Twitter Strategies for Entrepreneurs: Research Using Favorites

Chicago Post-Tribune published this deansguide article 6-2-09

Twitter is one of the most robust resource for links, ebooks, pdf, and information available to any entrepreneur, job seeker, or business person today. I use Twitter for 85% of my content research for both of my blogs deansguide and innerarchitect. One of the best strategies once you have found your nuggets of information is to use the “Favorites” option on your Twitter home page.

Favorites: Location

Favorites is found on the right side bar beneath the “Direct Messages” section and above the “Search Box” area that allows Twitterers to search the site for keywords.

How Does it Work?

When you find an important link to an article that you wish to keep for future reference, you can move your cursor into the right side of the tweet message. On the far right side, invisible until you move your cursor over it, are two icons. The top icon is a star which denotes a “favorite.” By clicking on this star, you will have “saved” the tweet with the important link for future reference

Research Strategy: Favorites

Here are the uses the Favorites section provides for your research on Twitter:

• Repository: container that holds all your coveted tweets with important content links
• Personalize: your selections  are a valuable  library that you build
• Recognition: take inventory to determine who provides the most value and then RT aka retweet their content as often as possible
• Create: create a spreadsheet or list of the top 5 Twitterers who provide you the most valuable content that is contained in your Favorites “library.” Tweet the results of your “Top 5 Favorites”
• #FollowFriday: take your top content providers from your Favorites section and recognize them by recommending them with a #followfriday tweet