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Similar a UIdaho Student Affairs: Intro to Twitter for Professional Development
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UIdaho Student Affairs: Intro to Twitter for Professional Development
- 1. Twitter and AltProDev #UIdahoSM
- 2. your twitter ambassadors @HeatherGasser @DrRayGasser @BruceBMann #UIdahoSM
- 3. what is twitter? # Twitter is an information network made up of 140 character messages called Tweets. It is an easy way to discover, share and explore news and information about subjects you care about. #UIdahoSM
- 4. why? Twitter is an information network. # It contains information YOU will find valuable. Updates from users you follow show up on your home page. Use it for news as it’s happening, sharing resources, starting conversations, networking. #UIdahoSM
- 5. get the most from twitter 1. Tweet, often and honestly. 2. Follow. 3. Don’t Tweet because you want more followers! 4. Show people cool stuff. 5. Re-tweet #UIdahoSM
- 6. get the most from twitter 6. Respond. 7. Block and move on. 8. Use hashtags (when necessary). 9. It’s not just about your blog. #UIdahoSM
- 7. how we benefit 1. Research Tool 2. Branding 3. Collaboration/ Networking 4. It’s our Water Cooler 5. Direct Traffic #UIdahoSM
- 8. connecting on campus #UIdahoSA @brucebmann @cjlehman @heathergasser @LysaSalsbury @DrRayGasser @JenSkinner2 @dmcarl @CraigChatriand @JamesRWagnerJr @MatthewJKurz @ChristinaMKerns #UIdahoSM
- 9. setting up your account… …establishin g your digital identity. #UIdahoSM
- 10. Simple to set up #UIdahoSM
- 11. avoid the egg #UIdahoSM
- 12. make it public #UIdahoSM
- 13. professional profile, photo, bio #UIdahoSM
- 14. #UIdahoSM
- 15. #UIdahoSM
- 16. #hashtags The # symbol, called a hashtag, is used to mark keywords or topics in a Tweet. It was created organically by Twitter users as a way to categorize messages. #UIdahoSM
- 17. common student affairs hashtags #acadv academic advising #acpa American College Personnel Association #acuhoi Association of College & University Housing Officers International #acui Association of College Unions International #admissions general discussions, tips, articles, and resources #breakdrink student affairs professional development (webinars & podcasts) #careers position openings and requests #college general discussion, tips, articles, and resources #edchat education (K - 12 & college / university) #edpolicy education policy (K - 12 & college / university) #edu education (K - 12 & college / university) #education (K -12 & college /university) #FB Facebook #FF (“Follow Friday” - recs for whom to follow on Twitter) #greeklife greek affairs #highered higher education (e.g. student affairs, faculty, etc.) #higheredjobs position openings and requests #higheredlive video discussion related to higher education issues #UIdahoSM #inspiration quotes and articles
- 18. common student affairs hashtags #leadership general discussion, tips, quotes, articles, and resources #naspa National Association of Student Personnel Administrators #olchat college & university orientation #phdchat doctoral student discussion, resources, and support #reslife residence life #sachat student affairs chat #sadoc student affairs doctoral student discussion #sagrad student affairs graduate student discussion #sajobs student affairs position openings and requests #salive student affairs professional development (webinars & podcasts) #satech student affairs technology #sawomen women in student affairs #sgachat student government #socialmedia /#sm general discussion, tips, articles, and resources #stuact student activities #studentaffairs general discussion, tips, articles, and resources #wihsng women in housing (advocacy & resources) #WLSalt Women’s Leadership Institute / Support, Affirm, Lift, Transform #UIdahoSM
- 19. establishing hashtags #UIdahoSM
- 20. cross-pollinating hashtags #UIdahoSM
- 21. linking with people direct message (only seen by participant) reply #UIdahoSM
- 22. linking with people mentions retweet #UIdahoSM
- 23. lists A list is a curated group of Twitter users. When you click to view a list, you'll see a stream of Tweets from only the users included in that group. #UIdahoSM
- 24. how to use/follow iPhone/Android • Twitter • Echofon • Tweetdeck • Seesmic • Hootsuite Blackberry • Twitterberry • Tweetcaster WindowsMobile • PockeTwit • TinyTwitter #UIdahoSM
- 25. how to use/follow On Your computer • Web interface Desktop Utilities • bit.ly • Tweepi Widgets Desktop/Web Apps • TweetDeck/ChromeDeck • Seesmic • HootSuite #UIdahoSM
- 26. how to use/follow #UIdahoSM
Notas del editor
