Since I am also the author of the blog Top Ten Tweets Of…, I thought I would reflect back on my year of tweeting on Twitter and give you the Top Ten Things I Learned After 1,000 Tweets:
- According to MrTweet.com, I average 3.6 tweets per day. Apparently that’s above average. I think it’s just about right. I’ve settled into the idea that 5-10 per day is a good number, unless something really big is going on and the buzz-level is high.
- Mr. Tweet’s stats also show my @ replies are only two percent. That’s pretty low. I consider “being engaging” a good trait for a twitter-er, so I need to work on my engagement level.
- 59% of my tweets contain links. That’s way above average. While I do use twitter to promote my blogs, I try to promote other people’s good works more than my own. I want to add value to the cyber conversation and I like to spread links to good articles as I come across them. I used Google Reader to follow a number of good sites and often tweet a link to the best I’ve read that day.
- I have about 2,600 followers and I follow a little over 2,800 others. Basically, I’m at the Twitter-defined limit of how many I can follow (10% more than are following you). I’ve read the “strategies” about getting thousands of followers. My thought has been to let my “following” grow organically as people find value in my tweets, rather than forcing the issue with some contrived daily process.
- I like Twitter. Plain and simple. I spend more time on it than Facebook or other social media. I like the 140 character limit. You can be serious, funny, whimsical, or urgent all within 140 characters. It spreads immediately, too. If I want to take more time and say more, I have blogs for that.
- I like TweetDeck as my desk top application. Since I have multiple twitter accounts (@db10doug, @TruthInSight, @TopTenTweetsOf), I can organize them all on one page. I can also keep up with Facebook, LinkedIn, and Myspace (remember those guys?) using TweetDeck. I’ve tried other applications, but so far TweetDeck is my favorite.
- My best estimate is that I’ve tweeted 10,000 words so far. That’s an average of ten words per tweet. That’s a few chapters of a book! Maybe I do have it within me to write a book. If I could only focus…
- Most of the people I know prefer Facebook to Twitter. In fact, I have very few friends or acquaintances that tweet. I’m ok with that. But I don’t quite understand their objections at times. @MichaelHyatt has a great post on his blog about these objections, which I encourage all Twitter skeptics to read.
- Twitter and smart phones go great together. I’m a Blackberry guy (don’t hate!). I use TwitterBerry for my Twitter application. I have tried others, like UberTwitter. I just like the simple functionality of TwitterBerry the best.
- Lastly, Twitter is not a game, a distraction, or a way to avoid boredom. It is a tool. A tool to stay connected, spread valuable news and information, and express oneself in a variety of ways. Twitter is interactive and international. I like it and I think Twitter is here to stay. Until something better comes along, that is. Right, Myspace?
I’d love to know your thoughts about Twitter or whether you have anything to add about one of my points.
