LPM Tip

Chatter box: Moderating conversations in Twitter

The search for meaningful conversation on Twitter can seem a fool's errand. The constant and driving stream of content appears as blips (broadcast or received) that just as quickly disappear.

Twitter's basic pages offer little in the way of managing the deluge of information that will overflow you once you fill out your profile and collection of followers. And, we've talked previously, in this space, about methods for archiving information and means for creating content silos.

While Twitter clients, like HootSuite, provide conversation views, what you've said, and what's been said back to you, is still more likely than not to become lost in the ether.

But, there is a way to effectively engage the explosively popular Twitter platform to manage a broad-based conversation, featuring multiple users, while also drowning out all of that unrelated noise. TweetChat turns Twitter into an old-style chat room for you and your invited companions. TweetChat aggregates conversations by hashtag. Enter the hashtag you want to follow/converse about, sign into the TweetChat website using your Twitter account information, and you're in. Once you're in, TweetChat will stream only those tweets referencing the hashtag you selected. You'll also have a message box to add to the conversation yourself; and, TweetChat will even pre-fill your hashtag, automatically. Perhaps best of all, TweetChat is free to use. You can follow them here.

**Credit for alerting me to the power of TweetChat goes absolutely and irredeemably to Natalie Huha, of JustEngage, and tweeting @legalerswelcome, who asked me, some weeks back, to guest host one of her fantastic #Legalchat Friday sessions. You can follow #Legalchat here.**

Tip courtesy of Jared Correia, Law Office Management Assistance Program.

Published December 1, 2011

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