- 9 Ways To Get The Most From Twitter14There have been lots of negative comments in the press recently about Twitter and that’s a shame. What they don’t realise is Twitter is a not always a natural, instant thing; to get Twitter you need to hang around a little longer, pick up new followers and find people to follow. There are no set rules for how to use Twitter. If you want to Tweet about your every day tasks, then as far as I’m concerned, that’s fine. But if you really want to get the full benefit, then below are the things that work for me:1. Tweet, often and honestly.That doesn’t necessary mean you tell the truth it just means tweet things from the heart, things that you care about, things that amuse or entertain you or, if you must, things that will get a re-action.2. FollowFind people you like and follow them. It doesn’t have to be famous people, just ones that say things you can connect with. They might follow you back!3. Don’t Tweet because you want more followers!There are millions of Twitterers, they will follow you because they like what you say in 140 characters, not because you’re trying to sell yourself or other stuff.4. Show people cool stuff.Stupid photos, interesting links, things that make you smile or angry, music tracks (see blip.fm) and other peoples blogs!5. Re-tweet.Seen a Tweet you like? Make sure others know about it. That’s what makes the Twittersphere go round.6. RespondYou don’t have to re-tweet everything, but letting people know you’re there and like what they say is always good, so hit reply. Don’t worry if they don’t answer back – it’s not about how they interact with you, but how you interact with them.7. Block and move onDon’t get sucked into a flame war. While it’s good to have people with different opinions on your follow list, there’s no need to put up with those you find offensive or annoying. That’s what blocks for.8. Use hashtags (when necessary)Hashtags are excellent for grouping comments together. Why is this important? It makes it easier to find items on similar themes; it also helps identify what are the most important issues on twitter (Trending topics).And finally and most importantly:9. Its not just about your blog.When people follow me, I like to follow them back if, and only if, I like what they are tweeting. The number of times I’ve been to individual twitter pages to just find no other interaction, no re-tweets, no hashtags just a Tweets of “Hey, new post today!” Why would I want to read that?I do, because of Twitter, read other people’s blogs when they post. Why? Because they interact, they communicate, they re-tweet, they hashtag; basically they get out there and are part of the community and I find what they have to say interesting.In conclusion, Twitter is all about interaction. I only started to blog because of Twitter, I found I had more to say and 140 characters is not enough sometimes. I hope people read it, hey that’s surely the point of blogging, but that’s not why I Tweet. Yes it’s handy for letting people know I’ve blogged a new post (and it’s worth retweeting several times, such is the transitory nature of Twitter) but if that’s all it becomes about, then maybe Twitter isn’t for you.Note: Have I missed anything? Let me know and follow me at @fatmanslimming
- 9 Ways To Get The Most From Twitter14There have been lots of negative comments in the press recently about Twitter and that’s a shame. What they don’t realise is Twitter is a not always a natural, instant thing; to get Twitter you need to hang around a little longer, pick up new followers and find people to follow. There are no set rules for how to use Twitter. If you want to Tweet about your every day tasks, then as far as I’m concerned, that’s fine. But if you really want to get the full benefit, then below are the things that work for me:1. Tweet, often and honestly.That doesn’t necessary mean you tell the truth it just means tweet things from the heart, things that you care about, things that amuse or entertain you or, if you must, things that will get a re-action.2. FollowFind people you like and follow them. It doesn’t have to be famous people, just ones that say things you can connect with. They might follow you back!3. Don’t Tweet because you want more followers!There are millions of Twitterers, they will follow you because they like what you say in 140 characters, not because you’re trying to sell yourself or other stuff.4. Show people cool stuff.Stupid photos, interesting links, things that make you smile or angry, music tracks (see blip.fm) and other peoples blogs!5. Re-tweet.Seen a Tweet you like? Make sure others know about it. That’s what makes the Twittersphere go round.6. RespondYou don’t have to re-tweet everything, but letting people know you’re there and like what they say is always good, so hit reply. Don’t worry if they don’t answer back – it’s not about how they