I'm Graeme Duckett

So there’s another article I wanted to post here because it also reflects something I have been talking to a lot of people about lately: the importance of networking tools, Twitter in particular, in our creative industry.

What I have been trying to stress is that Twitter is used in two ways. It’s used by people that post useless things about their day to do life that, as many say, no one cares about. That’s a given, and why Twitter has been given a lame vibe in some cases. On the other hand, Twitter is used in another way. It is used in many industries, but mainly the creative industry to do things like network, market, learn, share ideas, collaborate, promote, etc. The list really goes on. The only key really is finding the right people to follow. That is what will make or break your Twitter experience, and that is completely in your hands. You need to make Twitter what you want it to be. I find that the majority of non Twitter users only hear about Twitter from the wrong people, and are therefore given a false sense of how it can really be used.

Now on to the article. I came across 7 Reasons Why All Designers Should Use Twitter today, and it was bang on. Manda over at Creative Opera has done a great job of summarizing the key ways Twitter can be used to your advantage, after signing up only a week ago. Every part of this article touches on a key reason to use Twitter, and should be read from start to finish.

Now for anyone that is a Twitter hater and sees it as just another social brainwash that turns people into useless status updating conformists, (sorry, a bit heavy) I urge you to try and become more informed. Think outside the box and aproach Twitter as the networking tool that it is, and you might find that even you, with the right approach, can create your own success as so many other professionals have before you.

// Update – I have also come across a second very good article by pro blogger David Risley called Is Twitter Useless and Over-Hyped?. It is a bit of a longer read then the first, but valid nonetheless. It is important because it talks mostly about Twitter being a tool, and that it’s not Twitter’s fault if you’re not using it correctly. Give it a read and help the educating movement!