Three scheduled tweets walk into a bar and the bartender says, “_____________________________.”

Twitter is kind of noisy these days, it’s true. And I’m pretty good about spending a few 5 minute sessions in the home feed, too.

People can get really offended when you (well, I, let’s be honest here) make suggestions. These are not the ten commandments folks, just ideas.

Twitter is Social Media, not an RSS Feed.

There are some that get joy out of the automation and others enjoy the conversation.

I read a post this week and this really struck a chord:

“With all the fancy tools, we’ve lost something huge: SOCIAL media. ” Amy Donohue 

Look, I’m not against social tools or even some scheduling.

But you still have to be there.

Otherwise, you’re just sending messages out in a bottle.

“Walked out this morning I don’t believe what I saw
A hundred billion bottles washed up on the shore
Seems I’m not alone in being alone
A hundred billion castaways looking for a home” ~ by Sumner, Gordon Matthew.

Luckily, there are Twitter chats.

If people are scheduling answers in Twitter chats, I’ve not heard of it. And there is a chat for almost every topic you can imagine.

Here are two chats I regularly attend.

Tuesday

1 pm Pacific – Digi Blog Chat (#DigiBlogChat)

This chat is hosted by Larry Mount and Carol Stephen. It’s a low-key but engaging chat. It’s one of the highlights of my week.

Wednesday

9 am Pacific – Buffer Chat (#BufferChat)

This chat is hosted by Buffer, a social media scheduling tool. It is fast-paced but very informative.

How do you maximize use of a Twitter Chat?

1. Find one that fits your brand.

2. Attend regularly.

3. Answer succinctly.

4. Listen.

5. Follow Up (put chat conversationalists on a list named for the chat).

6. Be kind.

Moral to the Story:

You don’t have to join a chat to have a conversation. If you want to have conversations, then start using the reply button. It works, I promise.