Why I have changed my mind about Twitter (and you should too!)

I like to keep most things simple.  My dad had been hounding me for well over a year to make the move to Twitter.  I kept saying NO...I mean, yet another site you have to go check and keep track of passwords and just stuff in general?  No-uh....didn't want to do it.  He had already pulled me kicking and screaming to Facebook...and at the time, that was enough for me!  Well, I have changed my mind...and you might be surprised why.

My first wall of resistance with Twitter, other than what I mentioned above was being overseas with a prepaid phone where you pay for EACH text message.  I knew messages come in every few seconds if you follow more than a dozen different people or "Twitter feeds", so obviously cost prohibitive if you wanted to monkey around with this thing.  The second thing I thought of was why would I want to read the musings of some random people around the world...stuff that I would never need...mostly....either that or more stuff to waste my time over....reading and musing over!

Well, a few weeks ago, we were scheduled to fly out of Brussels Airport back to the US...and then the big snow of 2010 hit Europe, paralyzing half a dozen countries and wreaking all kinds of havoc.  I signed on the usual news channels online...news was slow incoming, and if I hadn't had Facebook and a local Facebook group I joined (SHAPE Families), I wouldn't have known what the roads were like nearby.  But really....my next biggest concern was our flight when I heard on the Belgian news that flight operations were being affected by this monstrous storm....but no real details, especially in the days coming....in the days we were supposed to make our way by train up to Brussels

So, I signed up for Twitter and immediately found @eurocontrol and @BrusselsAirport to follow and WOW...up-to-the-second information on exactly what was going on at not just our Brussels Airport but all the European airports...not just text updates but uploaded photos and real-time information only seconds old.  Twitter was also the first place I read about the shortage of icing fluid because there was a ban on all heavy trucks in Belgium and northern France, where those shipments were coming from.  I was also able to see and hear which flights were leaving and what the terminal looked like.  I even was able to find some local Twitterers here in Belgium and found our current road conditions on our local highways and other local delays, as well as what trains were running behind....the news sites didn't pick up that information til later...much later, and posted their information then.  It's also when I realized I bet some of these news outlets actually follow Twitter to get their most current news.  You just have to know who to follow to make it work for you.

So my advice to you:

• Find some Twitterers or maybe it's Tweeters who talk about the things that interest you...and sign up for those feeds only.  
• If you've got a contract phone with FREE text messaging, then link those feeds to your phone.  If not, you're going to have to rely on checking Twitter on your computer.
• Many stores post short specials and discounts ONLY on their Twitter feeds, and if you monitor your favorite store there, you can catch the discount before it disappears.  I just saw one that was good for one day only, and the info was ONLY posted on the store's Twitter feed....hmmmm.
• Connect with your favorite celebrity...I'm not saying I'm a big fan of Ivanka Trump, but it was neat hearing about her adventures on her two day backpacking journey in Patagonia (and I was astounded she had coverage there!).
• If you have a favorite blogger you can't wait to read, many who use Twitter will announce on their Twitter feed when they have a new blogpost up.  It beats having to check your newsfeeds through RSS or visiting each blog, one by one.
• You can also get last minute traffic updates as well as weather, as it happens...search for the ones in your area.
• If you have a topic you are interested in, you can also look at trends and follow those to get the latest information.  Each trend (look at your mainpage on Twitter), has a "#" sign to signify that it's a trend.  I see people following the Royal Wedding plans and others talking about their 2011 New Year's resolutions.

Do you use Twitter?  If so, why do you think it's useful?  If not, why are you staying away?  Be honest:-)