referring to as "Conversations" seem so surreal.
I know it works - there are way to many who claim success, just as you do...I just have to better understand, I guess. I hate to admit this, but I am starting to feel the generational gap of the Internet and finding it harder and harder to keep up. I have been here a long time - heck, I met my bride in an AOL Chat Room, back in 1995!
Twitter I must...but what comes next?
John
Jason, congratulations. 10,000 followers is a pretty impressive number. I have an account but haven't used it yet. Truth is I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around the whole idea.
Jason - congrats on the followers! If you keep writing posts like these your numbers will continue to jump as you convince more people to make the jump onto Twitter.
While I haven't made much of a jump from Twitter to real life besides connecting with agents from other offices in my company, I hope that will happen in turn.
You're right - the key to Twitter is conversations and the key to that is finding a software program that helps you make sense of what your followers are saying, let's you track click throughs on links and lets you set tweets to send out later, something like Hootsuite or Tweetdeck.
Thanks for the recruiting success story - that's one of the reasons I'm here!
Holy mackerel Jason...
That's a lot of followers! I have never really gotten into Twitter too much, although I do enjoy doing @replies to celebrities. It's cool to "talk" to them.
I guess that's why YOU have so many followers, you are quite the celebrity.
Jason -
Congrats! and I have a feeling that with 10,000 plus followers your tweets have more substance than: 'who do you know that needs to buy/sell' or 'just listed 100 elm street' etc!
"The notion of someone following me used to strike me as both odd and off-putting." OK. I have to admit. I'm still of this mindset. And I don't interract much with others, nor do I automatically "return" the follow. I just have it setup to catch links to things I put on my blog, Facebook, Blogger, etc. I rarely actually open the program and interrract =/ And I'm still just not a big Twitter fan. I just couldn't care less if someone is standing in line at Starbucks!? Those just annoying twits "tweets" =P
Jason
As usual you offer up the best and most useful stuff. This old brain is having a hard time digesting all of it...but your posts are good to refer back and forth to.
Jason, I have to admit that I have not done much with Twitter or Facebook. I am pouring my efforts into my AR blog, which I am now focusing on a Localism level. I feel good about what I'm doing for my community by spotlighting local business and what my market has to offer. It doesn't leave time for any other internet endeavors, but I keep thinking, someday...
Great post Jason. Thanks for all the tips, especially TweetDeck. I've just downloaded it and like what I see so far.
Very good info. Thank you for sharing.
I have just stuck my toe in the twitter water so far so thanks for the advice.
Congrats, Jason! I've been on Twitter for almost as long as you, and count myself as one of the 10048 people who are fortunate enough to pay attention to you. I only have a tad over 2000 followers myself, but I couldn't agree more that Twitter is a lot more than just a place to post your latest listing (although I do that) or tell people what you're doing (although I do that too; after all, Twitter is built around the question, "What Are You Doing?").
Twitter is a Water Cooler: people from all walks of life gather at this digital watering hole to talk about their day, their dreams, their needs, and their experences. Having the ability to listen in on those conversations, in real time, is priceless.
Twitter is a Networking Tool: The agent to agent interactions here are phenomenal; it's been said that no other profession has embraced Twitter with as much passion and purpose as real estate, and the opportunity for referrals, recommendations and friendships that have born here are remarkable.
Twitter is a Learning Tool: I think it is safe to say that the vast majority of the movers and shakers in the real estate industry are all deeply involved with Twitter. With all this RE brain power floating around Twitterville, it's hard to scan through their updates in TweetDeck without learning something. The collective knowledge of these folks is amazing and their willingness to impart that knowledge to their colleagues is totally unselfish (not unlike the Active Rain community!).
Twitter is different things to different people, and I may have missed a few things here, but the key to all of this, as you pointed out is: you have to BE THERE to take advantage of it. LISTEN to what's being said; ENGAGE with your fellow agents, lenders, brokers, inspectors, appraisers and, yes, CLIENTS (imagine that!) so you can build relationships with these people that could (and usually do) result in meaningful friendships and profitable business. Finding the time to do all this might be a difficult task, but look at it as an investment in yourself and your business. Try to set aside a few minutes a day to hang out, listen, learn and engage in the Twittersphere. It could have a profound effect on how you look at yourself, your peers and your business.
See you on Twitter!
Jason,
I'm glad to be one of your 10,000!
