Recently I got a demo of an amazing product that allows you to visualize your Twitter stream called Twylah. Rather than me talk about how awesome it is, and why you need it, I thought I’d ask the co-founder and CEO of Twylah Eric Kim a few questions to explain it, and also to share a demo with you. Enjoy!
Phil Gerbyshak: What (and who) is Twylah?
Eric Kim: Twylah turns your tweets into a real brand presence. It creates a destination for and experience of your tweets that allows your audience to slow down and take their time with your content.
By contrast, Twitter is a dynamic platform where there is a lot of activity and excitement and “flow.” Twitter is a wonderful way for your audience to see “what’s happening now,” but it is not a site that is “sticky” or particularly engaging from a marketing or branding perspective. I’m not saying this is a defect. It’s just not the way Twitter was built.
Twylah was built to leverage the dynamism of the Twitter flow, but it has a completely different look, feel, and function at the end of the day. Our function or mission is to create less of an experience of flow and more of an experience that “sticks” — where your audience’s singular attention is given to the whole of your Twitter content and to your brand.
We do this by using branding, marketing, and design best practices. You provide the tweets, and we create this experience.
Phil: Why did you make Twylah?
Eric: We all see the world in different ways, based on our backgrounds, strengths, and talents. When I look at someone’s tweet stream, I see “what’s happening now,” and it is fantastic. I also see a goldmine of valuable information and content that can be optimized and leveraged for your branding and marketing efforts. Currently, your tweets are lost very quickly — gone forever. This may be fine for a lot of Twitter users, but for some Twitter users (brands and personal brands, for the most part) it seems a shame to let all that good content, good will, and good work go to waste. Why not optimize and leverage this content for your Twitter followers (and beyond Twitter, through great SEO) with a Twylah makeover? It’s easy, and it provides great value to you and your followers. It’s a win-win.
Phil: Why is it different from other Twitter tools?
Eric: Twylah is not a Twitter client. We’re not about managing your incoming stream of tweets, we’re about optimizing your outgoing stream. Twylah is focused on the tweets you post, the content you curate, and ultimately, the brand presence you share with the world. And we focus on helping you as a brand get measurable returns on your Twitter activity.
Phil: What’s the coolest part of Twylah?
Eric: The coolest part of Twylah, to me, is that we’re using the exact same tweets you’ve already created, and we’re putting them into a format that’s virtually guaranteed to provide you with deeper engagement. It’s pretty simple, and requires no work on the user’s part. All you need to do is share your Twylah pages by tweeting them out, “liking” them, or including them in your Twitter bio.
Phil: Who is your target audience for this tool?
Eric: Brands, personal brands and marketers who have valuable, relevant content to share, and who want to get more out of their Twitter initiatives.
Phil: So what’s next for Twylah?
Eric: We have many valuable features slated for roll-out over the coming weeks, including very simple but powerful content analytics. But first things first, sign up for Twylah’s beta at http://www.twylah.com/ and share your Twylah pages (and give us feedback!).
Want to see a Twylah page in action? Check out my personal page at http://twylah.com/philgerb