From the Greensboro News & Record,
“GREENSBORO — As constant updates from social networking sites such as Twitter become a routine part of the day, it’s not just kids and cubicle dwellers who are harnessing the power of social media. Local governments and their departments are joining in, so far with mixed results.
“We started the Twitter account about 18 months ago,” said Jim Collins, communications manager for the city of Greensboro. “So far, we’ve been using it for putting up things of citywide import, announcements, trying to get people to participate in public meetings.”
The free Web site Twitter, at twitter.com, allows people to communicate in short bursts of 140 characters, which can include links to other sites. Users “follow” other Twitter feeds to receive information and network with each other to gain “followers” of their own.
Signing up is free at the Twitter home page. All that’s needed is a valid e-mail address. The service can be used from a computer or mobile phone with Web or text capabilities.
Many social media fans say using Twitter to simply post announcements is not taking full advantage of the medium.
Ryan Shell, a Greensboro blogger and marketing communications specialist, said the biggest mistake organizations make with Twitter is forgetting that it’s supposed to be a conversation.
“It’s better if it’s not all one way, just pushing information at people with no give and take, no interaction,” Shell said. “Look at the city of Greensboro on Twitter. They have 1,260 followers. That’s way more than me — more than most people. But they’re only following five people. That’s not a conversation, and it doesn’t interest people.”
Shell’s run for City Council this year was heavy on new media, with video updates to his campaign blog and updates for his more than 600 Facebook friends and more than 750 followers on Twitter.
Shell lost his council bid, but his reputation for online organizing has led some to seek him out for advice on connecting people online. Governments would do well to look at how successful individuals and groups use Twitter rather than trying to adapt Twitter to continue the way their bureaucracy communicates, he said.” Click here to continue reading the article.
[…] The story came out today, and after the editing was done it appears that Joe was only able to hit on the government aspect of our conversation. I’d like to take a moment and share the notes I prepared for the conversation. […]