Twitter and the #prodmgmt Community

Alicia Dixon, @specialLi1972Matt Anderson, @MattAndersonUT

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Twitter and the #prodmgmt Community

• Learn about Twitter and discover how it has become a powerful, timely, and meaningful professional development resource for product managers.

• We'll discuss how product managers use Twitter to share best practices within the profession.

• We'll be live-tweeting during the session.

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Twitter and the #prodmgmt Community

• How to follow #PCATX12 :– Go to Twitter– Enter PCATX12 in the search bar– Change from Top to All

#PCATX12

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Twitter and the #prodmgmt Community

• How to follow #PCATX12 :– Go to Twitter– Enter PCATX12 in the search bar– Change from Top to All

• When you tweet, enter #PCATX12.

#PCATX12

Twitter and the #prodmgmt Community

• How to follow #PCATX12 :– Go to Twitter– Enter PCATX12 in the search bar– Change from Top to All

• When you tweet, enter #PCATX12.• If you’re tweeting something really awesome,

also use #prodmgmt.

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Twitter and the #prodmgmt Community

• We’ll also be using http://twitterfall.com

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About Us

• Alicia Dixon• @specialLi1972• Mobile Product Mgr, INFP, HowardU Lady

Bison, BAMA Alum & Crimson Tide fan, NBMBAA, & ProductCamp DC Planning Team

• Maryland · just1morething.com

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About Us

• Matt Anderson• @MattAndersonUT• product manager and academic

librarian...interested in libraries, #prodmgmt, #prodmktg, education, #ux, & web design

• Draper, UT · mattanderson.org

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Twitter Personas

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Twitter Personas - Broadcaster

• Views Twitter as a publishing media– Used to complement blogs or other media

• Curates Timeline around a few specialty topics• Has many Followers, but follows few– Limited (if any) dialogue with others on Twitter– High number of total tweets

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Broadcaster Example

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Twitter Personas - Consumer

• Views Twitter as a source for updates on current events

• Timeline varies from single topic to numerous topics of interest

• Follows many, but has few Followers– Limited dialogue with others on Twitter– Heavy use of retweets

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Consumer Example

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Twitter Personas - Networker

• Views Twitter as a platform to build relationships & share information

• Timeline includes numerous topics of interest, current events, and personal updates

• Followers and Follows are fairly equal– Active dialogue with anyone on Timeline– High number of total tweets

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Networker Example

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#PCATX12 Question

• Q1 What sort of Twitter persona (broadcaster, consumer, or networker) are you? Why? #PCATX12

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Real Life Success Stories - Cindy

• Cindy F. Solomon, Startup Product– See #prodmgmttalk– Started as a weekly Twitter chat & grew into an

enterprise

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Real Life Success Stories - Katelyn

• Katelyn Friedson, Mixergy– See katelynfriedson.com– Tweeted her way to a job

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Twitter and #prodmgmt

• Why does Twitter work well for prodmgmt-to-prodmgmt communication?– Many tech companies tell product folks to use

Twitter for live-tweeting events– It’s really easy to use Twitter with a mobile device

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Twitter and #prodmgmt

• Why does Twitter work well for prodmgmt-to-prodmgmt communication?– Product folks tend to have less than 1000

followers, so tweeting with prodmgmt colleagues once in a while is not the burden that email is

– The perfect tweet takes less time to create than the perfect email

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#PCATX12 Question

• Q2 What percentage of your routine email communication do you think you could limit to 140 characters? #PCATX12

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Twitter Best Practices

• Reciprocate – don’t just ask for help; help other people to provide value

• Consistent presence – interact with the community on a regular basis (does not have to be every day but needs to be often enough that others get to know you)

• Ask for help – you don’t get what you don’t ask for; the community is very willing to honor legitimate and realistic requests

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Twitter Best Practices

• Interact – don’t just push content; dialogue with others about what the content means to you or explain why you disagree with a point of view

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Twitter Best Practices

• Hashtag – be sure to use #prodmgmt or #prodmktg in communications

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#prodmgmtbarjoke

Twitter Best Practices

• Supportiveness – Product is a tough career where it can feel like it's you against everyone. Another product manager's support is very valuable.

• Be a hub of communication – when you come across interesting information, share it with others

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#PCATX12 Question

• Q3 When you have a #prodmgmt crisis, who do you turn to? #PCATX12

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Twitter Best Practices

• Inclusiveness – Allow others to join in your conversation. Welcome input from those at all levels.

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Reasons to Use Twitter

• Show people your brand• Get people to read your content• Validate your ideas about #prodmgmt• Gain a support network

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Reasons to Use Twitter• Sources

– Nobles, K. (n.d.). Network Your Way to a Career with Twitter. In UNC University Career Services. Retrieved February 14, 2014, from http://careers.unc.edu/blogs/career-blog/network-your-way-career-twitter.html

– Obeidallah, D. (2013, December 22). Think before you tweet. In CNN Opinion. Retrieved February 14, 2014, from http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/05/opinion/obeidallah-tweet-pitfalls

– Silverman, R. E., & Weber, L. (2013, April 9). The New Résumé: It's 140 Characters. In The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved February 14, 2014, from http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887323820304578412741852687994?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424127887323820304578412741852687994.html

– Whitcomb, S. (n.d.). Twitter Job Search Guide. In Susan Whitcomb . Retrieved February 14, 2014, from http://www.susanwhitcomb.com/category/posts/twitter-job-search-guide

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