1. Begin with the letters RT. Don’t waste valuable characters (you’ve only got 140) with preambles such as “Retweet.” 2. Give credit to the source of the tweet by using @author, where “author” is the Twitter username of the person you are referencing. Sometimes there will be multiple names attached because it’s been passed along so many times; make sure you are keeping the original source if you trim the chain of users. 3. When linking to something, shorten the URL you are referencing through a tool such as http://ow.ly or http://is.gd. 4. Use the remaining characters to explain the point of view or the link in the original tweet, preserving the spirit of what the source said. 5. Think twice before retweeting sensitive material or information that may be untrue. You don’t want to embarrass people or spread lies. 6. Think about whether what you retweet will have relevance to any of your followers before posting. And avoid spam — it’s all over the Web.

Read the rest on:  http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/06/23/why.retweet.twitter/index.html

The internet is an invaluable resource for today’s businessman and customer. The businessman can project his product, his service to the consumer. The consumer can easily find products and services not only in their area, but globally that would not have been previously found. Businesses can blossom without a location or a staff. All that is needed is an idea, management and a way to be found. You’ve covered the idea, and surely the management. You crave to be found. There are of course many ways to promote your website and services. The internet is more interconnected than ever, and taking advantage of that is simple. Social networking is a phrase often tossed around that can help you out. It is not good enough to have a website anymore; you must be active on various social networks such as Twitter, Facebook, and Hub pages. These sites will allow customers to interact with you on a daily basis. With Twitter, you can update your clients regularly, whether it’s press releases, updates, or even daily tips. Daily tips are a great way to get customers to keep coming back. It will also allow users to explore what else you have to offer, and leave a positive opinion in his mind of your services. With exploration, the user will be able to find services they never expected or knew you had. Also it will allow the user to come back if he needs further products or services. Daily tips will also show the quality of your services and products. If the user finds them helpful, they will surely come back for more. Facebook is a great way of making business connections on a casual and personal basis. Conversations are built with your peers in the industry, as well as partnerships can be formed. It is a great way to network yourself, to find new experts that you can combine your talents with it. It is also a great way to slip your business in and allow others to learn about it. Customers can also ask you questions on a quick and more personal level. It is also a great way to establish a question and answer section. Facebook also has the ability to create “fan pages” in which individuals can support a certain idea. This is also an excellent of gaining support from the masses, and allowing them to display it. These fan pages can work for your business. Displayed support will attract more people to become curious to what you offer. Fan pages also have the ability to send out updates to all fans, as well as create question and answer sections and contact information. Along with this social networking, it is important to work in several mediums. Videos allow people to gain information quickly and with many ways to grab the attention of the viewer. Information will be absorbed through sound and images. Facebook has a quick and easy way to create videos. Other tools, such as Youtube are ways to spread word of your website. Often videos are spread virally, as users pass them directly to each other, with a high recommendation. StumbleUpon is a toolbar that allows users to recommend websites to other users directly or indirectly. Users click through websites, and yours could be one of them. Through this medium, you will become part of the viral marketing movement that is swiping the internet.