interact with you, but how you interact with them.7. Block and move onDon’t get sucked into a flame war. While it’s good to have people with different opinions on your follow list, there’s no need to put up with those you find offensive or annoying. That’s what blocks for.8. Use hashtags (when necessary)Hashtags are excellent for grouping comments together. Why is this important? It makes it easier to find items on similar themes; it also helps identify what are the most important issues on twitter (Trending topics).And finally and most importantly:9. Its not just about your blog.When people follow me, I like to follow them back if, and only if, I like what they are tweeting. The number of times I’ve been to individual twitter pages to just find no other interaction, no re-tweets, no hashtags just a Tweets of “Hey, new post today!” Why would I want to read that?I do, because of Twitter, read other people’s blogs when they post. Why? Because they interact, they communicate, they re-tweet, they hashtag; basically they get out there and are part of the community and I find what they have to say interesting.In conclusion, Twitter is all about interaction. I only started to blog because of Twitter, I found I had more to say and 140 characters is not enough sometimes. I hope people read it, hey that’s surely the point of blogging, but that’s not why I Tweet. Yes it’s handy for letting people know I’ve blogged a new post (and it’s worth retweeting several times, such is the transitory nature of Twitter) but if that’s all it becomes about, then maybe Twitter isn’t for you.Note: Have I missed anything? Let me know and follow me at @fatmanslimming
- 5 Ways I Benefit from Twitter53“Why do you use Twitter? How does Twitter Benefit You?”I’ve been asked these questions so many times since starting TwiTip that I thought I’d write a post answering it. I hope that it’s helpful for those of you just starting out with Twitter (or considering getting involved).Twitter has changed the way that I use the web and connect with others online in many ways. Those of you who’ve traveled with me on my Twitter journey since the beginning know that I started out very skeptical of the medium.It always seemed like a waste of time – however once I started using it I immediately began to see its potential and some tangible benefits to me. Let me try to break some of them down:1. Research ToolOne of the things that I value very highly about Twitter is the way that it allows me to tap into an amazing community of people from around the world to find out what they are thinking, feeling and experiencing in different ways.I’ve often said that Twitter makes me smarter because among those in my network are 18,000 people who collectively know and have experienced a lot of stuff.I’ve always known that together a group is smarter and more powerful than any single member from within that group – but I’ve never really been able to tap into that power…. that was until I started using Twitter.I use this every day as I write posts for my blogs (and ask readers for their ideas and experiences to help deepen what I write), as I tackle issues and problems that I face (there’s always someone ‘out there’ who has been through something similar and will quite often have a solution), as I face questions and as I develop my business.Being able to tap into the Twitter community is incredibly illuminating. In fact these days Twitter is starting to replace Google for me. If I want to know something I’ll quite often ask my followers before I ask Google.Also what I consider to be research is the ability for me to use a tool like TwitScoop at any point in time to see what is trending up in the Twitterverse at any point in time. In a sense Twitter becomes a news service with this and you’ll quickly find if there is a breaking story somewhere in the world by watching it.2. BrandingI once wrote a post on ProBlogger about how a personal online brand is made up of the many ’strands’ of ‘presence’ that you have. You might have a blog or website – but when you’re also present on other social networking sites, forums, social messaging sites (etc) you reinforce that brand.I’ve definitely found this to be true for Twitter.Here are some of the comments that I’ve gotten from people in the past:‘I used to read you at ProBlogger but had lost track until I found you on Twitter’‘I subscribe to your RSS feed on the blog but seeing your posts on Twitter reminds me to read them more’‘I was scanning through someone else’s Twitters yesterday and saw your face. I recognized it from your Facebook account so thought I’d check out you.’