My Top Ten Twitter Tools

If you are new to Twitter, you may not realize that there are a number of third-party websites, plugins, and apps that make it easier to tweet and follow other tweeters.  Twitter itself has a certain beauty in its simplicity, but it is not very user-friendly once you have connected with a few dozen people.   How can you prioritize what tweets you really want to read, vs. those tweets that are more optional?

Also, from a business standpoint, Twitter itself offers very little feedback in terms of your ROI.  How many people got your tweet, and who retweeted it?  What are people saying about you or your company online? When are your followers online?  When is the best time to send a tweet?  What are your neighbors tweeting?

To help answer these questions, here are my Top Ten Twitter Tools in no particular order:

1. Tweetdeck.com allows you to sort your incoming tweets into logical columns.  You can create your own groups, follow hashtags, DMs or listen for others tweeting about you.  Since Tweetdeck was recently purchased by Twitter, the two will likely become one.
2. Hootsuite.com is similar to Tweetdeck, but in addition to columns, it adds another level of organization with customizable tabs.  So, you might have a tab for weekdays feeds and another for weekends.  Hootsuite also gives users the ability to schedule tweets in advance
3. FollowFridayHelper.com – #FollowFriday or #FF gives you a chance to recommend your favorite Tweeters to your followers, AND the Twitterverse.  Follow Friday Helper makes it easier to share the love, any day of the week.
4. WhatTheTrend.com is very helpful when you don’t know what a particular hashtag means.  I was recently stumped by #NSN3D which turned out to be a Justin Bieber movie.  Whatthetrend is also a good place to “unofficially register” your hashtag for Twitter parties, industry topics, or events
5. Tweriod.com will tell you what times your followers are online the most during the week.  It does so in a general sense, without breaking anyone’s privacy.
6. Timely.is (notice .is not .com) helps you send your tweets at optimal times to reach the most followers.  You load up your queue to shoot a tweet once or thrice a day, but can also send tweets more immediately as needed.  You can turn off weekends, and track to see who retweeted your tweets, and even see how many poeple clicked your links.

   

7. Twittervision.com shows live tweets on a google topo map.  I wish more emergency responders knew about this tool; it might come in handy during a search and rescue situation.
8. Twtvite.com (notice spelling) is like Evite for Twitter.  It’s normally used for Tweetups but can also be used for virtual online parties and Twitter chats.
9. Trendistic.com also lists trending topics, but adds a graphic showing the trend over the last 24 hours, 7 days, 30 days, etc.  Certain trending topics may only last a week, others will ebb and flow over time depending on who is online.
10. Visibletweets.com and Twitterfountain.com have serious potential for digital signage and live events.  Imagine a tweetup or a concert where patrons could tweet to a large screen using a certain hashtag.

You can sign into most of these tools and websites using your Twitter credentials, so its easy to bounce back and forth between them.  They also integrate with URL shorteners like bit.ly and tinyurl.com so you can track how many people have clicked the links in your tweets.

What are your favorite Twitter tools?

Related articles

• Social Media (pkaudiovisual.com)
• Example AV Twitter Fountain (http://thefounta.in/PbOtE)
• Making Twitter Work for You (lvccldtac.wordpress.com)
• TweetDeck: From Tiny Startup to Twitter Acquisition (benzinga.com)
• How to Use Twitter Hashtags (lockergnome.com)