Twitter. Egad. Yet another tool people love to hate. From parodies of the service to “hilarious” fake bios, we can almost hear Yogi Berra saying, “it has so many people using it, no one uses it anymore.”

Yet out of a nearly blank slate, experiments reign supreme. If you’re unfamiliar with Twitter, all that matters for today is you get 140 characters, including search terms and addresses, to say your piece and send it out to the world. People get what you send…or they won’t. If they get it, they read it…or they won’t. Yet many assert profoundly high value.

One experiment creation of an online affinity group…or tribe. A notable example is UsGuys (using the searchable hashtag “#UsGuys“). Learn about them here or go here for several descriptions.

Another experiment is the Twitter Chat, a specific time and search term (aka hashtag) where people of common interest agree to share ideas, usually based on a framing post and defined, moderated Q & A. Personally, I’m intrigued by Twitter Chats because—imperfect and chaotic as they can be—I find it truly difficult to design another environment allowing any number of people to show up at one time and actually discuss a single topic.

If you’re still reading, you probably know all you need to know about Twitter basics. So the question is: What is working…and not…about Twitter for you? That is the heart of a Twitter chat today, 4/25/11 at noon Pacific, 3pm Eastern by following #UsGuysChat on Twitter. It will be moderated by Sean McGinnis (@seanmcginnis) and me (@ken_rosen). Please join us!

Questions for #UsGuysChat

  1. What IS working for you in Twitter? Where do you find value, profit, learning?
  2. What is NOT working for you? What does the platform or use of it reduce value?
  3. What suggestions can improve Twitter value to you with the CURRENT Twitter platform?
  4. How would you IMPROVE the current twitter platform?

Takeaways

  • I’d never say anyone I haven’t met should use Twitter. But I would say executives need an authentic, non-parody conversational knowledge of the tool. It might fit your business. And it might not.
  • If you want to learn more or discuss your views, join our #UsGuysChat today at noon Pacific, 3pm Eastern by following #UsGuysChat on Twitter.
  • Use the search term (hashtag) #UsGuys to “stop by” a friendly, engaging, almost 24×7 discussion group generally focused on Strategy, Branding, and Social Media