‘I saw your name mentioned the other day on Scott Karp’s Twitter feed. I hadn’t seen your blog for a while and it reminded me to resubscribe.’Twitter is a place that people are searching for connection and information. For me as a blogger who is interested in giving people information and drawing people together into community it is a logical place for me to be present because it reinforces my brand.For me it’s like having a billboard on a busy virtual intersection.3. Collaboration and NetworkingI’ve lost count of the many opportunities that I’ve had to interact with amazingly talented, smart and insightful people on Twitter.Some of these interactions have led to new ideas, others have led to temporary collaborations while still others have led to ongoing partnerships over time. The collaborations that have come out of Twitter for me have been both big and small – but collectively they’ve been incredibly significant.In fact the opportunities have been almost overwhelming. There are days when I Tweet that I’m looking for someone to work with on an idea when the response is simply too much to handle.Not only does Twitter open up new relationships – it’s a great place to cement and deepen existing ones. For example after a trip to Los Vegas for Blog World Expo earlier in the year I was amazed to find how many of those that I met were on Twitter when I returned home. In the months that have followed quite a few of those that I met in person at BWE have become regular Twitter buddies to this day.4. It’s my Water CoolerI’m a solo entrepreneur, working out of the front room in my house in suburban Melbourne Australia. Most of my contemporaries, readers and business partners live in other parts of the world (many in North America) – so at times it is easy to feel quite disconnected, isolated and even lonely.Having previously worked in workplaces with teams of people – since starting to work from home I have always missed the banter, collaborative opportunities and companionship of having people around me.Twitter in many ways has fulfilled some of these needs. There’s always someone around to bounce ideas around with, have a joke with or just to talk with about what you did over the weekend. While it doesn’t’ quite match up to real life workmates – it certainly has helped (and at times is even better….. because you can’t switch off work mates when you need to get work done!).5. Direct TrafficAs a blogger I’m interested in building traffic to my web properties. Twitter has been an increasing source of this traffic over the past year or so. While it isn’t my primary reason for being on Twitter it certainly is nice to be able to post a link to a post that I’ve written or an online project that I’m launching and to see people coming directly from Twitter to that page.What is even more special is seeing others promote my links on Twitter on my behalf either by ‘Retweeting’ my tweets with the links or simply by finding something I’ve written on their own and promoting it to their followers.It is difficult to know exactly how much traffic Twitter has driven to my blogs (particularly difficult as so many people don’t actually follow Twitter on Twitter.com but use desktop clients that don’t come up with a referral metric) but as the picture to the right shows – last month Twitter.com alone directed over 8500 visitors to my blog at ProBlogger – I’d estimate at least that much again came from other Twitter clients.What Would You Add?The above 5 reasons that I use Twitter will not appeal to everyone. What I love about Twitter is that the more people I talk to the more creative and wonderful (and sometimes wacky) ways that I discover people are using the medium.How does Twitter benefit you? I’d love to hear your own list of ways that you benefit from Twitter in comments below (or feel free to write a blog post about it and leave a link to it in comments below).
- Hashtags: Categorizing Tweets by KeywordPeople use the hashtag symbol # before relevant keywords (no spaces) in their Tweet to categorize those Tweets and help them show more easily in Twitter Search. Clicking on a hashtagged word in any message shows you all other Tweets in that category.Hashtags can occur anywhere in the Tweet – at the beginning, middle, or end.Hashtagged words that become very popular are often Trending Topics.Example: In the Tweet on this slice, @eddie included the hashtag #FF. Users created this as shorthand for "Follow Friday," a weekly tradition where users recommend people that others should follow on Twitter. You'll see this on Fridays.Using Hashtags Correctly:If you Tweet with a hashtag on a public account, anyone who does a search for that hashtag may find your TweetDon't #spam #with #hashtags. Don't over-tag a single Tweet. (Best practices recommend using no more than 2 hashtags per Tweet.)Use hashtags only on Tweets relevant to the topic.
