Confessions of a Middle-Aged Tweeter

Posted on | May 20, 2009 | 2 Comments

Mary Ann Miller

I have a confession to make:  I am a middle-aged tweeter.

It started out innocently enough.  I was curious.  It was exotic.  I heard people talking about Twitter and felt left out.  I wanted to be cool – feel young – be part of the “in” crowd.  But I thought I was too old; after all, tweets are for kids.  And then something happened to make me realize just how out of touch I was:  members of Congress were tweeting (gasp!) during the President’s address!

So I took the first step.  I opened an account.  I thought it would just sit there for awhile, as a fallback, something to learn when I had time.  Within two days I had a follower.  And then another.  Suddenly, there was pressure.  There were people who wanted to hear what I had to say, in 140 characters or less.

I wasn’t sure what to do.  I went to the tweeters at the office and had them show me how it works.  But even then, I hesitated.  What would I tweet about?  What would be interesting?  I had to write something; people were following.  I waited a few days, then I sent my first tweet:  “Now that I have folks following me, I’d better start tweeting. Bear with me as I iron out the kinks.”

At first, it was hard to think of topics.  I set a goal of tweeting once a day.  I talked of meetings, and members, and politics.  And followers popped up, from Tempe and Chandler and San Diego.  I started following others, and began opening my Twitter account as soon as I got in the office.

Then I started recruiting, and told others about the joys of tweeting, and how easy it is.  I pointed out how their expertise would be valuable to others, and why other people would follow them.  Business tips, life/work balance, customer kudos, things they’ve learned along the way – all have value to someone.  Getting your name out, expanding your network, learning new tools – all have value to you.

The Tempe Chamber (@tempechamber) is helping me tweet.  We have a new social media training series for people like me.  From LinkedIn to Twitter to FaceBook, step by step and hands on, folks will learn how to use the new tools to grow business.  And if you want to hear what I’m doing, follow me @mamiller.

Mary Ann Miller is the President/CEO of the Tempe Chamber of Commerce

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