Provident Partners news

I’m trying something a bit different, instead of just a blog to land on from Twitter, I’ve decided to provide a unique page that I’ll update as needed. First some basic items to consider when following me on Twitter. I use Twitter as a total communications outlet, business, personal, relationships, and even sometimes, What I’m doing now.  

Confessions: I use it to highlight, even promote new blog posts. I don’t go hog wild, a couple of tweets here and there to let people know I’ve something potentially worthwhile on the stove.  By the way, I write the Marketing Edge blog and podcast, that even others have recommended. :>)

Hidden Objective:  I crack myself up. And I hope to share some of those chuckles with people on Twitter,  people, I don’t care if the bots following me laugh or not. So you might see some tweets that don’t make sense, unless you read what I responded to.  I know, I know, I shouldn’t end a sentence with to, sorry Mrs. Grady (elementary school English teacher) 

 
Clients: Sometimes I will share what I’m doing with or for clients on Twitter. I usually will indicate those tweets with a (C) just to save space.  If there is room the first time I tweet about clients I will spell out the word.   I have not yet taken on clients that I promote their stuff, for example. Here’s XYZ software company, they have great stuff, you should buy some.  That situation has not yet presented itself and I’d rather not get into that kind of relationship.

I have pointed tweets to clients that have a software product in beta that they want feedback about.  I believe this represents more of Twitter’s core value, it is a two way street and I’m not asking someone to shell out cash. I also do not get paid for Tweeting about clients. 

What I do like to do is report about industries and trends. I will do that for clients and gladly take that conversation to Twitter to get more dialogue on a topic. To me, that is the beauty of social media in general and Twitter specifically.  For example,  I am doing project work Verizon Wireless.  I will reference articles or blog posts that highlight the issue of the Android phones, cell networks, and mobile application development. As part of this interesting project, I tapped into an organization I have a commitment in the Social Media Breakfast. Verizon Wireless is interested in being a part of the social community, in Des Moines there is an active and growing community online and in mobile development. I am involved with Nathan Wright of Lava Row in organizing the first Social Media Breakfast in Des Moines, Iowa with a dynamic panel conversation about the mobile web. I will be Tweeting a lot about it. I have also created Twitter lists in the areas I’m interested.

Dogs: Occasionally I talk about dogs, and you’ll see Torry, I am guaranteed to get a smile from at least her when I come home. Thanks for following.

Other Places to Stay in Touch:

Is Twitter, the short-message social networking tool, just the next Web fad or is it a useful tool for business-minded communication?

A recent article from Black Enterprise magazine addresses the issue, and Albert Maruggi offers some tips for businesses looking to get started with putting Twitter to good use.

One particular tip that stands out: “Make certain you can give a few minutes every day to monitoring messages and sharing information.” Indeed, just like any other people-driven social media forum, Twitter is not something you can set up and leave on autopilot. You get what you give. You reap what you sew. Etc.

Late last week, the Minnesota chapter of the Public Relations Society of America hosted an event at which the topic of the was Twitter. Julio Ojeda-Zapata, technology columnist at the St. Paul Pioneer Press, was the big-time guest, invited to speak to PRSA folks about his new book, “Twitter Means Business.”

Julio also took a few minutes to do a video interview about his book, some good folks to follow on Twitter, and tips for pitching him and other reporters via Twitter. That interview is embedded below and found here on YouTube. 

Of course, this is exciting for us because both Albert Maruggi and Mike Keliher, and a client of ours, make appearances in Julio’s book. For more from Julio, check out this installment of the Marketing Edge podcast in which he talks more about Twitter for business with Albert.

On Black Friday, KTLK-FM, a news talk station in the Twin Cities, had Albert Maruggi and others in the studio to discuss Twitter and its impact on communication, politics, marketing and more.

The full discussion, with some news segments thrown in here and there, runs about 45 minutes. Unfortunately, there’s no particular Web page or post to point you to, but there is a podcast you can listen to — grab this .mp3 file.

The conversation covers an introduction to Twitter, some examples of how it’s used in real life, and some of the more dramatic examples of Twittering during a crisis. Albert even squeezed in a mention of Julio Ojeda-Zapata’s new book, “Twitter Means Business.”

“Twitter Means Business,” a new book written by Julio Ojeda-Zapata, technology columnist for the St. Paul Pioneer Press, is now shipping — just in time for the holidays!

The Pioneer Press ran a preview of the new book over this past weekend. From that article:

“Twitter might seem like the last place on the Internet any self-respecting company would want to do business,” the author writes. “It can be a trivial and childish realm, filled with blather about bodily functions, pet excrement and what users had for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

“Yet…the companies come. The reason: Twitter is on fire. Its users are a remarkably vocal, energetic crowd. More and more businesses want this energy to rub off on them, and seek to generate some fireworks of their own as they discover their inner tweeters.”

We at Provident Partners have been eagerly awaiting this new book, as we were lucky enough to play a part in its creation. Albert Maruggi and Mike Keliher both appear in the book, as does one of our Twittering clients, Mark Palony of SoftBrands. Albert also wrote the book’s afterword, in which he explains how Twitter “taps human needs — the desire we have as part of a humanity to connect, to be curious, to seek recognition, to be part of something, and to share.”

For a deeper look (listen, actually) into the book, check out this podcast interview Albert did with Julio a few weeks ago. And of course, buy the book!

With a simple Twitter message during the Republican National Convention, Provident Partners’ Albert Maruggi caught the eye of some media-business news writers.

First, writing for MinnPost.com, David Brauer explains how Twitter is “the place to be” for folks trying to follow stories about protesters and police raids. In the article, Brauer quotes Maruggi’s Twitter message when he says that Twitter is like “the police scanner of the 21st Century newsroom.” Brauer’s piece received national attention from the popular journalism news machine Romenesko, from the Poynter Institute.

A few days later, another Poynter outlet, the E-Media Tidibts blog, carried a piece titled “Twitter: Surprise Star of RNC Coverage.” In that piece, writer Maryn McKenna quotes a bit more of the same message from Maruggi. She writes:

But Twitter was the secret weapon. Tweets (Twitter posts) by a huge array of users — 17,855 posts from 1389 accounts over the convention’s four days, according to a C-SPAN page tracking the Twitter hashtag #RNC08 — wove a multi-stranded conversation about where protests were coalescing, how police were responding, and where the story was moving next. Twitter user, social media expert, and former journalist Albert Maruggi observed: “[Twitter is] the police scanner of 21st century newsroom. This from a guy that used to rewrite AP copy for 11pm newscast.”

For more great ideas from Albert Maruggi, follow him on Twitter or send him an e-mail. He has an iPhone, so he’ll see it right away.