Hugs from @realtortweet
Jason:
Thanks mighty impressive, but you are so right - it's the qulaity and what you are doinhg with it, not the #s that you have, altho clearly many think that's what it's all about. I need to do a better job of being consistent myself, but I have found it very useful for getting info and answers to questions, as well as keeping up with the world and local news in general.
Jeff
Jason I am pulling for you to make those sales! That would certainly be time well spent on Twitter!
Hi Jason~ I hope thsoe agent that you recruited from twitter make those sales and you all make some money! Congratulations!
Hi Jason,
What keeps me from diving into Twitter and Facebook, is figuring out where on earth I'd get the time? I spend alot of time on AR - how would i manage more and still manage the rest of 'life' and business? Lots of folks do it - so there must be a method. What's yours?
Debi
Debi - Frankly, my method isn't that difficult. I basically use Twitter in my "free" time. I jump in when I can, then leave when I have to do something else. I always recommend using humor, questions, and intriguing content to start a conversation, just like when you are at a "real life" gathering. Clearly, I have spent a whole lot of time on AR as well, as evidenced by my point total. :)
Well, maybe one of these days I'll take the plunge! Thanks for sharing your insights :)
Debi
I know this is working for some people. It seems hard to understand how you can have a conversation with 10,000 people.
When I read your title all I could think was it meant 10,000 people know when you are going to the bathroom. :)
Engaging instead of broadcasting - I'm just beginning to "GET" that. I just recently got a little more serious with Twitter and have 600+ followers. Tweetdeck is a MUST.
And Jason, I remember something you tweeted that stuck with me, "Would you walk into a party and start quoting Mark Twain?"
Jason.
Congratulations, you have to create a relationship and not just a bunch of numbers!
Hey Jason - I already follow you on Twitter. Been there for awhile like you and over the past 6 months or so have been changing up to be more interactive in discussions with others and tuning up on targeting the base of followers.
I just crossed 46k followers the other day.
I think one of the keys in utilizing it effectively is to target local twitter users and network with those in the same industry when connecting with those out of state. That way you work towards referral business and direct local business.
twitter id - swedal
Several people have mentioned that they don't want to hear about the mundane details of someone's day, nor do they want everyone knowing about the minutiae that occur (trips to the bathroom, getting a haircut, etc.). I have two responses to that:
1. If you care about someone and already have a relationship, you might care more about what that person is doing
2. I very rarely use Twitter to actually answer the question, "What are you doing?". I think a lot of people get stuck there, rather than trying to strike up a conversation or respond to something funny or interesting. If you can think of it as a party or a university where you can learn from others 24/7, that might help you to get past the "I don't get it" phase and use it to your advantage.
Gene - I am not even attempting to have a conversation with 10,000 people. The point is that there is potential to have contact with that many people. If you go to a sporting event with 10,000 people, do you consider that to be the kind of place where you must meet everyone? I doubt it. However, what if you were given an opportunity to speak on stage for a few minutes, then the people that were interested could respond to you personally? It's powerful, no?
Hi Jason - I see Klout mentioned in your screenshot. That utility has some pretty interesting metrics. Your 10,000 followers also represents a measure of trust and influence, both directly (when you tweet) and indirectly (when they retweet). The question is 'what will you do with that trust and influence?'
I think the 140 characters makes you micro blog, get to the point, cull out the non-essential and with tinycc et al to pretty, short the code to AR blogs, youtube videos, etc. The late night comedians have taken their turn with the jokes about have thousands of friends you've never met. 10,000 is a lot of Christmas cards to send out this year. Tweet.
Good going there! I am barely using any of this right now, but am in all of it a little. There is so much to learn, it is a bit overwelming.
Great post! For me I don't use Twitter so much to find clients but I look for referral partners instead. Wow 10,000 peeps that is great!
It is all about many ways to connect Jason, and congrats on finding those two agents.
Jason, having that many people following me would frighten me!!! I guess Twitter is just something that's not for me. I do get it but I just don't have enough time on the day. I already have too much stuff going on. Keep it up though. 10,000 followers is impressive.
That is amazing . I will have to learn more about twitter.
Jason, I am mystified by Twitter, unfortunately. Although I tweet my posts, as you say, it's not enough. When I fully master AR, perhaps I will work on that. But you are right, you have potential, with all those people listening to you. Amazing, really amazing. Thanks for the prod!!!
Jason,
This is pretty amazing.
