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I spent some time this evening researching my Twitter usage and that of a clients.

TW Influence is a handy tool to see where you and your competitors are in the Twitter world. Using Twitters API, TwInfluence will measure your influence in the Twitter realm. The results are not based on the number of followers you have. Your influence is measured on three levels;  velocity, social capital, and centralization. (Learn more here)

If you have a moment be sure to share your TW Influence results by commenting below.

BrightKit is in beta and for a limited time you can add multiple twitter accounts.

The only features available right now are the ability to manage multiple accounts, schedule tweets for a later time, search, read your dms and @ messages. Personally, I am looking for features that move beyond what Twitter already provides.

There are some great ideas being submitted so hopefully BrightKit will take the time to develop some of their users suggestions.

A heads up, unlike some other Twitter management applications, if you post using BrightKit it will be listed on your Tweets.

The Dashboard is great. Easy to navigate.  I like the search feature, though when I click a user link, I seem to be directed to a 404 error page.

I will keep an eye on BrightKit, but in it’s beta version it simply does not have enough management features for me to consider it as an alternative to the service I am currently using.

Right now I would say BrightKit gets a 3.75/5 , though the thoughtful user interface and the fact that they are seeking user feedback makes me think it will quickly reach a 5/5.

Though my time has been limited, I have found a few great Social Media blog reads on the topic of using social media as a business or brand this week.

1) Do Brands Belong on Twitter ?

Yes, I have great interest in staying up to date on how corporations and small businesses are using Twitter.  Mathew Ingram reviews some comments posted over at Mashable over the debate of posting as a brand (i.e @dunkindonuts) versus having an employee or executive posting using their own identity.

Given that I tweet as Her Media, I do feel the balance is in using your brand as a user ID, but clarifying who the name and face is behind the posts. You will see my Twitter profile lists my name and my photo.

2) Guidelines For Brands Using Twitter

David Armano’s post is great and to the point. He touches on a few of the items I feel all businesses need to understand before they jump on the twitter train; transparency, generosity, and value.

3) Super List of what NOT to do in Social Media

I found Robin’s post containing a wealth of links and resources on what not to do in social media through a Linked In group.  Before launching your brand across any Social Media Networks you should (as you would with any marketing strategy) have a plan. Part of the plan should be to address any potential negatives or PR nightmares that could arise from your campaign. This one post will open your eyes to what you need to AVOID and how to do so.

The following caught my attention, ‘Ignite Social Media’s 6 Part Video Series: Social Media Marketing Mistakes And How to Avoid Them‘ especially Part 1 Not Listening. Not Responding. Not Good . If you intend to launch Social Media initiatives be sure you plan who will manage them and set some guidelines.

I wanted to highlight number one; did the person fill out his profile? This is one of my largest decision making attributes when deciding if I will follow someone. Everyday I receive notification of new followers who have not completed their profile. Not even a photo or logo. Not listing a website or blog url where I can learn more about you is another reason I won’t follow you back.

I find this frustrating over at blogger as well. Granted some bloggers need to remain anonymous for safety or other concerns. However if you blog on an industry topic as a means of networking or promotion why would you not complete your full profile ?

For those of you who know me you may see some commonality to my other most spoken rant. Full disclosure of contact information. If the internet is your business, then you need to have a face online AND be reachable. Complete your profiles. Disclose your full contact details on your website and ensure you have a contact form.

In closing, to get my twitter follow you need to have a complete profile that provides some inclination that I will gain value from following you. To keep my follow you need to post some valuable content outside of just what you ate for breakfast

“OpenID eliminates the need for multiple usernames across different websites, simplifying your online experience.”  Openid.net

I have heard some buzz around the Internet about Facebook Connect this week. Is it the same as open ID ? All three (Open Id, Facebook Connect, and Google Friend Connect) allow users to interact with third party sites.

Google Friend Connect uses Open Social Facebook harnesses the power of a known interface.

Read Write Web’s Marshall Kirkpatrick has a great mind map outlining Facebook Friend connect and open Id features and merits.

I personally feel Open ID is great for blogger and social media applications. However it will be interesting to watch Google’s more easily integrated solution ( a few lines of code to insert) and Facebook Connect ( more complicated) .

If building a strong referral system is what you are looking for, you should check out Facebook connect and consider the power Facebook connect. Facebook takes accountability and their user base seems to contain more real users (less spam and trollers) who interact with their connections. This means more quality referrals and testimonials for your business.

Just a few of my thoughts on Facebook connect and Google Friend Connect. Please share yours as well by commenting or Digging the post.

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2) Help others: People often tweet looking for help, directions, ideas, and feedback on their posts or ideas. My rule of thumb is help more often then you ask for help.Which brings me to the next item.

3) Ask for help: Be careful not to go overboard here or you will quickly loose followers. Need ideas for an article, quotes, product reviews, suggestions tweet out your questions.

4) Retweet: According to AJ Vaynerchuk of Blogging Bits “The art of “retweeting” is best described as taking a twitter message someone else has posted, and rebroadcasting that same message to your followers.”  Learn how to retweet at blogging bits .

3) Post updates from conferences: If you are visiting a conference, let others know whats goign on. Most conferences will use a ‘hashtag’. This will allow others to easily see the tweets from any given event. Find out what Hashtag (usually something like #eventname) your event is using and insert it within each of your tweets.

4) Background Screening: Learn about your potential business partners, contractors, and employees by checking out their tweets. I know a tad controversial. If you are a REAL new business management style employer then you will get social media and understand it is an asset to your business not a hindrance.

5) Locate Blogs and Subscribe: Most tweeters will list their blogs within their twitter profile. My Google Reader contains some excellent blogs written by my followers. Twitter is a great way to find some ‘hidden blog gems’.

6) Locate Speakers: If you are searching for just the right person to speak at your event, interview for an article, or a podcast guest, Tweet it out. Some amazing people hang about on twitter.

7) Gain knowledge: Twitter is an amazing resource to make direct contact with some very qualified experts. My son had a school report, one tweet and he had direct access to a professor to an author to quote in his report.

Respond to your followers: Please note I did not say Spam your twitter followers. Offer a free resource sure, but don’t reply to a new follower asking them to buy something. Thank them for the follow and ask them about their blog, business, or who they are.

9) Locate some good Twitter Tools: Test out some twitter plugins to see which work best for you.

10) Get some help: A few people have asked me to host a twitter how to conference call. Once I have 15 people interested I PROMISE to put one together… so if you need more help contact me and let me know you want to be added to the list.

So in celebration… For the next 30 days you can win $25 in free Facebook advertising ( and that actually can go a LONG way on facebook)  by becoming a Fan of Her Media’s blog on Facebook.

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Facebook is a great Social Media tool, though I find creating a balance between my private life and business life is hard. It was suggested that I have two separateFacebook accounts if I was concerned about privacy. The lack of time to manage two Facebook accounts proved to be a larger deterrent alas, I have only one Facebook profile.

If you wish to add me as a friend on facebook, please send me an email first letting me know why I should accept your invite …

The Ebook is concise (always appreciated by those of us who can’t seem to fit our to do list into our day) and really informative. After reading through ‘Fishing Where the Fish Are: Mapping Social Media to the Buying Cycle’, I have a few more ideas for my clients, a list of new blogs to check out and some of the Social Media Measurement tools I was looking for.

Grab Chris Brogan’s  Approaches to Social media Free Ebook let me know what you think and be sure to send him some kudos for offering you some free social media knowledge.