Interacting with people online is a wonderful way to get started networking.  Eventually you will want to meet some of your new found friends in person so they can become your In Real Life or (IRL) friends.  People are more likely to do business with or joint ventures with you once they have met you in person and see that you are a real person and you act the same way offline as you do online.  Here are some tools to help you find people in your local area to follow.

You can use hashtags.org to find people in your geographical area to follow.

Just type in your city or state and you will see all of the tweeple that are located in or talking about things related to your city or state.

Another service you can use to find people located near you with is tweets.ws.

Tweets.ws is very simple to use.  Just click on choose your own news topic and type in your state. I tried using my city and state but I didn’t find anything that way.  Once you type in your state you will see everyone who is in your state or talking about things of interest to your state.

Another great tool to use to find tweeps in your area is Twittermass.

All you do with this site is to go to the website and login with the same username and password that you use to log in to Twitter.  Once you’ve logged in you’ll have to click on the tab that says Create. Then click on manual follow for best results. Type in your City and State.  The website will generate a list of tweeple in your city and state and then you can follow them.

Citytweets is another wonderful tool to help you find tweeps in your local area.

Now if you live in a suburb you may need to use the next biggest city to find people near you.  It looks like that site is still growing.

Twitter is a wonderful way to meet new people.  Be sure to follow people local to your area so you can meet them in person.  Be on the lookout for tweetups on your area.  Basically, a tweetup is a combination of the word meet-up and Twitter or a bunch of tweeple in the same geographic area that meet-up and network.  Tweetups are great tools to add to your arsenal of Twitter tools. Be sure to take pictures and videos. This will prove that you were at the tweetup.  When you meet people in person you deepen the relationships that you have on Twitter.  That’s what it’s all about after all, right?

Did you know that you could use Twitter to be found in the search engines? That’s correct. Twitter is for more than just talking to your friends about what you are eating for dinner.  Simply by answering the seemingly pointless question of “Whatcha doin’?”, you can help your website be found on the search engines.

Well, you might ask; how can I use Twitter to be found on the search engines like Google? That’s a great question. I’m so glad you asked that.

Many people wonder how they’re going to do that when they sign up to join Twitter.  Many people can’t believe that all they have to do is type in the answer to a simple question and they’ll be found on the search engines.  In this article you’ll discover ways you can use Twitter to help your website be found in the search engines.

One way that you can use your social media profile to be found is to populate your profile with the keywords you wish to be found in.

For example, if you are a virtual assistant, you want people to see the word virtual assistant in your profile. If you’re a writer, be sure you put the word writer in your profile.  The more words related to what you do, the easier it will be for the people searching for you to find you.  Also, if you have a particular niche that you serve, be certain to include that niche in your profile as well.  People looking for that niche will use that keyword in their search.  Also be sure to include your website url in your profile.  Ideally this will be some type of opt in list so you can collect people’s email address.  This is important because you still want to be able to connect with these people should something bad happen to Twitter.

Additionally you want to make sure that the information you are posting to your profile is information that is relevant to your niche. In other words, if you write for small businesses, be sure to post information related to small business.  This helps you to be seen as an authority figure in your subject matter or area of expertise.  Also, this type of information gets retweeted a lot.  If at all possible, post relevant resources and content on your website and then post the link to that content on Twitter.  That is a great way to get your website noticed by the search engine.

Twitter is an outstanding tool to use to get your website found in the search engines.  Follow the steps mentioned above and you’ll be well on your way to being a Twitter rock star!  Oh yeah, and you’ll be getting lots and lots of search engine love, too.

Don’t believe the Twitter critics and Twitter cynics who are having a good time roasting Twitter.  They like to think of it as a narcissism-driven site where people wildly shout out trivia about their boring lives hoping that someone is listening.

Yes, there’s a component of that happening.  And it is sort of amusing in a sad way.

However, there’s real value under the surface of Twitter.  There are people sharing important information and ideas.  There are experts offering guidance.  There are potential customers talking about what they really want to see in products.

It’s a huge and growing population.  A chunk of it is boring everyone to death by sharing details about the dressing on the salad served at lunch.  There’s a substantial user population, however, that’s making exciting things happen.

If you’ve believed the critics and you’re not part of Twitter, it’s time to rethink your position.  You can become a part of this exciting collection of social networks.  And I promise:  You won’t be forced to share your lunch stories with anyone.  Honest.

For understanding more about Twitter get Twitter Marketing Secrets

To be successful in the Twittersphere, you need a keen understanding of the motivational psychology behind the Twitter follower numbers. The Inside Track is what separates the winners and losers in the Twittersphere. You need Twitter Marketing Secrets to become a winner!

If you said “YES” congratulations your human!  And being human gives you the edge on Twitter because on Twitter you won’t be dealing with numbers, you will be dealing with humans. 

