Basically, it was a twitter love letter. I didn’t start out tweeting my business, and mostly I don’t. However, I am finding that my Blog stats are going up because of twitter, and that I have sold product to a couple. 95% of my tweets, and there aren’t a lot of them, since it’s just been a month, are about making friends. With individuals. And out of that will business come? Assuredly. But twittering is definitely a relationship tool, and that’s the beauty of it.

Will continue reading and appreciating you tips and hopefully will learn more about how to be more effective and meet more new people.

Thanks, Dana

Interesting post as always. I find the varying ideas people have of what Twitter is and is not fascinating. Assigning it all kinds of abilities and so forth. Some are really out there, like the idea that Twitter is even somehow remotely related to a pyramid scheme. If that were true, who’s on top? And what would they stand to gain by being on top?

IMHO Twitter is one thing and one thing only. A communications tool. No more and no less.

We are all free to communicate using it in the way that is most comfortable to each of us. Jack, you follow those who follow you. That’s your rule and that’s cool. Me, I follow those that share my interests as they are the ones I want to communicate with. That’s how I work it and that’s cool too. Like you, I’ll throw out an affiliate link here and there, as part of my interest is in Internet Marketing.

Mostly I just reply to others and ask questions and try to help where I can. That said, everyone uses it for their own purposes and in their own way. This right there precludes it from being anywhere near a pyramid scheme, where everyone involved has to do the same thing to achieve the same goals. On Twitter, everyones goal is different and that is one of the things that makes it fun.

Ross “The Pit Boss” – http://twitter.com/Tolemac

If I can jump in at this point and get a large number of followers, there’s no reason anyone else can’t do the same thing. I think the same will be true a year from now.

People use Twitter for different reasons. It’s a contact tool, not terribly different from a telephone, an eMail or a fax machine. You can use it for business or you can use it to stay in touch with friends, or any combination thereof.

I don’t see where it’s a Ponzi scheme. That’s kind of like saying you shouldn’t try to be a salesman, because everyone probably already knows a salesman. Or, it’s like saying you already have a friend, why do you need another one? Or two more?

If I had just sat back and been content to use Twitter just to chat with people I already knew, or to just follow a handful of “experts” or whatever, I would never have met a lot of great people.

And, as for business concerns, well, quantity matters just as well as quality. If you’re not connecting with the people your competitors are, what hope do you have of reaching them?

I don’t see any money changing hands on Twitter, at least no money to use the service.

The idea that only people who “got in early” benefit is easily disproven. Eben Pagan just joined this week and got 1000 followers his first day. Or are we still in that early period where it is still beneficial to join?

It seems to me that the MORE people join Twitter, the MORE useful it will be, as long as Twitter is able to handle the extra traffic. There are plenty of people I know in real life who are not on Twitter, who I would follow if they were.

The length of time someone has been on Twitter means nothing to me when deciding whether to follow them.

I think the real truth is somebody realized that calling something a pyramid scheme when it is clearly not would get him a lot of attention and traffic, and I’m sure it has.

I guess I should work on my “YouTube is a pyramid scheme” rant.

Someone posted not long ago that they only read the tweets where there is a photo, but also mentioned that they have so many people they now follow they can’t keep up with the tweets.

Are we throwing out tweets at random so that hopefully a handful of the 3 million tweeters will see it and act upon it, resulting in more sales for us and our friends/clients? Or are we really trying to build relationships via Twitter?

Someone told my sister-in-law she needed to be on Twitter, so I signed her up and tried to explain it to her, and now I realize that she doesn’t need to be on Twitter. She wanted to find someone that was in Botswana! Twitter is not for everyone and before you follow anyone you have to decide what purpose you are on Twitter then decide if it is good return on investment (of your time).

Jack very interesting posting stuff. I know I have thought of having seperate twit account just for family and very close friends so I can sort faster.

I think you bring up valid points but stay away from analogies. Analogies are always weak because they aren’t perfect. So when you want to win argument it is better to stick to your facts and stats (stats even being debatable) . LOL early in marriage my hubby told me I pulled stats out of a hat. Other say you can maniupulate stats. so ffacts are easiest for killing an argument.

But I like a good argument and debate, this sound like you are both kind of saying a few things similar. In that the power of twitter depends on who is using it somewhat… a person bent on building like you are will prove tht it is doeable. The fact that people got in early on proves that they had more time to build and have an distinct advantage.

I think calling it a pyramid is a little lopsided, as you have shown you can build strong numbers without being one of the earliest twits.

Also twitter is evolving and changing. I have an article on he melding of ehow and twitter and while that might be a strong term – twitter is being used in conjunction with many adventures on the internet. http://www.ehow.com/how_4623492_pot-ehow-twitter-via-groups.html my article

Please overlook my poor writing here – I am in hurry. Note to self… use paperplate under popcorn bag, check for leaks and no more exploding plates……..have to run.

Also my twit wall is example of being able to market with haranguing my readres
http://twitwall.com/view/?who=alrady40

This is craziness..

I FULLY appreciate that people would find different angles to view something, but the reach of twitter is something that is ONLY limited by what you put into it.. someone like Jack B above who puts in effort to tend to his followers in his available Twitter time, is able to build up a big following regardless of the time he has been on Twitter..

I remember Jack announcing his Twitter account and he has moved forward with it at great pace, in what is quite a short space of time..

And he’s not the only one either, to define Twitter in a “pyramid” setting is a little strange for me to wrap my head around, and IMHO comes from very limited thinking… the only limit you could ever have on Twitter is YOU (if you have an account of course)

http://twitter.com/jayxtreme

Peace