Go to search.twitter.com and type in “anyone know” in the search box. Doing that as I write this blog, I see 12 posts in the last minute where someone was asking a question that included “anyone know.” Then look for posts that include “Show Conversation” icon at the right of the post. Click on some of those and see how someone’s question got answered.

Ask The Experts

As you increase your business’s use of Twitter, you are going to gain followers who are knowledgeable in your field. So if you have a question that you can’t seem to get answered, post it on Twitter. It takes just a couple of minutes and you may come up with an answer that will really surprise you.

What kind of experts have you found on Twitter?

The basic concept of Twitter is to send short messages to individuals who elect to hear from you. What a simple concept. Twitter users have expanded that concept to paradigms that were not dreamed of when the tool was developed.

A Two Way Communication Tool

Too many people think of Tweets as one way communication. Those are the folks that think their word is golden and yours is not. We all know who they are. The real beneficiary of Twitter is the person who gets quick answers to urgent questions. Ask a specialized question and get an expert response.

People that are following you elected to do so themselves. They probably did it because they share some of your interests. So when a question pops up, odds are someone following you has some knowledge on that subject. When they see your request, they can respond to it. And the odds are pretty good that you’ll get a response.

Follow Back

When someone follows you, be a little liberal on following back. When in doubt, follow them. Chances are they share a common interest and their posts may be of value to you. You can always remove them it you find they are the type that post useless information 20 times a day.

A Closed Group

Twitter can be used as a communication tool that is only open to people that you want to allow into the conversations. On the “Account” page in “Settings” you can click “Protect my tweets” and then you will be required to approve who will be able to follow you.

Selected Followers

Using twitter in this manner is designed to create an online forum. It includes team members who can interact and keep members of the group informed on the progress of a project they are working on. Gaining a large number of followers is not an object of team communication. The object is getting quick communications in the hands of a select group. Those posted communications are then available for members to read and review at their convenience.

In team communication Twitter can be used to post updates to a project, troubleshoot a problem, or request help. Make sure your team members are familiar with Twitter. Those who are not may need some training and should be encouraged to get familiar with it.