Where ever there are real people there are real people with real money and real people like to spend money because it makes them feel real powerful to be able to choose something and then get it.  It seem an unlikely way to make a sale but it really is how most decisions are made that move money from one pocket to another.   No hardball sales pitches just pleasant and mutually enjoyable conversations. This Is How Money Is Made Through Twitter!

Discover the Sectrets, Learn How To Find, Start The Natural Conversations That Will Earn You Huge Profits On Twitter. Get Twitter Marketing Secrers eBook!

Twitter is an extraordinarily powerful tool for doing just that but just like any tool that is powerful, there is always a chance you can use it wrong and it will do more damage than good. I hope you will enjoy the instruction manual for Twitter I have provided and that your results are greater than you imagined. 

Sincerely,

Let’s say you wanted to find two thousand people who would share an interest in your upcoming product.  

Now, let’s say that you wanted a way to contact them and to send them updates and even a purchase link when you were ready to go.

Time for a squeeze page and an auto responder, right?  Not necessarily.  There’s nothing wrong with creating a list, but there could be a much more efficient way to get the job done.

Twitter.

You can gather thousands of followers and “Tweet” them the messages of your choice at any time.  You don’t need to worry about opt-ins, delivery or staying on the right side of the regulations.  

If you’re not using Twitter to create a “shortcut list” that can drive traffic to your offers, you’re missing a great opportunity.  This is one of the easiest ways to get started with permission marketing in the history of the Internet and many marketers are already making money by talking to their followers instead of just sending those emails to their list.

Are you on Twitter?  Are using it the right way?  If you’re not sure, you need to do some investigation.  Check the Twitter resources in this Blog!

Have you been wondering “What is this Twitter? Why are people twittering? Is twittering even a word?” 

Have you heard the words Tweet us at on the news or TV? Are you worried that if you ask someone to describe twittering or tweeting that you will be labeled as a social misfit or uncool? I have also made that assumption. The assumption that just because someone is young and into twittering or understand social media that I would be greeted with laughter or at best a blank stare. This is a bad assumption and once I stepped over that fear of being laughed at, I actually got answers. And I want to share my discovery with you.

I bet you are thinking yeah, yeah so what is Twitter, Twittering, Tweeting and all that jazz? Why do news agencies use it and why do I see in on T.V.?

Twitter is a website that offers something called micro-blogging. Micro-blogging (yeah, another word to learn) like blogging, it allows people to text little updates and put them immediately online, so that anyone can see them or by only people in special social groups.

Tweets (the little text messages) can be submitted to Twitter with a variety ways and devices from instant messaging, email, cell phones or the web. Tweets are direct text messages sent “at” a person by using the “@” symbol before their username. This Tweet will not only communicate with that single person but also show partial conversations with other members of the group. Then, once you have an account with Twitter and someone follows you, people can direct message one another or “DM” through the Twitter websites interface.

Twitters can friend or “follow” other Tweeple (people plus Tweeter) to receive Twits, Tweets or Twitters (it is a personal preference what you call it). Adding or “following” a person is similar to adding a friend on a social network like Facebook.

Next question…why? Tweeting on Twitter attracts people with similar likes and dislikes. It is all about letting people know what you are up to and expressing yourself in 140 characters or less. It’s an immediate mini form of self expression. Tweets range from single commentary on subjects near and dear to the heart in little bursts and rants to just describing mundane activities at any exact moment from waking up and drinking a latte to news worthy events or even deciding what shoes to wear. 

Some Tweets pin point and use Twitter for monetary gain. They post links to websites and blogs. Twitter allows a business person to draw attention to blog entries, sale coupons, happenings and events. Twitter allows a business person to target people with similar backgrounds and buying habits.

There are many uses for Twitter just to name a few, you can ask for advice, heighten aware in a cause, offer help and resources to others, promote products and/or services and even promote breaking news. So, that is why you are hearing Twitter everywhere, with so many uses and the fact it allow self expression in immediate bursts…how could it be any other way! Now, will you be Tweeting soon?

I know what you guys are thinking. Oh great another article telling me to “Be authentic”. Yeah, I feel like barfing every time I hear a guru saying those words in regards to social media and Twitter.  However, they are on to something.  By the time you finish reading this article you’ll not only understand what they mean, but learn how to achieve this “realness” without seeming like a phony.

First of all what does authenticity mean anyway? People keep throwing this word around without giving an explanation of what they mean. Here’s my definition of authenticity. Basically in a nutshell, it means that you should be yourself.  In other words, the people that you network with online should be comfortable with you when they meet you in person because you act the same way online as you do in real life.  That’s it.  That’s what all of the gurus are talking about when they say “Be authentic”.  Oops I said it again!

