USA Today reports on Banks Using Twitter

USA Today points out that banks are jumping on the Twitter bandwagon. USA Today states that Wells Fargo and Bank of America have begun to "tweet” with customers about everything from bank fees to product features. Discover Financial, American Express and Citigroup have launched Facebook or MySpace pages. Some banks even put marketing videos on YouTube.

John Carney on Businessinsider.com linking to the USA Today article feels banks using Twitter is the "same corporate nonsense in a new medium."

Personally, I have to disagree with John. I think banks using Twitter is a great way to communicate. I've seen hundreds of posts where consumers have mentioned being able to resolve issues communicating with bank representatives via Twitter.

If used appropriately, Twitter may help improve the customer service experience.

Top 100 Brands on Twitter

Here is a list of the top 100 brands on Twitter. Enjoy!

Top Twitter Tools in 2009

Here is a sweet list of the top Twitter tools to look at in 2009.

Let me know if you've tried any of these out. Also, what do you think of them?

Has Anyone Tried ReTweet Radar?

Steve Rubel provides some insight about ReTweet Radar. This looks like a unique tool to help assess which topics are being discussed actively on Twitter. I'll have to check this out.

Twitter passes on Facebook offer

Facebook offered a rumored $500 million in stock (based on its $15 billion valuation) to acquire Twitter, reports Kara Swisher of All Things Digital. No one went on the record to discuss the deal, but sources indicate Twitter felt it was undervalued in the deal -- especially considering the high valuation the deal put on Facebook. From the standpoint of Facebook, the acquisition of SMS-based Twitter meant taking on potentially high messaging fees from mobile providers.

You can read more about this on Allthings.

Twitter Without the Jargon

I came across an interesting video on YouTube demonstrating how to utilize Twitter in everyday normal life. Overall, I think the video highlights some of Twitter's strengths. However, I feel Twitter can be improved if people can go beyond simply anwering, "What are you doing?" Consumers need to be able to state what they are doing, discuss how they feel and provide opinions. For instance, someone watching a movie could Twitter, "I am watching a great movie and I highly recommend others to check it out!" Additionally, I'd like to be able to state what I plan to do in the future (both short term and long term). Twitter has all the right ingredients to become something big. However, it still has a ways to go.

Also, I think Twitter needs to find a way to allow companies to utilize its tool. As a marketer, Twitter would be a great tool to inform potential customers about new products and services being developed and/or offered. I would love to Twitter information about my companies products and services knowing thousands of followers could view them. The presidential candidate John McCain currently utilizes Twitter. I can envision a day when marketers will be able to as well.

Anyways, you can follow me at Twitter by searching for rcoyle85 at Twitter. Also, please let me know if you use Twitter now or plan to use it in the future.