The best thing about Twitter is the evolution of the concept. I feel too lucky to enter the Internet Marketing world at the right time – to be able to watch that evolution.
Yes, every (even great) idea can be abused and accompanied with spam: thousands of Twitter bots spamming people by sending them public replies and adding to friends are annoying. This post is not about those.
This post is about useful Twitter bots – it’s about creative approaches to everything, trying to get value from everything that comes to our world. It lists three very different in concept automated Twitter accounts that you, as a marketer, may greatly benefit from:
1. Keyword Position Tracking (in Google): TweetedRanks (new!)
If you are on Twitter 24 hours a day, why not use the tool to get updates about your Google rankings to Twitter?
Official website: Tweeted Ranks
What the bot does: Get a daily DM with your page Google position
Instructions:
- Create a free account
- Follow the bot on Twitter
- Add your keyword, page and the checking interval
Disclaimer: The bot has been developed by me for experimental and educational purposes. The project is non-commercial, feel free to play with the tool!
2. Hot News and Trends: CNN Breaking and MSNBC Breaking
Working all day around it is easy to miss important news – let the trending topics hit your Twitter stream.
What the bots do : Never miss some important news (most of the updates can be timely covered at your blog, especially with the proper angle)
Instructions: Just follow the accounts.
!Tip: if you follow many people and are afraid of missing breaking news, use Tweetdeck, Seesmic or Hootsuite to create a separate column to filter those updates.
3. Twitter Lists Tracking: Listwatcher
Do you want to watch which Twitter lists you are being added to, do you want to discover new communities you are entering and find new friends? Exactly!
What the bot does: the bot send you a DM if someone does something with list you are member of (add, delete, rename).
Instructions: Just follow the account and wait.
4. Event Management: GCal
Do you want to manage your events and meeting right from Twitter?
Official website: Twitter Cal
What the bot does: Record events on your Google Calendar by sending a bot a DM
Instructions:
- Register an account;
- Follow the bot on Twitter
- Grant access to your Google Account (via Google auth)
- Send DMs to a Twitter bot using the following format:
d gcal meeting with fred on monday, 25th of june at 9am
Another event managing bot: Remember The Milk