But why is this important you ask? Great question!  Authenticity is important because people buy from other people they know, like and trust (yes I know another buzz word you hear over and over again).  People can’t get to know you if you don’t give them a chance too.  I know it seems uncomfortable, but you’ve got to give people a chance to see the real you.  Once people see that you are an actual human being and not a robot (yes there are robots on Twitter) they’ll be more likely to click on the links that you post and respond to your messages.

Okay, I understand that I have to be “authentic” and show my personality so people can get to know the “real” me.  But how do I do that?  Again, another great question.  Think of Twitter like a big party.  What would you do if you were at a party and you did not know anyone?  Well more than likely you’d listen to a few conversations and then join a group of people talking about something you find interesting, right? You’d probably introduce yourself and then add to the conversation.  Well you can do the same thing online with Twitter.  You can use Twitter’s search capability to find people to follow that are interesting to you.  You can introduce yourself to those people with an “@” message, then you can start adding to the conversation.  Once you start doing that, then you can start posting messages about your business. 

Only start promoting yourself after you’ve promoted something someone else is doing.  It takes some time to get some momentum going on Twitter, but once you do, you won’t be able to stop all of the traffic and sales that Twitter will bring you.  Now what are you waiting for? Jump on Twitter and start tweeting!

The Twitter background: To snaz or not to snaz that is the question. I really have no definitive answer to that question. But it seems that if you are trying to make a name for yourself anything will help and it can’t hurt to pimp out your Twitter background to see if you can’t stand out from the rest maybe even create a little controversy. If you already are famous as heck, like Demi Moore, I guess you don’t have to do squat to your account to attract huge followings of Twitter faithful who will hang on your every word. 

That said I thought I would spot light a few Twitter backgrounds and give you some background on the backgrounds if that makes any sense at all.

Since we mentioned Demi Moore already I will just start with her background. Of course if you are a Gen Xer you remember Demi as the hot starlet with the husky voice from St. Elmos Fire or perhaps her early marriage to Bruce Willis or the too numerous to mention movies she has starred in and now are just starting to believe she is some sort of vampire, because frankly gravity is not doing things to her body that it is to the rest of us. If you are younger than a Gen Xer you just may think she is some pretty young woman you’d like to hangout with. Whatever you think of Demi… her Twitter following has erupted to over half of million while probably her Twitter background is one of the most plain and unpretentious on the site. Her back ground or the lack of it can be seen at http://twitter.com/mrskutcher (how do you get 1,000,000+ folowers?)

Now to cover the other end of the spectrum I think absolute craziest Twitter background title belongs to Mr. Michael Ian Black in which has a depiction of him hiding behind Dr. Pepper cans evidently naked and apparently strangling a unicorn while Demi Moore is looking on. 

This background seems to be helping him gain followers because he also has over a quarter of a million followers, even though he is not famous. He does claim to be a famous comedian but his claim to fame is from an obscure show on MTV which no one watched since MTV has stopped playing video and started ripping off Mexican TV game shows. His Twitter background can be seen at http://api.twitter.com/michaelianblack

To contrast the art work of the Mr. Blacks Twitter background I would like to leave you with the classic black background. The sort of Ralf Lorene style background which no one can comment on or condemn, because it is so simple and classically black. This is the little black dress of Twitter websites and like the dress it is perfect for every occasion. In the Twitter world a classic black background goes with whatever you have to say. The classic black background goes well with political statements, just day to day banter, celebrity gossip even if you don’t have anything to say. Like in the case of The Mime who has not only gained over 8,000 followers without being famous he has also gained all of those followers without ever tweeting a single word. That’s right since becoming a member The Mime has amassed a loyal following thru his classic black background and his uncanny ability to keep us spellbound by his “…” tweets. You can see The Mime on Twitter at http://api.twitter.com/TheMime  

So, you can see for yourself how a background can work or not work for you.

Twitter is a social networking and micro-blogging tool.  It doesn’t have an identity and it doesn’t have a personality.  However, there is a prevailing set of norms that govern Twitter use.  They’re created by the expectations of the user base.

If you’re just getting started with Twitter, it can be tough to develop a sense of the best way to use your newfound Tweeting power.  There is a dominance Twitter culture and a “way of doing things”.  Getting into the flow and learning the rhythm of the site isn’t always easy.

Here’s one way around the problem:  Follow a few people with big follower bases and watch them for awhile.  Learn how they use Twitter and recognize the techniques they use to be a real voice in the conversation.

If you watch a few of the “big boys” doing their thing, you’ll soon figure out how you might be able to use the site effectively in order to meet your online goals.  

Learning from the best isn’t a new idea.  It works, though.  And it works very well when applied to learning the lay of the Twitter land. You will find many tips and resources on this blog.