- Although not terribly complicated, hashtags have some unwritten rules. The primary one to remember: don’t overuse them. If every one of your tweets IS a hashtag, you dilute the usefulness of them by fragmenting the conversation. In addition, many people will shy away from you because it seems spammy. Another simple tip: give your hashtag context. Most people won’t actually know what your hashtag means, so give a quick explanation in one of your tweets or, if you’re making a hashtag, make it very apparent what it’s talking about.Finally, if you’re looking to create a hashtag, be sure that it adds value for yourself and your followers. The best way to utilize them is when you need to organize information. Conferences, major events, and even reminders (i.e. #todo) can help organize specific tweets and make life easier on you and your followers.
- When I speak of organizing hashtags, I’m talking about conferences and events, which rely on the hashtag system more than almost any other entity. It’s become standard to track the conversation regarding speakers and afterparties via a hashtag.If you’re about to put on an event or are looking to take your event to a new level, here are some useful tips for hashtag organization:Choose a single hashtag early: This may seem simple, but it is vital to get right. Choose a simple hashtag that represents your event or brand. If your event is the Business of the Calling Ducks conference, don’t use #businessofthecallingducks as your tag. How about #bizducks instead?Remind attendees of the hashtag constantly: On your website, on your Twitter feed, at the opening remarks, and throughout the day, make a friendly reminder about your hashtag and that you can track the conversation through it.- Provide a website widget: For anyone who isn’t using or knowledgeable with Twitter, provide an easy conversation tracker tool on your website. You can make one via Widgetbox or Tweetgrid.
- 5 Ways I Benefit from Twitter53“Why do you use Twitter? How does Twitter Benefit You?”I’ve been asked these questions so many times since starting TwiTip that I thought I’d write a post answering it. I hope that it’s helpful for those of you just starting out with Twitter (or considering getting involved).Twitter has changed the way that I use the web and connect with others online in many ways. Those of you who’ve traveled with me on my Twitter journey since the beginning know that I started out very skeptical of the medium.It always seemed like a waste of time – however once I started using it I immediately began to see its potential and some tangible benefits to me. Let me try to break some of them down:1. Research ToolOne of the things that I value very highly about Twitter is the way that it allows me to tap into an amazing community of people from around the world to find out what they are thinking, feeling and experiencing in different ways.I’ve often said that Twitter makes me smarter because among those in my network are 18,000 people who collectively know and have experienced a lot of stuff.I’ve always known that together a group is smarter and more powerful than any single member from within that group – but I’ve never really been able to tap into that power…. that was until I started using Twitter.I use this every day as I write posts for my blogs (and ask readers for their ideas and experiences to help deepen what I write), as I tackle issues and problems that I face (there’s always someone ‘out there’ who has been through something similar and will quite often have a solution), as I face questions and as I develop my business.Being able to tap into the Twitter community is incredibly illuminating. In fact these days Twitter is starting to replace Google for me. If I want to know something I’ll quite often ask my followers before I ask Google.Also what I consider to be research is the ability for me to use a tool like TwitScoop at any point in time to see what is trending up in the Twitterverse at any point in time. In a sense Twitter becomes a news service with this and you’ll quickly find if there is a breaking story somewhere in the world by watching it.2. BrandingI once wrote a post on ProBlogger about how a personal online brand is made up of the many ’strands’ of ‘presence’ that you have. You might have a blog or website – but when you’re also present on other social networking sites, forums, social messaging sites (etc) you reinforce that brand.I’ve definitely found this to be true for Twitter.Here are some of the comments that I’ve gotten from people in the past:‘I used to read you at ProBlogger but had lost track until I found you on Twitter’‘I subscribe to your RSS feed on the blog but seeing your posts on Twitter reminds me to read them more’‘I was scanning through someone else’s Twitters yesterday and saw your face. I recognized it from your Facebook account so thought I’d check out you.’