OK. The title of this article may be a bit tongue in cheek,
since I am a tremendous advocate of Twitter but if you
don't use it correctly, well, it can be just a waste of
time.

What Do I Mean?

Twitter is now one of the most popular, or possibly the
most popular, social networking website on the internet.
Millions of people 'tweet' each and every day. If all you
want is to find out what strangers are doing on almost a
minute by minute basis, that's fine. But if you ask me, and
I know you haven't, that a waste of time.

What you really need to do is figure out 'the why' about
your use of Twitter. For many people today the only reason
to use Twitter is to promote their online or 'brick and
mortar' business.

Having thousands if not hundreds of thousands of Followers
can be a real head trip but for the most part that is all
it is. There is no probability that most of these people
have any interest in what you're saying or doing. Locating
targeted followers is critical when working with Twitter.
There are several applications that can help you attract
just such a targeted Twitter market.

If you are marketing to a world wide audience Twitter is an
excellent resource. However, just any audience can still be
a waste of time. As mentioned, most businesses have a
particular target market or audience. If that is the case
with your business you need to target your Twitter market
in much the same way you would target market to a live
audience.

If you have a 'brick and mortar' business and have a world
wide audience, than the same rules about targeting may
still apply. However, if your business, both online or
'brick and mortar' is local, than reaching a world wide
audience is most likely a waste of time.

If your business is 'local' than attracting a 'local'
market is what you need and want. Fortunately, there are
also several online tools that can help you find local
'Twitterers' who may be a match for your business.
Geographic targeting is extremely important if you are
going to maximize your Twitter experience if your business
only deals within a specific geographic region.

In conclusion, Twitter is by far one of the most powerful
tools we have to promote our businesses online. If you have
unlimited time and really love to know what food someone on
the other side of the world is eating at that very moment,
than.....well, just Twitter away.

Most people, however, are now looking to use Twitter to
help promote their online or 'brick and mortar' business.
Using generalized targeting along with geographic targeting
can make a tremendous difference in your success or your
time on Twitter being a 'waste of time'.