Top 5 Reasons for a Porsche Fan to use Twitter

By now, if you haven't heard of Twitter, then you probably never will and you should skip this post and go back to making tools out of stone, keeping your fire burning or looking for a bigger cave. For everyone else, read on...

First a primer. Twitter is a social networking tool that allows people to share what they are doing right now, with the world, in the form of short messages otherwise known as "tweets". Think of each "tweet" as a blog post (similar to what you read here on PorschePurist) only much shorter (as they are limited in size to 140 characters) and not as well written.

Besides the obvious difference in post size, Twitter's unique sharing platform allows your "tweets" to be shared and re-shared (otherwise know as a "re-tweet") with your "followers" (friends and others who are interested in what you have to say) allowing your posts to go viral (explosive growth) in a very short time - this is especially easy if you're a celebrity, a criminal or just plain stupid.

In addition to sharing your thoughts, you can also post news subjects and mark each tweet with a "hash" (#) tag that other people can use to search on such as #Porsche. More importantly, you can easily identify your friends on twitter and share with them by simply including their user name in your post such as @PorschePurist.

Anyway, you get the idea. The point of this post isn't to teach you how to use twitter. Instead, we just want to point our a few reasons why, as a Porsche fan, you might want to consider it.

1. Porsche News and Information. Lots of It!

While we don't know the exact number of Twitter users, it's safe to say the number is in the millions, some say the tens of millions. Amongst this crowded space are thousands and thousands of Porsche fans. While not all of them are dedicated to preaching Porsche only, a fair amount do spread the gospel on a fairly regular basis. If you want to take a look, just go to twitter.com and do a search for #Porsche. The resulting list will give you a good idea of the people talking about Porsche right now and hence the people you might want to consider following. Just remember, as much information as there is, it's very easy to become overloaded. Follow people carefully and cull your list often to those you interact with and those that provide valuable info. People fall off of twitter (get tired, bored or confused) just as fast as they open up accounts.

2. Free Porsche Stuff

It's hard to imagine that Twitter could get any more popular than it already is, yet it continues to grow each day. As a result more and more of our favorite brands are coming online. In order to entice people to follow them, or to more effectively market their products, it's not uncommon to give away FREE STUFF! Porsche, and other companies with Porsche related products, is no different. For example, just last week, a package arrived on our doorstep from @PorscheShopUSA (that's twitter speak for the Porsche Design Group's Driver Selection catalog) that included a great Porsche Crest Key Chain, a pen and a new catalog. What did we do to deserve this great recognition you ask? Simple, we just "retweeted" one of their posts out to our followers helping to spread the word. If you jump onto Twitter in the next day or two you can still enter into their current contest giving away 12 items from the catalog during each hour of this weekend's 12 Hour Sebring Race.

Besides the Porsche Design Group there are lots of other companies doing the same thing. In fact, we here @PorschePurist do it now and again as well. In our last twitter contest we gave away free cases of Mobil 1 oil for new followers. Not a bad deal if you ask us. So, if you're not already following PorschePurist, be sure to do so now!! There is a new contest just around the corner.

3. Porsche Deals and Promotions

Just like the giveaway offers we mentioned above, lots of places are catching on to the effectiveness of twitter and starting to offer online discounts to their followers. Heck, just a few weeks ago, one Porsche dealer offered an additional $500 bucks off whatever car you purchased. They even went so far as to remind people not to bring up the offer until after you negotiated your best deal (this way, no bias). We see service and restoration shops offering discounts and promoting restoration jobs, independent Porsche dealers showcasing freshly arrived inventory, etc. The list is endless and it's not just Porsche related.

4. Meet new Porsche Friends and Other Interesting People

A lot of us belong to the Porsche Club of America or other owners clubs for our various countries. As great as these clubs are, not all Porsche owners belong to them and they limit your ability to meet only other members in your area or places you visit. With Twitter, there is no age limit (@PapaPaulVeal is 92 and tweeting away), no geographic limits (@PQRSHE is in Australia, @Total911 is in the UK) and so on. You're limited only by your imagination and interests.

If you're looking for a good place to start with Porsche followers, simply follow us @PorschePurist and check out who we interact with and who we follow. You can build your list from there. Here's a short list to get your started.

@PorscheNewsWire
Porsche
@TruSpeedPorsche
@PorscheHeritage
@Total911
@BevHillsPorsche
@DedePorsche
@MuscleMilkRace
@PorscheDave09
@ThePorscheGuy
@PMLetter

5. How Else Are You Using Twitter?

We promised you five reasons, but we want to hear from you to fill in this space? Are you on twitter? If so, let us know and give us your user name. We'll be happy to follow you Any recommendations you want to share with your fellow readers here on PorschePurist?

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[Source: 993C4S]