Cafe Hayek - Latest Comments in Twitter

Re: Twitter

Rocky — Mon, 04 May 2009 23:59:05 -0000

Here is a less obvious ways to utilize Twitter which hasn't been mentioned. They may not do much for Cafe Hayek, but it definitely shows the wide potential of this new tool.

I am an intern at a very forward thinking recording studio. Today was the second week that the studio tried something called #musicmonday on Twitter. The basic idea was to create a viral environment for participants to discover new music.

This is how it worked; those who wished to participate logged onto their Twitter accounts and started following the Twitter accounts of the five staffers who volunteered to run the #musicmonday event (lets say their Twitter accounts were @Hayek, @Smith, @Mises, @Roberts, @Boudreaux). By following those five staffer accounts, participants would see any updates that those five posted. Once receiving a notice that they were being followed, the staffers would then follow the posts of the participant who had just added them.

Then throughout the day participants would create Twitter posts with the term #musicmonday and then post a link to either an MP3 or a youtube video of whatever new artist they are listening to. Once the staffer received this update, they would then turn around and repost the name of the band with the link that the participant had posted (and include #musicmonday in the post) that way all of the people participating would be able to check out the artist who was suggested. It kind of made me think of a DJ taking requests.

It may sound too confusing for people to participate, but it ended up working unbelievably well. In fact, at one point, #musicmonday was the #1 most trended term on Twitter for the day. I just checked again, and as of midnight PST, it is still the #3 most trended term. This means that more people typed the words '#musicmonday' today then they did 'Swine Flu'. Thats pretty amazing if you ask me.

Re: Twitter

Naresh — Mon, 04 May 2009 22:09:43 -0000

A thumbs up!

Twitter is conversational...

Re: Twitter

Deena — Mon, 04 May 2009 19:14:50 -0000

You should post on Twitter because many of your posts refer to interesting articles/blog posts you've found elsewhere. Twitter is perfect for posting quick links.

It will also help you reach some people better who for whatever reason just HAPPEN to be on Twitter that day rather than on their blog reader. The more connections leading back to your blog, the better.

Re: Twitter

Rob — Mon, 04 May 2009 18:00:44 -0000

What the hell is twitter?

Re: Twitter

vidyohs — Mon, 04 May 2009 16:25:18 -0000

Tweet, twit, twitter, you do what you want to do, just don't shut the Cafe down.

I'll never spend a nano second on pulling my CP out and looking up a tweet, twit, twitter. I can't think of one bloody thing of paramount urgency some one could possibly tweet, twit, twitter to me, except DUCK, or RUN! And, that would be too late.

I can wait to read it on the Cafe.

Re: Twitter

Dan Murray — Mon, 04 May 2009 16:18:01 -0000

Twitter is a wonderful to which can reinforce your blogging with minimal effort. Think of it as a free viral marketing service.

I've been using twitter for about 15 months. I didn't get it the first 8 months, then I started looking into ways to utilize twitter. In a couple of months I was able to build a following of 700+ and I frequently share ideas with a good number of those folks.

Re: Twitter

Liz — Mon, 04 May 2009 16:16:39 -0000

I really like Twitter. Of course, you don't use it for a blog post per se; it's more like a quick update, or a link. I have the tweets sent to my phone, so it's a nice way to stay connected on-the-go.

But then again, I'm kind of enamored with how seemingly stupid things like Twitter make people like well-known professors at GMU really accessible.

Re: Twitter

Mike Farmer — Mon, 04 May 2009 15:47:22 -0000

Twitter is good connection and branding tool for a place like Cafe Hayek, if there's a desire to get the message out and grow readership. It's also a good tool to spread information through links, or to practice pithiness which is always a good skill to develope. Twitter challenges the creativity of the tweeter to pack substance into a few words. Micro-blogging is an interesting concept that will become more useful as time goes by. The people who use it to tell everyone they are eating a ham sandwich haven't yet caught on.

Re: Twitter

Jason — Mon, 04 May 2009 15:09:31 -0000

I'd say yes, even if you just use Twitter for things like, "Hey there is a new post on EconTalk/CafeHayek/etc" or "this article is an interesting read".

You can just use it for notification like that for people who are interested. I'd follow such a twitter stream.

You could use it for interesting tidbits or thoughts that don't merit a whole blog post.

Re: Twitter

Helder — Mon, 04 May 2009 15:05:18 -0000

Nope. Econtalk is too good to tweet. Do like Stephen Colbert: don't tweet, just twat.

Anyway Twitter is pretty good to re-direct people to the real thing and, at the same time, if you manage to have the right people following you (let's say the editors of economy at the New York Times, The Financial Times, CNN, NBC, etc and whatever newspaper or network is important over there in the US) it can be a lot more influential than any blog or podcast. In your case it's a lot easier than it seems to have those kind of people following your tweets.

Re: Twitter

Christopher_Renner — Mon, 04 May 2009 14:51:38 -0000

Obviously the comments here illustrate the somewhat polarizing nature of Twitter as compared to a conventional blog.