‘I saw your name mentioned the other day on Scott Karp’s Twitter feed. I hadn’t seen your blog for a while and it reminded me to resubscribe.’Twitter is a place that people are searching for connection and information. For me as a blogger who is interested in giving people information and drawing people together into community it is a logical place for me to be present because it reinforces my brand.For me it’s like having a billboard on a busy virtual intersection.3. Collaboration and NetworkingI’ve lost count of the many opportunities that I’ve had to interact with amazingly talented, smart and insightful people on Twitter.Some of these interactions have led to new ideas, others have led to temporary collaborations while still others have led to ongoing partnerships over time. The collaborations that have come out of Twitter for me have been both big and small – but collectively they’ve been incredibly significant.In fact the opportunities have been almost overwhelming. There are days when I Tweet that I’m looking for someone to work with on an idea when the response is simply too much to handle.Not only does Twitter open up new relationships – it’s a great place to cement and deepen existing ones. For example after a trip to Los Vegas for Blog World Expo earlier in the year I was amazed to find how many of those that I met were on Twitter when I returned home. In the months that have followed quite a few of those that I met in person at BWE have become regular Twitter buddies to this day.4. It’s my Water CoolerI’m a solo entrepreneur, working out of the front room in my house in suburban Melbourne Australia. Most of my contemporaries, readers and business partners live in other parts of the world (many in North America) – so at times it is easy to feel quite disconnected, isolated and even lonely.Having previously worked in workplaces with teams of people – since starting to work from home I have always missed the banter, collaborative opportunities and companionship of having people around me.Twitter in many ways has fulfilled some of these needs. There’s always someone around to bounce ideas around with, have a joke with or just to talk with about what you did over the weekend. While it doesn’t’ quite match up to real life workmates – it certainly has helped (and at times is even better….. because you can’t switch off work mates when you need to get work done!).5. Direct TrafficAs a blogger I’m interested in building traffic to my web properties. Twitter has been an increasing source of this traffic over the past year or so. While it isn’t my primary reason for being on Twitter it certainly is nice to be able to post a link to a post that I’ve written or an online project that I’m launching and to see people coming directly from Twitter to that page.What is even more special is seeing others promote my links on Twitter on my behalf either by ‘Retweeting’ my tweets with the links or simply by finding something I’ve written on their own and promoting it to their followers.It is difficult to know exactly how much traffic Twitter has driven to my blogs (particularly difficult as so many people don’t actually follow Twitter on Twitter.com but use desktop clients that don’t come up with a referral metric) but as the picture to the right shows – last month Twitter.com alone directed over 8500 visitors to my blog at ProBlogger – I’d estimate at least that much again came from other Twitter clients.What Would You Add?The above 5 reasons that I use Twitter will not appeal to everyone. What I love about Twitter is that the more people I talk to the more creative and wonderful (and sometimes wacky) ways that I discover people are using the medium.How does Twitter benefit you? I’d love to hear your own list of ways that you benefit from Twitter in comments below (or feel free to write a blog post about it and leave a link to it in comments below).
- 5 Ways I Benefit from Twitter53“Why do you use Twitter? How does Twitter Benefit You?”I’ve been asked these questions so many times since starting TwiTip that I thought I’d write a post answering it. I hope that it’s helpful for those of you just starting out with Twitter (or considering getting involved).Twitter has changed the way that I use the web and connect with others online in many ways. Those of you who’ve traveled with me on my Twitter journey since the beginning know that I started out very skeptical of the medium.It always seemed like a waste of time – however once I started using it I immediately began to see its potential and some tangible benefits to me. Let me try to break some of them down:1. Research ToolOne of the things that I value very highly about Twitter is the way that it allows me to tap into an amazing community of people from around the world to find out what they are thinking, feeling and experiencing in different ways.I’ve often said that Twitter makes me smarter because among those in my network are 18,000 people who collectively know and have experienced a lot of stuff.I’ve always known that together a group is smarter and more powerful than any single member from within that group – but I’ve never really been able to tap into that power…. that was until I started using Twitter.I use this every day as I write posts for my blogs (and ask readers for their ideas and experiences to help deepen what I write), as I tackle issues and problems that I face (there’s always someone ‘out there’ who has been through something similar and will quite often have a solution), as I face questions and