Nortel Buzzboard

Today the Financial Post ran this story about how Nortel is using Twitter.

[Update 10/8: Today Dan Frommer of Silicon Alley Insider had this post on Twittertise, which includes several quotes from me on our use of the service.]

It was just a few months ago that I reluctantly decided to try out Twitter.  At the time, I was intrigued by what other companies such as Dell had been able to do, but wasn’t quite sure how this new technology was going to be of real value for Nortel (and me).

Now two months later — I’m sold.  Somewhere along the way I realized that Twitter is not a new technology, it’s a new community.  And that community is talking about Nortel (and a million other things).  Since I started “listening,” there have been ~780 “tweets” that mentioned Nortel — conversations and opinions I wouldn’t have heard before.

Other people are listening to me, too.  The Nortel Twitter now also has ~120 followers and growing.  While that’s a relatively small number, it includes a decent number of bloggers, analysts and mainstream media (along with a few customers and investors I assume).

I’m trying not to just use Twitter as a way to advertise my latest Buzzboard posts.  I also use it for tid-bits that aren’t big enough for a post, or items I want to get out ASAP.  And tools like Twittertise have allowed me to track which tweets are the most popular with followers.

Along the way, I’ve used Twitter in a few surprising ways.  Others have contacted me through Twitter to tell me about broken links on nortel.com, bad stats in a posted webcast, and to wonder why their comments to a blog post hadn’t been approved.  I’ve also used Twitter to solicit advice, track breaking Nortel coverage, and had a surprising number of real conversations.

I’ve even given the Nortel Twitter home page a slick new look (at least IMO).  If you haven’t started using Twitter, try it out.  Its usefulness might surprise you.  And of course, make sure you sign up to follow the Nortel Twitter.