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Apr 2, 04:43 am: Week 4: Talk amongst yourselves

Now that you’ve started collecting and sharing information, it’s time to start building conversations with individuals.

This week, we’re adding Twitter to your tool chest.

Before we get started take a few minutes to check out this video from Common Craft.

Life happens between blog posts and email and so does thinking. Twitter is going to provide you the place to start thinking aloud — and getting other people to engage with that thinking. Getting people engaged with you and your thoughts will help you as you engage them in the broader change that you are trying to make.

When you sign up for Twitter, make sure that you take the time to fill out some information on your profile. Your ‘More Info URL’ should point to your organization or causes website. If you don’t have one, point to your bookmarks on ma.gnolia. Your ‘One Line Bio’ should very clearly start the change you are trying to make. Yes, one line is quick and too the point and, yes, it will lack nuance. But that’s not bad. Remember, you’re giving people a quick hit of who you are and giving them a reason to ‘Follow’ you.

Once you’ve signed up and filled out your profile a bit, it’s time to find some followers. Go back to the RSS feeds that you’ve collected over the last three weeks. Some of those are, undoubtedly, websites maintained by individuals. Find out if those people have twitter accounts (they might provide the info on their blog, but you can also search for people on Twitter) and, if they do, ‘Follow’ them.

It’s easy enough to think of following people but what do you have to say in 140 characters? A lot.

If you are reading a particularly interesting article (on topic, of course), point people to it on Twitter. Have a question about something you’ve read? Ask it on Twitter. Someone else says something that interests you? Respond to them (simply start your twitter post with ‘@username’ to make the connection). And let some of you slip in. Remember the video: it’s nice for to get to know the people you are working with and following.

And now people are following you. Every time you get notified of a new follower, check them out and, unless it seems like spam or wildly off your topic of interest, follow them.

It’s important that use this tool. Using the social web to collect information, and even tools like ma.gnolia to organize that information, is easy. It’s how we are used to using the web. It’s harder when we start thinking about putting our own voice out there. And this is, to some extent, a make a break step. That is, if you can’t put yourself out there it is going to be harder to build the network, conversations and community of trust that will allow you to harness the good energy of people you don’t yet know to achieve the change you are working for.

So think of Twitter as your first test in the 52 week course. Set a goal for yourself — 3 tweets a day or 4. Enough so that you are creating and growing a presence.

Next week: You are going to ask for some help from your new friends and contacts.

This is part of 52 Weeks to Social Change: Using the Social Web to Make Good Things Happen.

Tags: week4, socialnetworking, net2, nptech, plan, twitter