Allow me to preface this blog by stating that I am a raving fan of Twitter. Through the power of the 140-character tweets, I have found new partners, clients, opportunities, vendors, trends and information. I have connected with people across the globe and right down my street whom I may not have otherwise communicated with. I am able to stay on top of the news and information that I care about and interact through my personal “following” selections. At the end of the day, because of Twitter, I am better informed, better connected, and more visible online.

So why does Twitter have such a bad reputation? The simple answer is that those who do not get behind the tool truly don’t understand its use and power. The other answers lie in the excuses reasons that people have recently told me as to why they do not like Twitter:

• “I don’t care about the delicious bagel you’re eating for breakfast.” Really? You have no interest in hearing about the best place in San Diego to get a bagel? Fair enough. Then skip over those 140 characters and focus on all of the other relevant content that’s accessible to you in real time right this second.
• “I don’t want everyone to know where I am at every second of the day.” Ok, then don’t tweet about where you are every second of the day. Tweet about what you want, when you want.
• “Who actually has time to ‘tweet’ all day?” (Insert sarcastic tone on the word ‘tweet’ – it’s my segue way to the next bullet point anyway). Use applications. Take a look at Hootsuite (my personal favorite) or SocialOomph. Or read one of our recent Bolt PR blogs about social media applications. And by the way, you don’t have to tweet every second of the day to be connected. You just have to be on Twitter and connect. There’s a difference.
• “How can I take something called ‘Twitter’ seriously for my business?” I don’t have an answer for you other than millions of other people (105+ million registered users, in fact) find the name satisfactory enough that they’re engaging online right now… including some of your customers and prospects. It’s the name and it’s not going to change anytime soon, so get on it or get left behind.

And there you have my Friday musings. I’d love to hear your reasons for loving Twitter, or other reasons you’ve heard why some people do not. Just leave your comments below. I look forward to tweeting with you soon!

Caroline and I (Anne) had the pleasure of speaking about some basic online PR strategies for this month’s “Third Thursdays at Kravet San Diego” event this morning to a wonderful group of interior designers.  We discussed branding, how to use LinkedIn as a visibility tool, and creating online press releases to provide easy-to-implement strategies for increased exposure. We have posted our powerpoint presentation below as a resource for event attendees and anyone else looking to create awareness for their business.

Please feel free to leave a comment or email us with any questions.

From meeting Twitter friends in real life (IRL) and making new ones, to walking the red carpet and posing for the cameras, the Bolt PR team had a blast at the #InfluenceSD Awards Show on Wednesday night.  Thank you to all who voted for us to win Agency of the Year; we are proud to announce that we were named Best Agency in San Diego for our use of new media. 

After a very full work day – to do lists don’t pause for paparazzi – we checked into the Keating Hotel (highly recommended!) for “hair and makeup”.  All dolled up, the Bolt ladies arrived at Anthology and checked in on Foursquare.  Chatting with best in community winner, Michelle Guerin of DiscoverSD, and Blog of the Year finalist “Adventures of a Military Family of 8”, we were unsure what to expect once we walked in the VIP doors. 

Inside the gorgeous venue, we found a table with Brad and Stephen, New Brew Thursday, bloggers and Blog of the Year finalists.  Then Krys Justice set the tempo for the evening with his performance and the show began…

Here are the winners: 

Check out the view from stage. The audience looked gorgeous, so I couldn’t help but capture the moment with a TwitPic as we accepted our award: http://ow.ly/i/10i4 

I must admit that I don’t envy the judges and their task of choosing the winners because all of the finalists were certainly new media champions. The good news is that all of the finalists will be moving on to nationals. #InfluenceSD co-founder Melanie Gordon announced the launch of the awards show in cities across the country in conjunction with a national show.

On behalf of the Bolt PR team, thank you so much to @melgordon and @sdmatt for  recognizing new media achievements in San Diego by creating such a fabulous awards program and show, and thanks to the judges for taking on the task of selecting the winners from such a impressive group of finalists! We were honored to be a part of it all!