We have spent much of the first business days of 2010 discussing with our clients the strategic role of Twitter, Facebook Groups, Blogs, etc. for their businesses.

The acceptance that Twitter is now “expected” by customers who want to engage with a brand or service, and can play an important role in maintaining a dialog, is well established. Increasingly, our clients are now elevating the seriousness of Twitter, and taking a more professional approach to managing the content towards a specific marketing objective. We are helping our customers bring their Social Media components into line with their traditional media strategies, and to achieve specific business objectives.

For the St.Gallen MBA, for example, we designed a page introducing their new program brochure, providing critical dates for application, and creating a stream of information replicating the stimulating University atmosphere. A separate student Twitter page complements the formal news with a “Participants Perspective”. For our Video on Demand client, XEPTUNE, we are using their campaign character Hugo to deliver real-time information about the latest service enhancements, new film titles and special offers. In another great example, we are supporting the cause of Rare Diseases Day in Switzerland, for whom Twitter is proving to be a great way to spread the word, raise awareness and connect a community.

For those who remain skeptical of the long-term viability of Twitter this recent piece in the NY Times addresses this point nicely: NY Times

There are two main arguments for the long-term viability. The first is the idea that the short message format is an integral part of internet communication:

“The history of the Internet suggests that there have been cool Web sites that go in and out of fashion and then there have been open standards that become plumbing,” said Steven Johnson, the author and technology observer who wrote a seminal piece about Twitter for Time last June. “Twitter is looking more and more like plumbing, and plumbing is eternal.”

The second main argument is that Twitter has become a tool for filtering the clutter of the internet, and helping the user find the most relevant and current information for their particular agenda. I.e. who you “follow” sets the stream of information you are exposed to:

“What could anyone possibly find useful in this cacophony of short-burst communication? Well, that depends on whom you ask, but more importantly whom you follow. On Twitter, anyone may follow anyone, but there is very little expectation of reciprocity. By carefully curating the people you follow, Twitter becomes an always-on data stream from really bright people in their respective fields, whose tweets are often full of links to incredibly vital, timely information.”