Twitter + Interview = Twitterview
A Twitterview is a creative use of social media in which a person uses Twitter to interview someone through a question and answer format.
Just last week, Lori Sailiata, of Hawaii Content Marketing (HICM) asked me to do a Twitterview with her to talk about my latest release- Tummy Monster, a picture eBook by MeeGenius.
A Twitterview? I've never done that before. My friend Amy Pabalan offered to sit with me and show me how it's done. Here's how it works:
1) Sign in to TweetChat.
2) Log in with your Twitter account. You'll need to authorizeTweetChat to use your Twitter account.
3) Choose a hashtag to follow (A hashtag identifies specific topics). In my case it was #HICM.
4) The site will direct you to a TweetChat room. You can now start following or chatting away.
The advantage of TwitterChat is that it isolates your feed to only the topic or hastag you choose. This way you can follow the discussion without the distractions of other feeds. Another advantage of using TwitterChat is that you don't have to enter the hashtag every time you write your message. It is automatically added. If you are messaging via Twitter, you have to manually type in your hashtag to make sure your followers can follow the particular discussion or topic. Followers can also read the interview at a later time by following the hashtag either on Twitter or TweetChat.
My Experience on Twitterview
Being that this was my first Twitterview, I wanted to make sure I was ready with my links and that I had computer back up in case anything went wrong. To triple secure my experience, I had Amy sit with me through the interview in case I ran into problems.
Well, with my laptop and iPad going simultaneously, you'd think it would be a smooth process. Nope. My faulty laptop decided to shut down in the middle of my Twitterview. I didn't know why but later realized that my laptop just had completed a virus scan and shutdown automatically. Thank goodness I have my iPad too, I thought. Well, turns out that my feeds weren't visible to the public so my iPad didn't do me any good anyway. The problem? Somehow my Twitter feeds were "protected."
Lori immediately identified the problem and Amy directed me to the source. So when you are doing a TwitterChat make sure you do the following:
1) Go to Settings
2) Click on Security and Privacy
3) Under Privacy, make sure to uncheck "Protect my Tweets"
4) Save the setting
About 20 minutes later, the Twitterview was on. The questions rolled in. It gave me a rush trying to answer the questions quickly as possible. The challenge? Responding in under 140 characters!
Overall, it was a fun and thrilling experience to take part in this concept. In an era of technology and time pressure, Twitterview is the way to go.
Happy TweetChatting!
~Romelle aka HerStory2 Please note: My entire Twitterview will be made available for easier viewing via Storify. More on how that works later (as soon as Amy puts it together and shows me how it's done).
COOL!
ReplyDeleteSome day you'll be doing a Twitterview!
DeleteYou are brave to juggle so much new technology and software at once. Bravo Romelle! And congrats on TUMMY MONSTER!
ReplyDeleteHa-ha! I must be because I'm not really techie, but I decided to jump right in because I know this is our future. I wanted to get my feet wet early on.
DeleteThanks for sharing Romelle! This is new to me. I think my biggest concern with this would be authorizing TweetChat. It seems like a lot of privileges to be giving a program. I'd need to research this better. Did you run across any problems? Maybe, I'm just too cautious about things like this. Way to forge ahead!
ReplyDeleteI understand your concern. Yes, I was weary of that too. I never like "authorizing" anything. But I figured, I don't have any important info. on Twitter. No, I didn't run into any problems, so far. The alternate way would be to NOT go to TweeChat and just follow via hashtag on Twitter. That way you don't have to authorize anyone to do something you don't want them to do.
DeleteI hear what Hannah is saying...although I've often 'authorized' various programs in this way...perhaps not so intelligent of me.:)
ReplyDeleteGood for you, Romelle...it's hard to venture into these unknown waters. I actually did a TwitterChat with Social Moms earlier this year...they were helping to launch some Disney Peter Pan item...it was amazing how many tweets appeared in my Twitter feed...all with the hashtag they had allocated to the conversation. I found it hard to follow...there were HUNDREDS within seconds...I did click on a few to respond and those did follow me back...but I can see tat this might be a great interactive tool for an author and a group of fans.
If others use the same hashtag for different reasons, I do see that as a problem. And even if I didn't have many following my Twitterview, I was overwhelmed for even the few questions that were thrown at me at once. So I can see how HUNDREDS within seconds would be confusing. I can't imagine being in your shoes, Vivian. But it looks like you got good exposure. It was good to get my feet wet. It was an interesting experience.
DeleteSo high-tech! I'll be interested in reading your twitter interview! Let us know when it's available.
ReplyDeleteHere's the Twitterview on Storify. It makes it easy to follow the thread. https://storify.com/LaraBrittWrites/hicm-author-twitterview-romelle-broas-guittap
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing all the details on how this works! I keep saying I'm going to join one, but they always seem to be when I'm busy burning somehting on the stove or some kid is climbing on me...
ReplyDelete