Presentation for Marketing Camp San Francisco #MCSF March 30, 2013. Listen to webinar http://bit.ly/ZSpvjo

1. © Cindy F. Solomon
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The Power Of Twitter Chats
For Cultivating Knowledge Communities &
Customer Engagement
Cindy F. Solomon
Founder,
Global Product Management Talk

2. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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• Founder, Global Product Management Talk. Organizer Startup
Product Talks. Producer Startup Product Summit
• Pioneering Socratic format for Twitter Chats to cultivate global
knowledge communities
• Instigating Startup Product movement for product excellence
through cross-discipline collaboration and holistic product
perspective.
www.linkedin.com/in/cfsolomon/
Cindy F. Solomon

3. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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The Global Product Management Talk
• started with a tweet that traveled 7400 miles
• Discovered difficult to tweet & discuss complex
issues
• Started recording thought leaders via Skype
• Became top 10 business podcast on BlogTalkRadio
• 2 years, 100 podcasts, 20,000 listeners/week
• Spawned in-person community >1100 members
• And all day event, Startup Product Summit

4. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Why Twitter?
Twitter is a broadcast medium with
no barrier to entry - anyone who is
tuning into Twitter can pick up
anyone else's signal.

5. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Jonathan Zittrain said…
“The qualities that make
Twitter seem inane and half-
baked are what make it so
powerful.”
Jonathan Zittrain, Harvard
Law professor, Internet
Expert, Author

6. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Twitter is Fastest Growing Social
Network
•Twitter now has around half a billion registered
profiles, with over 100 million in the USA alone?
•While the USA leads the way, Twitter is also massively
popular in Brazil, Japan and the UK
Media Bistro All Twitter
http://bit.ly/YKbjwc

7. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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8. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Global Web Index
http://bit.ly/XsEyVm

9. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Power of Twitter
for Group Discussions
Enables a parallel threaded
discussion where many
people can talk at once

10. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Power of Twitter
for Group Discussions
Read what people are
tweeting

11. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Power of Twitter
for Group Discussions
Watch the conversation
without participating and
still get value

12. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Power of Twitter
for Group Discussions
Identify and reach out to
others who have similar
interests

13. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Power of Twitter
for Group Discussions
Respond to a conversation
after it has occurred

14. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Power of Twitter
for Group Discussions
Search by topic
Directly engage with the
originator of the content

15. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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What is a Twitter Chat?
A Parallel threaded
discussion where many
people can talk at once

16. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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What is a Twitter Chat?
• Gatherings of people on
Twitter to discuss pretty much
anything that interests them
• Identified with a #hashtag

17. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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What is a Hash Tag?
user-created standard for
identifying tweets
belonging to a topic

18. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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What is a Hash Tag?
Protocol is pound sign
preceding designated
abbreviation for chat
#prodmgmttalk #MCSF

19. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Why use a Hash Tag?
• to participate in the chat, all of your tweets
should include the appropriate tag
•If you tweet without it, your tweets are going to
fall on mostly deaf ears and fragment the
conversation.
•You want people to see that you are participating
in this chat and that you’re interested in whatever
the topic is.

20. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Recommended Tweet Format
“Please Retweet: [article
name] [by @author]
[shortened URL] [optional
comment] [#hashtag]”.

21. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Benefits of Twitter Chats
• network
• share knowledge
• increase their influence
• contribute value

22. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Twitter Chat Formats
•Twitter Party
•Posted topic
•Hosted meetings
•Add-ons to another event
•Socratic method format

23. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
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Twitter Chat Format
Twitter Party
•No agenda
•No hosts
•Casual meetings of people with
shared interests
•May be spontaneous
•Big Brands use these with incentives,
give aways, rewards to generate buzz

24. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Twitter Chat Format
Posted Topic
•Everyone tweets whatever they
want to share about the topic
•May not be a time frame
•Used for crowdsourcing for blog
posts, books, topic popularity

25. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Twitter Chat Format
Hosted Meetings
• Posted timeframe
• Hosted speaker
• Participants ask questions of the
speaker
• Speaker may not be present or
tweeting in real time

26. © Cindy F. Solomon
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Twitter Chat Format
Town Hall
Often Added-on to another event
•such as a TV show, sports event, or press
junket
• may include live streamed speaker
• participants comment on what they are
watching
• tweet stream may be broadcast

27. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Twitter Chat Format
Socratic Method
• background content available prior to event
• pre-posted questions provided by speaker for participants
to answer
• participants may answer on their social platform of choice
• time boxed for live discussion
• twitter conversation occurs before, during and after
• enables capturing of educational material with
conversation for on-demand viewing and consumption post
event

28. © Cindy F. Solomon
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What is a Socratic Discussion?
•based on the way Socrates taught students in Ancient Greece
•students encouraged and expected to share their thoughts
regarding both the written and the spoken word
• Socrates students were provided materials to read, analyze and
evaluate prior to class so they could prepare to contribute to the
discussion.
•During class, Socrates would often remain silent to allow the
students to share their knowledge.

29. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
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Twitter Chat Format
Socratic Method
Global Product Management Talk
models the Socratic method with
written and spoken word
• pre-posted questions
• background materials pack.li
• twitter transcript slideshare.net
• audio podcast blogtalkradio.com

30. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Participate In Twitter Chats
1.Show Up Prepared
2.Participate!
3.Follow Up
4.Find Your Tool
http://bit.ly/12170fV

31. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
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Twitter Chat Best Practices
1.Strategize
2.Plan
3.Promote
4.Produce
5.Lean Content Marketing
http://bit.ly/11ZuMfZ

32. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
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Twitter Chat Best Practices
Questions
http://bit.ly/11ZuMfZ
• What is the purpose of the Twitter Chat?
• Who is the desired audience?
• What is your goal for producing the Chat?
• What are your success metrics?
• What is your road map?

33. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
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Twitter Chat Best Practices
Strategize
• Recognize that a regular Twitter Chat is an
event requiring human participation.
• Even though its digital on an open platform, it
still requires similar planning, thinking, and
structure as any other regularly scheduled
event to guarantee its success.
http://bit.ly/11ZuMfZ

34. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
# STARTUPPRODUCT
Twitter Chat Best Practices
Strategize
• Think strategically
• Post your thinking on a webpage
• Start with a wiki or blog posting
• Identify a relevant name that ideally works
well for a hashtag and domain name
http://bit.ly/11ZuMfZ

35. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
# STARTUPPRODUCT
Twitter Chat Best Practices
Plan
Break down your event planning into 3 parts
a) Before the event begins (prior to launch and
between regularly scheduled events)
b) During the event
c) After the event http://bit.ly/11ZuMfZ

36. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
# STARTUPPRODUCT
Twitter Chat Best Practices
Planning
Prior to Twitter Chat Launch
1. Topic:
2. Team:
3. Audience:
4. Schedule:
5. Format:
http://bit.ly/11ZuMfZ

37. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
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Twitter Chat Best Practices
Promote
Prior to Twitter Chat
Launch a press release & promote across
channels
Get sponsors, speakers
Ask everyone to retweet, participate, comment
Blog

38. © Cindy F. Solomon
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Twitter Chat: Socratic Method
background materials pack.li

39. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
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Twitter Chat: Socratic Method
http://bit.ly/mXN6fl

40. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
# STARTUPPRODUCT
Twitter Chat Best Practices
During Event
Assign official tweeter – train & orient
Welcome everyone coming in – send them
background info
Keep conversation going forward
Use pre-written tweets to orient & welcome
Be friendly, candid, fun, appreciative, humble!

41. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
# STARTUPPRODUCT
More Information
http://bit.ly/11ZuMfZ
Global Product Management Talk
Frequently Asked Questions
Pre-written tweets
What is #ProdMgmtTalk? http://bit.ly/AlLEbN
Join Global Product Management Talk! http://linkd.in/jRmwRx
Never participated in a twitter chat? FAQs http://t.co/Qr2s1o0O
Learn How to participate in Socratic Twitter Talk via Global Prod Mgmt Talk
http://t.co/nV2DZflo
Learn about Tweeting Best Practices and Twitter Talk FAQs http://t.co/8WzU7LSf

42. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
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Twitter Chat Best Practices
Post Event
Following Each Twitter Chat
Employ Lean Content Marketing principles and
Product Marketing Best Practices
1. Ask for and respond to audience feedback
2. Track and measure participation
3. Post and repackage content across mediums
beyond Twitter

43. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
# STARTUPPRODUCT
Twitter Chat Best Practices
Post Event
Following Each Twitter Chat
1. Capture tweets on storify http://storify.com/prodmgmttalk/
2. Post transcript to slideshare
3. Post and repackage content across mediums
beyond Twitter scoop.it
4. Blog
5. Reach out to local participants & meetup!

44. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
@STARTUPPRODUCT
# STARTUPPRODUCT
Startup Product Talks
http://www.meetup.com/StartupProductTalks/

45. © Cindy F. Solomon
cfsolomon@gmail.com
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Archives
http://www.blogtalkradio.com
/prodmgmttalk
Listen on iTunes
http://bit.ly/silH98
Android App
http://bit.ly/tEeWFx
RSS http://bit.ly/IyCnJD
Twitter @ProdMgmtTalk
Sponsor: http://bit.ly/gF0Tt3
Speak: http://bit.ly/f4xAIW
Contact:
info@prodmgmttalk.com

46. © Cindy F. Solomon
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Global Product Management Talk
Archive of tweets from product camps worldwide
http://www.prodmgmttalk.com

47. © Cindy F. Solomon
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Thank you!
Join weekly on Global Product Management Talk
#ProdMgmtTalk and bi-monthly #StartupProduct
@cindyfsolomon
@prodmgmttalk
@startupproduct
Please connect with me on linkedin!
www.linkedin.com/in/cfsolomon/