As many of you know, I am not a big fan of Twitter. The reason for this is simple, most business owners do not use it in away to boost marketing or customer engagement. Instead, they are inclined to broadcast what they thought of the movie Bruno or what they had for lunch. So, when it was reported that traffic to the Twitter site dropped sharply, I had to read on…is Twitter dying?

According to data provided to eMarketer by Nielsen, traffic to Twitter.com was down a dramatic 27.8% between September and October 2009, falling to 18.9 million unique visitors. Nielsen is the latest in a list of research firms reporting declines at Twitter.com. comScore said unique visitors were down 8.1% in October, while Compete reported a 2.1% decline. So, what does this mean? I think it means that people are getting smarter. The use of Twitter.com proper may be lower, but the use of Twitter itself is not dying at all! Users are connecting to Twitter using apps like TweetDeck and HelloTXT to update their status in one app and then upload that to several places like MySpace, Linked In and others. (Source: http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007388 )

We are all very busy. So, use these online apps to save time and expand your reach.

When used effectively these apps, can be a great way to reach out to your clients and keep them informed, up to date and some times inspired. Remember you can not expect readers to come to you… you need to deliver to them in the format that they subscribe. Superstar publisher and entrepreneur extraordinaire Dan McCarthy of NCI spoke to this topic at the Niche Digital Conference. His message was simple, tweet with a purpose and get your staff to understand how Twitter and other social media can truly engage your readers.

Driving a business with Twitter is much different than building a generic fan base with Twitter. I personally use Twitter to tell my followers about news relevant to the publishing and online industry. I tweet about 3 times per week and never about something personal like what I had for lunch, unless I had lunch with Rupert Murdoch.

So, will Twitter go away or die? No. Will users refine their habits and become more effective? Perhaps. What can you do? Sign up for Facebook, Linked in and Twitter. Then, use HelloTXT.com to update all your social media accounts. Communicate with a purpose.

Now the fun part, can you communicate using less than 140 characters?

Ryan Dohrn is the founder and CEO of Brain Swell Media. Need help with your Web site strategy? Ask for help from the internet experts at Brain Swell Media. Need some help with your online strategy? Want to make money from your Web site? Contact Ryan and the Brain Swell Media team today. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 803-867-3769.