Why Twitter Is Better Than Google

by Jack Humphrey

Guest post by Rick Butts

Since the late 1960’s very bright people have pushed their intellect and creativity to the limits in an attempt to create a machine that could actually think.

IBM’s Big Blue may have beaten Russia’s Kasparov in chess along the way - but as we find ourselves in the sunset months of the first decade of the 21st century computers are still computational devices based on math. They are incapable of reason despite incredible leaps in software and processor speed.

The closest source we’ve had to an “answer giver” has been Google.

Even with Google you have to finesse your “question” in the form of search syntax and it helps to know those advanced commands (which look like complicated physics formulas) to BEGIN the search to find what you are really looking for.

Of course, what you are really looking for needs to exist, and in a search friendly format - and have enough on-page factors to identify itself and plenty of inbound links. When was the last time you actually spent time on a web page that was 11 pages deep in Google search results?

But, wait!

There really IS a smart computer and it’s ALIVE I tell you! It’s ALIVE!

Just join Twitter and attract a group of followers and you’ll soon you’ll have created your own collection of living brain cells, capable of solving problems, reasoning, understanding fuzzy logic, and developing solutions, and pointing you directly to the answers you seek!

Yes, it’s true. Twitter is a sentient being…

How do I know? Today I was wondering how to find a resource for translating my marketing materials into Chinese and lo and behold, I got answers!

The living breathing thinking computer on my desktop used the Twitter Brain to even ask me clarifying questions that made sense. I told it that I wanted the Chinese translation to be done in a way that the average computer user in China would not suspect was written by a Western guy (me.)

Of the 21 answers and solutions I got back were killer ideas, strategies, individuals, websites, businesses, and connections.

Do you get the power of what has happened here? Can you imagine the potential for this kind of living, dynamic brain trust - that you can access in real time - one that you build by selecting the members?

Some marketers have dismissed Twitter as a toy or a timesuck. They frame it that way because they are comparing micro-blogging to SEO, or PPC, Email or Article marketing.

These other formats have fairly clear paramaters and can be manipulated to get “traffic” - with extremely low conversion rates. A good sales conversion off natural search is in the 1% - 2% range.

Twitter is much less difficult to manipulate - as some spammers have discovered - because it is the most human of new media models. Go ahead, send 3-4 offers to your followers and see how fast you are Tweeting to yourself!

In contrast, use it right and build trust and connection in a human way and you’ll find you’ve unleashed the power to get results - sales results - so far beyond standard rates - you’ll be stunned.

Last week I got to experience this by sending my followers a message to go to a standard name squeeze page at TwitterSqueeze.com (where all they could do was optin with email) that had practically no information on it at all. There wasn’t even a “bribe” or freebie. They were merely getting on an advance notification list.

Guess what happened?

While the very best squeeze page metrics yield a 25% - 30% conversion rate - I had a full blown 87% of the people who landed on that page - enter an email address and press submit. Of these, an astonishing 80% clicked the link in the double-optin confirmation link sent out by Aweber!

Twitter is not a toy.

It has grown from 1 million users to more than 2 million in a matter of weeks, and spawned scores of new open source applications, that go instantly viral through the busy network Twitter itself.

My advice is to get involved with this new medium now, and start slowly, learning as you go. While there is plenty of help for the thousands of newbies who join each day, if you leap in an puke on this extremely savvy crowd, you’ll be labeled hard and fast, and miss a tremendous opportunity.

Rick Butts blogs about marketing strategy, is the author of 8 books, multiple software programs, audio, and video training courses. He is the creator of TwitterSqueeze.com - a satirical name for the first “how to make money on Twitter guide.

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{ 4 trackbacks }

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{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }

Web Success Diva 07.31.08 at 7:04 am

Great post from Rick. In my analytics and testing, social media focused landing/squeeze pages rock with conversions all the way through the marketing “funnel” (I hate that word, but you know what I mean). Greart info. — Maria Reyes-McDavis

Web Success Diva’s last blog post..Can Your Audience REALLY Be Reached Using Social Media Marketing?

Warren Whitlock 07.31.08 at 9:15 am

Thanks for the article.