That said, I think it'd be great. As Greg Ransom said, it'd be handy as an automatic notifier when you post at Cafe Hayek. And if you decide to share personal updates &c. it certainly won't be as vapid as, for example, Meghan McCain.

Re: Twitter

Art Teitelbaum — Mon, 04 May 2009 14:09:10 -0000

I wonder why people who use Twitter describe themselves as tweeting rather than twitting. Perhaps it's because they would be called twits, one definition of which is "a foolishly annoying person." Leave "tweeting" to those with little to say and for which Twitter gives them plenty of room to say it.

Cafe Hayek is a fine and respectable platform for the expression of your views.

Re: Twitter

Stephen Williams — Mon, 04 May 2009 12:44:25 -0000

Hi Russ

I don't twitter, I have an account but just can't be bothered. However many people are a little crazy about it and it would probably help your cause, so if it's not too much effort go for it.

Re: Twitter

Adam — Mon, 04 May 2009 12:05:18 -0000

I recommend it. It isn't for everyone, but I think it is definitely worth giving it a try.

You've talked on numerous occasions about the challenges of running a comments section once enough people start coming to it and dominating it regularly.

Well, on Twitter you have the people that you "follow"--whose tweets appear in the continually updating stream on your home page--and people who follow you. You can respond to anything anyone has said, or retweet (sort of the twitter equivalent of the hat tip in blogging) anything you find really interesting. You can direct tweets at specific users to try to get a conversation going, and they can do the same.

The benefits of doing this on Twitter rather than just a comments section or forum are as follows:

1. The character limit may pose a challenge, but it offers the advantage that no conversation will be destroyed by one-sided lengthy rants. Moreover, it is not an insurmountable limit--if you really need more space you can write more than one tweet.

2. Anyone who you don't find particularly interesting, informative, or likable, you can unfollow and simply not respond to.

3. It's a wonderful opportunity to connect with a lot of people at relatively low cost.

4. It can become a fantastic source of information, as people tweet links (almost always in the form of shortened URLs, something you should be aware of if you ever want to put a link up yourself) that you might not have found otherwise.

Bottom line, I think you'll find it worth looking into.

Re: Twitter

Mathieu Bédard — Mon, 04 May 2009 11:43:38 -0000

Yes Russ, I believe you should have your different projects have a presence on Twitter. Think of it as a fancy centralized rss feed.

Social networks can do wonders for academic initiatives. Promote an event on Facebook, for example, and you'll see TONS of people showing up from out of nowhere. It's really a medium we need to learn to use!

Re: Twitter

Jackie Chiles — Mon, 04 May 2009 11:13:11 -0000

Re: Twitter

Trey — Mon, 04 May 2009 11:10:35 -0000

Pattern: "No" if poster does not use or understand Twitter; emphatic "yes" if poster uses and understands Twitter.

I personally do not understand Twitter, have always assumed it's for solipsists or ADHD-sufferers, but am intrigued by the many uses proposed in these comments.

If anyone cares to respond to this comment, I'd love to see some examples of Twitter feeds of value...

Re: Twitter

Babinich — Mon, 04 May 2009 11:09:27 -0000

Please no; with sugar on top...

Re: Twitter

Tom Church — Mon, 04 May 2009 10:51:49 -0000

Tweeting is a different medium than blogging. Since tweets have to be 140 characters or less, you have to make your thoughts much more concise. That's the big difference - as long as you don't use Twitter to tell people what you had for lunch.

It is also much more personal than a blog, if you can believe that.

Re: Twitter

sprague — Mon, 04 May 2009 10:27:13 -0000

Yes, please use Twitter.

Twitter's great when you don't have time for a full blog post. It also helps us readers give you an immediate reaction.

Blog posts stick around for a long time, but think of Twitter as a temporary holding bin for short ideas that you'll discuss when you get more time, or feedback.

Re: Twitter

Troy — Mon, 04 May 2009 09:37:05 -0000

I say use Twitter. I would do it the same way NPR's Planet Money podcast. Post updates to your blog and links, with a short comment, to interesting information.

Re: Twitter

dullgeek — Mon, 04 May 2009 09:07:35 -0000

I agree with those who say to automate it. But I'd also like to see some of the posts that are just links to other sites be posted to twitter and not to the blog.

For blogs, I expect there to be some commentary or other substance along with the link. For twitter, I expect to just get the referral to the site, with minimal commentary.

Re: Twitter

Peterk — Mon, 04 May 2009 09:02:09 -0000

absolutely not, I use an RSS feed. Twitter is for those who suffer from ADHD IMHO

Re: Twitter

Jame Howe — Mon, 04 May 2009 08:53:00 -0000

I think you should tweet. Twitter is more than just posting short snippets about what you had for lunch. Sheldon Richman from FEE as well as the Cato Institute each have a twitter presence and use it to good effect. Twitter is a great viral way to get a message out. The 'tweet' doesn't have to be the full message, it might only be the equivalent of a headline which reels in a reader. If your content is compelling, users will 're-tweet' to their followers, which increases your potential readership.

I say give it a try.

Re: Twitter

Michael F. Martin — Mon, 04 May 2009 08:46:07 -0000

My ID: riemannzeta