I'm not fully aware of all of the benefits of twitter... when I get a request from someone to follow me and they are following thousands of people, I don't allow it..
I may change over time, just haven't had the time to even think about it.
Well said and congratulations on your milestone. Good luck closing those deals that will definitely be a great case study on why Twitter is a great business tool.
Jason,
I agree with you wholeheartly. Twitter is a great tool but used right it can be a great moneymaker. I use twitter for many different things including communicating with my agents and meeting local users. Twitter also keeps me informed of local events and national conversations. Many of the people that I visit with on AR I first met on Twitter. Somehow both are interlinked and facebook too.
BTW I'm now follower 10,049
:)
Jason - I agree that twitter can be a powerful tool if managed correctly. The people that don't get it are the ones with automatic feeds only. Dont get me wrong, I think the auto feeds are a good idea. But I think you need to have a conversation with people as well. Initiate conversation, get involved, etc. I'm still around 3600 followers or so. Over the past few months, I have paid attention to those that follow me. If they are an auto responder or only market themselves, I don't bother following back (unless of course its useful information to me). But being selective has helped me find better people to follow back.
Jason CONGRATS to you on all your tweeple! Now on to 20K ;)
I need to look into this more, there are sooooo many options out there right now, it gives me a headache!
It means that you are a Rock Star. I am very new on Twitter. I have only 35 Tweets. Today I checked Google analytics and I was very happy to see that some traffic to my website came from Twitter.
dude that rocks. I need to get that twitter going on. I really need to get started. Thanks for the motivation
Great post, Jason. Wow you do have lots of folks following you!
Thanks for sharing,
Tamara
Dear Jason,
You seem to have found the answer. WOW 10K followers!! What are you EF Hutton reincarnated?!? I must admit while I have a bunch of Twitter folowers, I am not there as much. Now I need to logon and check my followers number. You made me curious to know for sure!
;)
Hey Jason, I really like what you said about having an audience of 10,000 people. I'm glad I took the time to check out your post and read through some responses. This CAN be quite impactful when we consider how many friends really are following us on twitter. Thank you for sharing.
Jury is still out for me on Twitter. Obviously there are some success stories out there, but I wonder if, in general, it's a good use of the average real estate agent's time.
Congrats to you that it's working for you.
Wow, you do have a social network!
Don - Fair enough. I remember hearing people say the exact same thing about real estate websites back when we started ours in 1997. True story.
Hi Jason,
Twitter is defintely an excellent networking tool and a unique one at that. I also appreciate being able to link my facebook account to it so that I only have to post one "status update." What a time saver!
For those who maybe on the fence or who know nothing about how to get started on Twitter, here's a good Twitter 101 primer to get you started, with links to good tips on what to do after you take the plunge. (Thanks to Leah Dossey at Creative Wisdom for tweeting this link!)
If you give it a chance, Twitter really can be a viable part of your marketing plan. Hope to see you all in the Twittersphere soon!
Wow, you have a lot of followers! I have to agree with what you say about consistency. I have not used twitter to its full potential like I should.
Wow! That's great. I don't use it to its full otential either. I try to focus on AR.
Wow Jason. This is great news. Congratulations! Although I have had a twitter account for a few months, I have yet to actually Tweet anything. I may try subscribing to your Tweet and learn from the master.
What it really means is that I haven't been doing it nearly as much or as effectively as I need to....thanks dude.
Boy is this a wake up call for our Team! Although we have made some attempt at building our Twitter audience we have obviously just scratched the surface. Thanks so much.. keep up the great job!!!!
That is a lot of followers. I need to really do this!
Thanks again for your post. I read it before and commented, but I'm doing the scavenegr hunt and immediately thought about you and this post!
Jason, over 10,000 followers...that's amazing...I'll add myself to the list!
Jason I found this doing a scavanger hunt :)
Great Job,
Amy in TN
Congratulations! You are really working it. I find Twitter quite engaging and am meeting people right here on Maui because of it. (what's all this about a scavenger hunt?)
woo hoo! that's awesome. I still have 0 followers. we'll see how that progresses.
-Nelson
Ok Jason - spoofing on a recent AR post: who do I have to sleep with to get 10,000 followers? LOL Happy Friday!
Christy - I'm not sure you want to hear the answer to that one. ;)
Twitter is an amazing thing--- still learning and listening.... thanks Jason! Kathy