Twitter: A One-Way Tweet??

I've been a Tweeter now for a couple of weeks and I must say, so far I'm disappointed. Don't get me wrong, I'm not giving up. I owe it to my clients to understand and engage in this new communications environment. But I have to say, it's tough. I feel as if I'm hollering into a cave. HALLOOOOOO!!! IS ANYBODY THERE? I post questions, nobody answers. I respond to others' comments, but get no responses in return. At the conference I attended, one of the speakers warned that it can take 2-3 months before other Twitterers start noticing and interacting with you, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. It does occur to me, though, that I don't need Twitter to talk to myself--I do that anyway. In fact, I'm damn good at it.

It does seem that the majority of people Tweeting at any given moment are promoting something--a news story, their website, their training video, etc. I guess that's the point, exchanging information that can help your business. But it does seem a tad...crass. It reminds me of a time many years ago when I had lunch with a political donor I was wooing for my candidate du jour. We engaged in air kisses and small talk, then ordered lunch, at which point the donor looked me in the eye and said, "Look, let's cut to the chase. We both know why we're here." I appreciated the honesty. Is Twitter merely an on-line version of the want ads, where willing buyers and sellers make small talk on the way to closing the deal? I'm not sure yet; I guess the jury is still out. In any event, there's nothing wrong with it being a marketplace as long as our expectations fit that reality.

I am enjoying Facebook, though. I found out that half of my family is on it, and it's fun to be able to check in with them daily and comment on what's happening in their lives. I couldn't resist taking the "What are your five favorite books?" quiz. It was really cool to type in a title and see a picture of the book cover pop up. I immediately wanted to make a list of my 100 favorite books but it occurred to me that it might be overkill. It was equally difficult to limit myself to five favorite movies; I could have named at least 20. Those little graphic gizmos were big-time fun. I guess I'm easily entertained.

Final word: two visits to Las Vegas in three weeks is much plenty. Visitor traffic is down, that is clear, but there are still too many people, too much noise, and too many opportunities to spend money that shouldn't be spent. I'm glad to be home.