It’s important to spread the word that Twitter is not just a another medium or a cool place to hang out with a few friends.

It is good for business and a lot of fun… but Twitter is also the best example of a true reveloution in the way we communicate, do business and connect with the world.

We may not get great DM results for long.. the trend to to shun anything that looks like marketing. In the mean time, it’s great to start making long term connections with real people.. and pick up the opt ins for old fashioned email marketing where we can.

Warren Whitlock
http://TwitterHandbook.com

JK Swopes 07.31.08 at 9:18 am

Thanks for posting this one Jack, Rick is awesome! I hope to one day rub shoulders with the likes of folks like you all….I firmly believe who you surround yourself with and learn from has a tremendous impact on you as a person.

Rick, this article is genius, and I must say…I am just starting to scratch the surface of twitter as a tool and not just a social networking toy.

Thanks

JK Swopes’s last blog post..Reader Appreciation, showing some luv.

Sharon McPherson 07.31.08 at 9:24 am

Excellent points Rick, and with Twitter’s feature that enables you to “favorite” updates, you can have your own “search directory” always available right there in your Twitter account.

I might also add that those who think Twitter is a waste of time that can’t possibly be used as a business tool, have apparently not yet realized that an update sent through Twitter with the “right” keywords can show up in Google search results within minutes.

Sharon McPherson
@SharonMcP

John Szram 07.31.08 at 9:34 am

I’m new to Twitter, I joined this month, but so far I’m extremely impressed with the level of interaction it provides with other users.

It’s a great leveller since all we’ve got are those 140 characters to express ourselves. No fancy graphics, no video, just the power of the written word. Moreover, it’s actually fun to use!

I look forward to testing those amazing conversion figures for myself!

Great article Rick, thank you.

John Szram
http://twitter.com/JohnSzram

Nick Stamoulis 07.31.08 at 4:25 pm

Twitter IS amazing..what a powerful tool but sometimes it can be very difficult to get the anwers to those questions unless you a well known blogger or personality on the web. Sometimes I ask questions only to barely get an answer back by followers but we suppose it’s a work in progress…

Nick Stamoulis’s last blog post..Will Cuil Change The Direction Of Search Engine Optimization?

Mark McCullagh 08.01.08 at 6:01 am

Thanks for the inspiring post Rick.

I have yet to begin using Twitter and now I am really looking forward to giving it a go.

I guess what’s been holding me back is the old “I can’t start using it until I research what’s it’s all about” perfectionist dilemma.

Time to jump in and get my feet wet.

Mark McCullagh’s last blog post..The Top Five Questions People Ask About Network Marketing

Rheyanna 08.01.08 at 9:24 am

Thank you for the great post. I have been on Twitter here and there. I am just starting to see the value of using Twitter.
Thank you for the great insight Rick.

Kudos to you Jack for keeping us all informed of all the ongoing changes in the Web 2.0 world.
Rheyanna

http://twitter.com/racbmm

Rheyanna’s last blog post..Finally, a TRUE Funded Proposal Prospecting System

Kaye Dennan 08.03.08 at 3:22 pm

Thanks for the info Rick. I haven’t used Twitter to any great extent but what you are saying sounds great. Will give it a good work out and look at results.

I don’t know what all us ‘newbies’ would do without you experienced guys to guide us. Guess we would spend days and weeks finding out where to go next!

Iago 08.09.08 at 8:46 pm

I have been getting several new followers every day during the last few days. I decided today NOT to just start following each and every one of them as well (quite yet) so that I can begin to get to know the ones I HAVE decided to follow. I am also fairly new in Twitter, and I have absolutely no idea how or why so many folx are suddenly twittered up to me. But it’s pretty cool. It seems like a lot of these recent followers are from Renegade Marketing, so I guess I might as well start asking pertinent questions about RM and perhaps Ann Seig’s 7 don’t-do list. But actually, right now, my Gnaural Programmable Binaural Beat Generator (http://gnaural.sourceforge.net) just slid from a nice preogrammed Alpha 9.11 down into a Delta of 3.8 Hz, and I am feeling kinda grogdjufyyaggyy … . ..

Iago’s last blog post..First Blood

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