Mention Twitter in conversation and you’ll likely hear responses that range from “Twitter is just another fad I don’t have time for” all the way to “Twitter is absolutely essential to my business.”  Some people will tell you that everyone has to be on Twitter.  The reality is that not everyone needs to be on Twitter.  If you want to join purely to talk to friends and have fun on a personal level, go for it.  If you are considering Twitter from a business perspective, consider these questions: 

1. Are your customers on Twitter?
2. Are your potential customers on Twitter?
3. Do you have good content to share?
4. Are experts in your industry on Twitter?
5. Are any members of the media that cover your industry on Twitter?
6. Is anyone (including any of your employees) tweeting about your company?
7. Are you willing to make a long-term time commitment?  (Note:  not a large time commitment, but a long-term time commitment)?
8. Are you willing to learn from, converse with, and share with your followers?
9. Can you make a two or three 5-10 minute appointments with Twitter each day?
10. Do you want to know what others are saying about you or your company on Twitter?

If you answered “yes” to most of these questions, then your answer to “Do I have to tweet?” is probably also yes.  If you answered “no” to most, then Twitter may not be a good channel for your business.

Twitter appears deceptively easy to jump in to, asking the simple question “What’s happening?”  The reality is that it takes time, effort, and strategy to build good relationships on Twitter and become someone that people want to follow.  Are you willing to consistently put forth the time and effort required to develop a good strategy, implement it, and continually refine it?

[Image courtesy of cobrasoft]