Wednesday, September 10, 2008

@barackobama re twitter: ur doing it wrong.

Photo: Silicon Valley Insider


Dear @barackobama,
I think it’s super cool that you’re tweeting, and even cooler that you’re top of the pile among the cool kids with, at this writing, just shy of 76,000 followers. Also impressed that you follow back: that’s not common among the superstars of Twitter.

But here’s the problem: You’re doing it wrong.

Search twitter, aka summize.com, for “@barackobama” and you’ll see what I mean: Your tweeps are talking to you. One of the things that makes Twitter work is that lovely “@username” syntax -- a string that not even the folks at Twitter anticipated. It evolved organically, maybe because of its use at Flickr and other social networks, and soon enough the guys behind the curtain wired it up so that that all replies appeared behind their own special tab, and the tweet itself was hotlinked back to the tweep who tweeted it.

So here’s the problem: You’re not replying in kind. Which, even worse, makes it look like you’re not listening.

It’s possible of course that, when folks talk to you, you’re sending them a direct message, which no one can observe. I’m gonna take a wild swing, based on my own experience tweeting to you, and guess that that’s not what you’re doing.

Either way, you’re missing a great opportunity. Because eavesdropping is another one of the things that makes Twitter work. Listening in on conversations, picking up information that people exchange in the public stream: Think of it as one long streaming Town Hall meeting. Folks want to hear from you. Want to ask you questions. Want to hear what you have to say about things that matter to them.

Directly. Not filtered through media coverage. Right here. Live. In 140 characters or less.

Tell us more than just where you’re speaking right now and where we can listen live -- all well and good, but not enough.

Tell us where you’re going next. Give us time to get there. Send @replies to all your tweeps who are near where you're going to be -- invite them directly. Ask them to invite their friends. Work the groundswell. Generate excitement.

More importantly: listen. Encourage @slashkevin. Talk economics with @ralphmwhite3. Did you see that spot on CNN? Let @Leebo_buzz know what you think.

And don’t just listen to the folks who love you: talk to the folks who don’t. Challenge those who knock your experience. Clear up misinformation where you can.

You need to get this right -- so you can put things right.

Si se puede,
suttonhoo

7 comments:

anniemcq said...

Amen.

I, Rodius said...

yes, formulaic is boring: at location x participating in event y. Watch it live on my website. That's not connecting. Maybe he doesn't want staff communicating that directly for him for fear of what blunders they might make. Or am I jaded in thinking there's no way in hell he'd actually do it himself?

pgoyette said...

you really think this is what he should spend his time on? doesn't he have this demographic locked up?

suttonhoo said...

I do think he should have at least one full time staffer on the job who really *gets* it and is Twittering full time. Riding the bus. Telling the story about where they are now, where they're going, what they're doing. Responding to folks who are tweeting @barackobama.

It's true that Twitter has a largely liberal demographic, so yeah he probably has plenty of votes locked down among that 76K head count, but the Twitter demographic is loaded with Influencers -- folks who create and post content elsewhere, folks other people listen to. If he can build credibility with them on this front by using the tool right it will produce dividends.

Seriously.

Mikkel said...

I love how you guys turn your politics into marketing. Or is it the other way around? I forget.

suttonhoo said...

we're americans. we learn to market before we learn to walk.

bobcat rock said...

superb. "at least one full time staff"? you should be that person, @suttonhoo.

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