as I develop my business.Being able to tap into the Twitter community is incredibly illuminating. In fact these days Twitter is starting to replace Google for me. If I want to know something I’ll quite often ask my followers before I ask Google.Also what I consider to be research is the ability for me to use a tool like TwitScoop at any point in time to see what is trending up in the Twitterverse at any point in time. In a sense Twitter becomes a news service with this and you’ll quickly find if there is a breaking story somewhere in the world by watching it.2. BrandingI once wrote a post on ProBlogger about how a personal online brand is made up of the many ’strands’ of ‘presence’ that you have. You might have a blog or website – but when you’re also present on other social networking sites, forums, social messaging sites (etc) you reinforce that brand.I’ve definitely found this to be true for Twitter.Here are some of the comments that I’ve gotten from people in the past:‘I used to read you at ProBlogger but had lost track until I found you on Twitter’‘I subscribe to your RSS feed on the blog but seeing your posts on Twitter reminds me to read them more’‘I was scanning through someone else’s Twitters yesterday and saw your face. I recognized it from your Facebook account so thought I’d check out you.’‘I saw your name mentioned the other day on Scott Karp’s Twitter feed. I hadn’t seen your blog for a while and it reminded me to resubscribe.’Twitter is a place that people are searching for connection and information. For me as a blogger who is interested in giving people information and drawing people together into community it is a logical place for me to be present because it reinforces my brand.For me it’s like having a billboard on a busy virtual intersection.3. Collaboration and NetworkingI’ve lost count of the many opportunities that I’ve had to interact with amazingly talented, smart and insightful people on Twitter.Some of these interactions have led to new ideas, others have led to temporary collaborations while still others have led to ongoing partnerships over time. The collaborations that have come out of Twitter for me have been both big and small – but collectively they’ve been incredibly significant.In fact the opportunities have been almost overwhelming. There are days when I Tweet that I’m looking for someone to work with on an idea when the response is simply too much to handle.Not only does Twitter open up new relationships – it’s a great place to cement and deepen existing ones. For example after a trip to Los Vegas for Blog World Expo earlier in the year I was amazed to find how many of those that I met were on Twitter when I returned home. In the months that have followed quite a few of those that I met in person at BWE have become regular Twitter buddies to this day.4. It’s my Water CoolerI’m a solo entrepreneur, working out of the front room in my house in suburban Melbourne Australia. Most of my contemporaries, readers and business partners live in other parts of the world (many in North America) – so at times it is easy to feel quite disconnected, isolated and even lonely.Having previously worked in workplaces with teams of people – since starting to work from home I have always missed the banter, collaborative opportunities and companionship of having people around me.Twitter in many ways has fulfilled some of these needs. There’s always someone around to bounce ideas around with, have a joke with or just to talk with about what you did over the weekend. While it doesn’t’ quite match up to real life workmates – it certainly has helped (and at times is even better….. because you can’t switch off work mates when you need to get work done!).5. Direct TrafficAs a blogger I’m interested in building traffic to my web properties. Twitter has been an increasing source of this traffic over the past year or so. While it isn’t my primary reason for being on Twitter it certainly is nice to be able to post a link to a post that I’ve written or an online project that I’m launching and to see people coming directly from Twitter to that page.What is even more special is seeing others promote my links on Twitter on my behalf either by ‘Retweeting’ my tweets with the links or simply by finding something I’ve written on their own and promoting it to their followers.It is difficult to know exactly how much traffic Twitter has driven to my blogs (particularly difficult as so many people don’t actually follow Twitter on Twitter.com but use desktop clients that don’t come up with a referral metric) but as the picture to the right shows – last month Twitter.com alone directed over 8500 visitors to my blog at ProBlogger – I’d estimate at least that much again came from other Twitter clients.What Would You Add?The above 5 reasons that I use Twitter will not appeal to everyone. What I love about Twitter is that the more people I talk to the more creative and wonderful (and sometimes wacky) ways that I discover people are using the medium.How does Twitter benefit you? I’d love to hear your own list of ways that you benefit from Twitter in comments below (or feel free to write a blog post about it and leave a link to it in comments below).