I first heard of Twitter about 3 weeks ago and was immediately intrigued. Twitter is a tool whose original use was a way to keep in touch with contacts en mass and at the same time.  Groups are formed by signing up at http://twitter.com/ and a person is either “followed” or is “following” someone.  If you are followed, any messages you send out will be received by members of the group that are following you. The messages are limited to 140 characters, however this is just enough to keep contacts updated on what is going on at any given moment. In terms of Social Networking, this is an excellent tool to get in touch and stay in touch with a large group at the same time via cell phone, IM or email.

Could this new media format and technology have other uses as well? Companies such as Woot.com, Amazon.com and Dell Outlet think it does. These companies are sending messages about hot deals that require quick response times. This is a way to immediately reach customers FREE of charge with hot deals or fire sales. I signed up for woot.com and Dell Outlet and receive deals via my cell phone. As an example from Woot.com I received “woot: $49.99: SanDisk Sansa e260 4GB Media Player http://www.woot.com/”

Dell uses Twitter not only for sales, but as a PR tool as well. In one particular message they released information about an award they received as well as sending out a link to a survey to find out more information from clients to better serve their needs:
“DellOutlet: Cool! We were honored with an award by http://sncr.org/. Thanks for the support. Pls let us know what you want > of: http://tinyurl.com/25db33”

In this survey Dell Outlet asked questions like “What kind of Tweets do you want to see from Dell Outlet?”

• Twitter-only discounts

• Other Dell Outlet offers & promotions (not Twitter exclusive)

• Dell Outlet new product arrivals

• A way to provide feedback on design/usability of Dell Outlet web site changes

• Other (please write suggestions in comment box below)

This quick delivery of the message and the ability to quickly turn around a response could be a very valuable marketing tool for retailers.

Could this also work with the launch of a new product? In combination with other media outlets, this would be an effective and efficient means to communicate the release of a new product to a large audience all at the same time and very quickly.  Would this be something that could be used in your company? Is Twitter the next big thing? What other uses could it have for e-commerce?

For more information go to: http://twitter.com/ or http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter

Yesterday, comScore and the Kelsey Group released a study measuring the effect of online consumer-generated reviews on offline purchases. Findings showed that user-generated content is fast becoming a very influential source for driving purchase decisions. Highlights of the report include:

1. 1 in 4 internet users consulted an online consumer-generated review before making a purchase
2. 75% of users who consulted a review indicated that it had a significant impact on their decision to purchase
3. Majority indicated that consumer-generated reviews had more influence than professionally-generated reviews
4. Not only are users consulting reviews, but they also indicate that they are willing to spend more for a product/service if highly rated by fellow users.

While this report comes from the consumer market, it absolutely has application within the IT market where purchases are made in a group setting and are highly peer-driven. Whether it is reviews, forums, blogs, or wikis, users no longer rely on only vendors and publishers to find all of the information they need. If you have been hesitant to participate or market within this environment, these findings should give you confidence in the opportunity that exists. Now is the time to make the commitment to user-generated content. Your customers are already there.