Twitter and other microblogging platforms are
beingused by businessesand they will
become standard features on software by 2011.
According to Gartner, despite Twitter's heritage being in the
consumer space, users are using it to talk about business
matters.
Twitter allows users to post 140 character updates about what
they are doing.
Users post their thoughts as well as news and ideas. This type
of service is known as microblogging.
Gartner predicts that by 2011, business microblogging will be a
standard feature of 80% of social software platforms.
It outlines four areas where twitter is already being used:
- Marketing tool: Gartner said
businesses are using Twitter as a marketing or public relations
channel by connecting with customers directly.
- Building reputations: Twitter is being used by
workers to improve their personal reputations, thereby enhancing
the company's reputation.
- Sharing experience: Staff are sharing
information about what they are doing so they can help each other
with ideas.
- Information gathering: Gartner said Twitter is
being used to gather information about what customers, competitors
and others are saying about a company.
However, the analyst company has warned that businesses must set
policies to control usage.
"In general, Twitter usage by employees should be covered by
existing web-participation guidelines," it said. "As Twitter is a
public forum, employees should understand the limits of what is
acceptable and desirable. It is good practice to remind employees
that the policies already in place apply to this new communication
forum, as well. If organisations have not defined a public web
participation policy, they should do so as quickly as
possible."
Luica Mak, PR executive at Red Consultancy, said she has used
Twitter personally for a while but now uses it at work.
"It helps me keep up to date with issues in the technology
sector we work in and what journalists are talking about. It is
also a good way to answer requests from journalists."
Mak said the company is encouraging the use of Twitter. "But we
have to apply common sense when using it and not put anything silly
on it."
According to technology website iGizmo Twitter is in the
process of developing paid for pro accounts as a way to make money
from its millions of succinct users.