Twitter Marketing: An Hour a Day by Hollis Thomases, A review by Jeremy Neas

This book was certainly the most interactive books I’ve ever read; even more so than those ‘Choose your Own Adventure Series’ books that I will never actually admit to purchasing. The medium in which the author made her book available played a huge role in my enjoyment of the material. I was able to purchase her book through the Kindle store on Amazon.com and download it onto my iPhone. This made it extremely convenient to interact in ‘real-time’ with the various website links that Thomases provided in her data references. This ‘interactive’ theme carried its way throughout the entire book, enabling me to be ‘just click away’ from relevant blogs, stories, feeds and references.

Another example of Thomases interactive theme was the placement of personalized handles for specific references (i.e. “Jeremy Neas (@Jeremy_Neas) sites in his review…”). By integrating this feature, she enabled the reader to conveniently add new tweeps to their follower list, as well as stay up-to-date on the more interesting people and companies mentioned throughout the text.
Though the intended audience for this book is mainly companies looking to use Twitter as another form of e-commerce, the average ‘Twitterer’ can easily find value in it as well. The layout is well thought-out and easy to navigate through. It initially dives into the history and the basics of what Twitter is, but quickly moves to the common assumptions about Twitter and then gravitates towards the power Twitter can provide for anyone looking to advertise/expand/grow.

She starts by stating “What Twitter Is Not:

1. Twitter isn’t accessible only on the Web
2. Twitter isn’t the “new” email or cell phone
3. Twitter isn’t a form of instant messenger
4. Twitter isn’t a micro version of your blog
5. Twitter isn’t private by any means
6. Twitter isn’t a replacement for Facebook, Myspace, or other social networks.
7. Twitter isn’t a competition.”

Twitter creates value because it helps with:

1. Keeping in touch
2. Making new friends
3. Connecting with Like-Minded People
4. Voyeurism
5. Event Planning
6. Activism
7. Entertainment
8. Getting a company’s latest tweets
9. Marketing and business Development
10. Monitoring Brands and Reputations
11. Keeping up with the Latest News

“The most successful people and brands using Twitter are the ones who treat Twitter as an ongoing, open, and thought-provoking conversation rather than just a broadcast medium.”

Thomases provides in-depth look on exactly who is on Twitter and their motives, as well as the demographics of the users and what you are may come across when you start your venture forth. I went into this book with an open mind, erasing my previous knowledge about Twitter in order to use this book as a guide. Doing this definitely gave me a newfound appreciation for everything Twitter offers and made my reading experience that much more enjoyable.

Textbook to Reference Guide

The book makes a big transition after chapter three which ends part one. It transitions from a text book to a reference guide. Part two goes hour to hour, day to day, and week to week about how to transition from a Twitter “rookie” to a serious power user. I consider it a reference guide because the author understands she doesn’t have all the tools. She does understand where all those tools are, what they are, and the benefits of each one. Additionally, she does a very good job at clearing out the noise of the web and consolidating all the necessary requirements that a business (or person) must have to extrapolate the functionality and usefulness of Twitter. That is what makes this book so powerful.

My live presentation will walk through the reference piece of the book, and what it takes for a business to become a major player in this arena.

For now, enjoy my podcast...