Vendetta of the week: Twitter ponzi schemes for building followers

Twitter friends and followers are more than statistics. They’re real relationships, real people. When we get so obsessed with the number that we’re willing to entrust the following process to a ponzi scheme, we’ve lost sight of the purpose of this — or any other — social network: to connect us, and to help us communicate.

Twitter quickstart: 10 ways to make time to Twitter

Whether you’re an ambivalent Twitter newbie or a chronic tweeter in the throes of a growing addiction, your tweeting is going to take time that you’re currently using for something else. Here are my suggestions for activities you can pare back on — or give up entirely — to make room for tweeting.

Twitter quickstart: Effective twittering in 5 minutes a week

If you’re new to Twitter, you want to quickly eliminate the five sure signs you’re a Twitter newbie. Here are some quick ways you can follow people, attract followers, and keep your feed regularly updated — all in less than five minutes a week.

Twitter quickstart: Your first 21 tweets

If you need to stake a claim to your Twitter identity, but you don’t know what to tweet about, here’s an easy way to get your Tweeting underway. You don’t need to look like the world’s most longstanding Twitterer (after all, Oprah just started tweeting last week!), but an empty Twitter feed is just, well, a little forlorn.So I’ve taken the liberty of writing your first 21 tweets for you.

Using social media to drive business innovation: insights from Guy Kawasaki and Target’s Michael Axelin

Hearing Guy Kawasaki on the Art of Innovation reminded me of a blog post I wrote last year after attending a talk by Michael Axelin, V.P. of Softlines Design and Product Development at Target (and fellow Oberlin alum). Both talks helped me refine my own thinking on how social media can support business innovation — a key benefit of social media that is neglected in favor of a pure focus on marketing.