BikeBiz

I signed up for twitter to follow Lance, and respect the way that he uses it. If you look at some of the horrible things people say about him in comments at news sites, do you really think those people should be able to send those things anonymously directly to his Blackberry? I've read him since the beginning, and know when he rode with Levi Leipheimer, or his old Olympic coach, or the guitar player from The Wallflowers. Lance worked with Steve Hed for two days on a new TT position. Tomorrow he heads to the wind tunnel for three days. And all that info & more only took up a minute of Lance's day, and of mine.

Hi John

I know why he doesn't follow *everybody* (unlike some celebs, like @stephenfry) but he can be selective who he follows. And should he get flamed from any of those he follows, he can unfollow and/or block them.

Good list, and there are a couple I hadn't known of before.

Avid Twitter user...maker of transition gear. twitter/boocoogear

Hi Carlton,

LightenUpBikes.com it tweeter!

LightenUpBikes"is a" Tweeter! Is what I meant to say.

Racerveza here. I tweet primarily on my own behalf, but increasingly on behalf of my employer, the Hayes Bicycle Group. Thanks for the mention, Carlton!

Carlton:

I must admit, I was a Twitter skeptic until I read your posting. I don't have time or patience for Facebook, but Twitter makes sense on many business fronts.

Thanks, Gary. I was a Twitter skeptic for ages, too. In fact, I used to tease David Bernstein (Fredcast) about his silly, little habit. And it just clicked: this could be a really powerful medium.

If, that is, you follow the right people, and unfollow the time-wasters and the snake-oil sellers.

Twitter has been great for me and my business. It's like 100 extra pairs of eyes searching the web for cool girl's bike stuff. I'm always learning new things via my twitter friends, not just about bike stuff. And it's real time too!
Thanks for the mention here.

I follow Armstrong's tweets and find them interesting in that is humanises the legend for me, demistifies the mystique and it shows him as a regular guy doing extraordinary things.

For the n00bs Twitter is a funny thing to 'get' at first but if you persevere one day it just hits you and you understand exactly whay it can be so useful.

Remember too that you determine the extent of your engagement with Twitter, a large followe/following list can be a time suck, I think meaningful quality is the key for each individual.

Nice post Carlton. I love twitter for helping me to connect to all the bicyclists in my area. I'm in public relations and advertising...i never realized how many existing and potential clients also road ride. In fact a quick tweet about my latest ride and I get responses from people who also love the ride. And all of sudden I have a reason to build a relationship with them. It's lovely and easy and great for networking.

And need advice, a part, an update on the RAAM?... it's just 140 characters away.

Keep up the great writing.

Great to see that Twitter is becoming a way of communicating with each other in the bike industry, too. I had no idea there were so many associated with the industry on Twitter. I follow some, but I'll add others right now.

Twitter is one way for shops, manufacturers, distributors and even publications to not only reach customers and potential customers but also potential employees. The younger generation embraces these technologies and expects to be communicated with through social media rather than traditional channels.

Bravo to the industry folks who are embracing Twitter and other social media! It will absolutely enhance important relationships for your business.

The real benefit of Twitter that I see is that it's a great way to spread word-of-mouth. With only 140 characters, you really do have to distill your message right down, and get to the point. With a message that short, it's always easy for people to understand and pass on to others. So even if the message is as simple as, "Last few days of sale at Acme Bikes", "New carbon fibre gizmo now available", or (in my case) "New blog post about blah blah: TinyURL link"
When I tweet about a blog post, I notice two things - an *immediate* bump in the numbers, followed by additional interest over the next few days too.
And I'd like to second Donna - "I had no idea there were so many associated with the industry on Twitter. I follow some, but I'll add others right now."

Thanks for all your comments.

Karl, you're unusual. A Brit on Twitter. We're a rare breed at the moment. This will change.

I'm intrigued by Twitter's financials. The company makes no visible money. Can it last long term?

Even if it doesn't, the 140 character follow/unfollow format is now a new communications platform. It's like blogging, email, telephone, RSS, texting...but all at once. Once people get their heads round that, it'll really take off as a business medium.

For twitters financials . . . they're building a market. With the success that the polls are predicting for the Twitter-embracing Obama, I can see vehicles like Twitter going seriously mainstream for big brands, politicians, and 'personalities' in the very near future. These people have big budgets, and to charge these kinds of super-premium users a very thin slice to use the service would be one possible way to make a very healthy business. The alternative would be to go down the advertising route - they know who you follow, and so can glean all sorts of information that would help to target adverts. Providing its done subtly & not too frequently (like in the excellent Twitteriffic), I think people wouldn't mind at all.

Until then, they're building a bonfire out of their VC's cash, and hoping it's bright enough to attract enough of us moths . . .

Oh, and I should have mentioned before - I'm on Twitter as @KarlOnSea
;-)

I'm a bike-commuting blogger on Twitter, but I talk mostly about information security stuff there. That, and my updates are protected. Nice to see other well-known bike industry folks on Twitter, though.

I blog a little about cycling (although my blog is mostly centered around motocross), and I also tweet alot. You can include me in the list if you want, but I'm not really concerned about it. I'm @mike868y on twitter

major thanks for this blog post. it's a great resource! we're a nonprofit from okc that does fooddrives via cycling events.

http://www.twitter...heels

http://www.bikeagainsthunger.org

You're added. Explain more about fooddrives via cycling events (and perhaps your experience with Twitter..).

Great list, and great post. I joined Twitter about 10 months ago, but didn't use it at all until about 3 days ago. I'm already getting addicted.
I am wondering if you (or anyone else) has a list of the Pro mountain bike racers on Twitter. I really haven't been able to find any of them. I race U23 Pro, but haven't really seen Kabush, Craig, Wells, Trebon, Wicks, etc, nor any of my competitors (the other U23s).

Forgot to add: I tweet from @uncoiled.

It's very much a road thing at the moment, mostly cos of Lance, of course.

I just added @uncoiled. Thanks.

Please check out www.doublebikematch.org (@doublebikematch on Twitter). We're trying to raise funds to tap out our angel donor. Anything helps.

Thanks.