Twitter is a public instant messaging tool. It allows users to send updates or answer one another’s questions, but within limits of 140 characters (that’s numbers, letters, spaces, punctuation, etc.) per update. Thus, brevity is key.

So how could something so simple (and, some might say, so seemingly useless) become an increasingly important tool to help businesses engage with their customers? To answer that, let’s look at the way some businesses are using Twitter.

* ComcastCares is Frank Eliason, a one-man damage control unit for Comcast. If a Comcast customer has a tech support issue, Frank is often their first — and sometimes only — point of contact. He can personally diagnose the problem and often helps a person resolve the issue without having to spend precious hours on the phone. And what’s good for Comcast’s customers is good for Comcast.

* Adagio Teas uses Twitter to poll their customers about their tea drinking habits, offer tea tips, announce new products and flavors, and issue coupon codes that are redeemable in their web store.

* Mimobot is Evan Blaustein, founder and CEO of Mimoco, which produces stylish USB Flash Drives designed to look like outlandish cartoon characters. He uses Twitter as a way to keep in touch with his audiences, announce sales, promote Mimobot booths at trade shows and more. But he also hosts a series of daily contests designed to keep his followers (or “subscribers,” in Twitter parlance) paying attention; contest winners receive a free Mimobot.

* Huffington Post is the Twitter arm of the powerful political blog of the same name. Their Twitter account is an aggregator of all their authors’ articles; it sends out an automated update every time a new piece is posted. To them, Twitter is purely a promotion channel.

* Betty Draper is a character on the AMC original TV series Mad Men, which uses Twitter as a novel way to interact directly with their audience through the personae of their characters. (At least, that was the assumption; the reality of the situation is a bit more complicated…)

As you can see, there are numerous ways that a business can choose to engage their audience on Twitter. And judging by the number of followers each of the above examples has, their customers consider these companies’ approaches to add value to their web experience.

So… how could YOUR company use Twitter? (And, if you already are, what’s YOUR approach? If you’d like to see more examples, check out this list of the Top 40 Brands Using Twitter on Mashable — and, while you’re at it, follow us on Twitter!)

Image by herzogbr.

Click To Play

Business Smart Tools founder Valorie Luther sat down last summer with MediaPost’s Cathy Taylor to discuss social media — namely, who’s using it, how and why. Having reported on the media for over a decade, Cathy brings a unique perspective to her assessment of the social media landscape.

Among her observations:

* Twitter has become a “virtual water cooler” for telecommuters who crave social interaction but work from home.

* Companies are still slow to embrace social media, except as a means of damage control during a PR crisis.

* Before a company dives into social media, they’d benefit by first LISTENING to what their customers are already saying about them online.

If you’d like to hear more from Cathy, be sure to check out her blog (Adverganza) or follow her on Twitter — and while you’re at it, follow us on Twitter, too!

Last week, fellow Twitter user Mel Brooke raised the issue of companies taking up space on social networks without actually adding any value to those communities. Her comments included:

… if you join to push something and don’t immerse in the culture, I feel you are taking advantage.

and

… if meeting your own needs interferes with the community’s intent, a big problem arises.

Her point raises serious questions for companies seeking to join any online communities for purely promotional purposes: does your marketing create value for the users of that community, or is it just generating more noise and distraction (and, in the end, causing resentment of your brand)?

You can often infer this answer from measurable factors, like:

* Does the community respond when you ask a question / offer them information?

* Are a large number of the people you choose to “friend” or “follow” also following you back, or are they ignoring you?

* What are the people in that community saying about your brand?

If all seems well — and, if you’re truly conducting two-way dialogues with your community — then you have no reason to worry. But if the above factors are turning up overly-negative results, it’s time to ask yourself what you’re doing wrong AND how you can better interact with your fellow web users.

Long ago, that problem might have been solved by guessing at what the underlying issue might be, and then trying a new (and untested) approach. But in today’s age of increased business transparency, there’s another, more valuable solution available: ask the users. As irritated as they might be if they feel they’re being marketed at too heavily, some will appreciate your honest interest in finding a value-added middle ground, and they’ll be willing to help you set a tone / frequency / approach that more people will consider beneficial to their own needs.

Because you’re not getting involved in social media to annoy your customers — are you?

Image by kimba.

The more involved you are in social media, the easier it can be to lose sight of your end goals. That’s because this emerging medium can be endlessly interesting — after all, there’s always someone new to meet, or a differing opinion to consider, or a new tool to dabble in… but there’s also only so much time in the day, and you need to know that you’re actually accomplishing what you set out to do.

(You did set out to do something, didn’t you?)

Whether you’ve been involved in social media for years or you’re just starting out now, you might feel overwhelmed by the possibilities. If so, stop and ask yourself one simple question:

Why, exactly, am I doing this?

(Or, if you’re part of a team effort, why are we — our company, our charity, our university, etc. — doing this?)

Odds are, your goals may have changed since you started out. That’s partly because the tools we use change all the time, but also because the very act of participating in social media means that you’re listening to what others are telling you — and if you’re listening, you’re probably acting on that information, too. (Otherwise, why else would you be asking for it?)

All of this is perfectly natural. What isn’t natural is refusing to adjust your strategy based upon this new information. And sticking with an outdated strategy will rob you of both the opportunity to maximize the input from your customers AND your ability to interact with them in meaningful ways — which is the whole point of social media in the first place.

So, if you’re using social media to…

Interact with your audience…

… then make sure you’re ACTUALLY listening. Let your audience know that their feedback is the reason you’re here. Thank them for taking the time to engage you, and be public about the ways in which their information is impacting your decisions. Letting people know that their opinions matter to you is the difference between public relations and personal interaction.

Increase your brand awareness…

… then make sure your brand is available everywhere that your target audience is active. The tools change rapidly, and you never know where the next hotspot will be — so you have to be everywhere, within reason. But while you’re there, make sure you’re actually adding value to each community. Otherwise, people will definitely become aware of your brand, but not in the way you’d hoped.

Sell…

… then make sure you’re giving your audience what they want — and now that you can actually listen to what that is, you have no reason to NOT provide it. (If they’re asking for oranges and you’re still trying to convince them that they need kumquats, your strategy definitely needs an overhaul.)

So, before you get overwhelmed by all the possibilities… why are YOU using social media?

Image by Outside the Camp.