Everyone knows the infamous man in khakis: Jake from State Farm. He’s on the phone with your husband at 3 o’clock in the morning, wearing a red polo and sounding hideous. When we discovered Jake had his very own Twitter account, @JakeStateFarm, we had to follow along and see what this crazy insurance agent of the night had to say. After noticing that what he had to say was a lot, we knew a Twitter Q&A was in order. See what went down below!
Remember our all encompassing, sightly mind-blowing round-up of who to follow on Twitter in Boston? If not, we highly suggest clicking HERE to see who made the cut, and then clicking HERE to subscribe to that list on Twitter.
Don’t worry, we won’t say the word “click” again.
Well, since the birth of that list, we’ve reached out to our Twitter pros in hopes that they’d break off a piece of their social media wisdom. Below you’ll find the results: a magnificent cornucopia of tips, advice, and general online community wizardry, all available at your disposal.
So go ahead — read up and tweet out. Because when it comes to Twitter, it’s totally awesome to follow, but it’s totally awesomer to lead.
Oh, and that promise about no more clicking? We take it back. CLICK AWAY!
In 2014, it isn’t weird to have Internet friends… so why not have Internet parties?
That’s actually a thing on Twitter. Not to be confused with a tweetup (an in-person meet up with fellow tweeps), a Twitter party is a virtual “party” hosted in real-time on the Twitter platform, most commonly by a company or influencer to build brand awareness. Many are even moderated by an expert panelist. Given a particular topic, a hashtag is determined and announced prior to the event’s scheduled date/time.
For example, @ResourcefulMom mediated a discussion with @Entenmanns on National Donut Day, using donut giveaways as an incentive while spreading awareness about their donuts and the brand’s charitable efforts toward Salvation Army.
Question 8: How do you prefer to enjoy donuts? Quick breakfast treat? Afternoon snack? #EntenmannsDonuts
— Amy Lupold Bair (@ResourcefulMom) June 6, 2014
Seems cool, yes? And simple. And harmlessly beneficial. HOWEVER… When brands involve contests and/or giveaways in their Twitter parties (which is pretty often), they may possibly be directly or indirectly violating the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)’s rules when using the social platform to promote their brand(s)/product(s).
As professional social media fanatics, we at Metter Media spend a LOT of time online. Because of that, it should come as no surprise we have plenty of ideas that could make our (and everyone else’s) experiences better on social networking.
Sometimes that article about the new iPhone could really use a Macarena baby GIF — that Facebook won’t allow. Or you get a Twitter notification on your phone that you can’t read because someone sharing the account already opened it and it disappeared before your very eyes. And it’s beyond frustrating.
In the midst of scheduling posts, sharing cat pictures, and lightheartedly making fun of each other, the MM team came up with our top social media gripes that we’d love to see solutions to — soon.
Do you ever come across a tweet and think, “This person gets me”?
Do you ever want to tweet a thought but hold back, assuming someone else will tweet it?
One of these accounts probably has… these are my favorite, most relateable accounts on Twitter!
Most of us follow a variety of types of Twitter users who benefit us in several ways. You may follow real-time news aggregators to find out what’s happening in the world, your favorite businesses for deals and new product updates, or musicians for new music and free downloads. Thought leaders in any industry will offer their expertise and useful links relevant to their areas, and friends share what they’re doing or thinking.
Another category of users I follow are funny ones. While scrolling through my feed at work, something in the midst of news stories and photos of my friends’ lunches makes me burst out laughing. Laughter is great positive energy, and looking through these feeds last night gave me a serious case of the funnies. So, here are 10 accounts that, if you follow, will guarantee you that spur-of-the-moment LOL.
Boston may be a small city, but it’s a great one, and no one knows that more than city expert and self-titled “Urbanologist” Max Grinnell. With roots in Seattle and Madison, Wisconsin, Max has dedicated most of his life to studying how cities work and teaching others through his publications, website, and — most importantly — Twitter.
As @theurbanologist, Max explores Boston and Chicago (an area he calls “Boscago”) and highlights the best parts of both in terms of entertainment, growth, sociology, and more.
Max lent us an ear to talk Boston, Twitter, and what it really means to be an urbanologist.
As much as we complain incessantly about #Boston, you’ve picked a good city to call home while you’re in school. And one thing we’re really good at is social media. Our Mayor (@marty_walsh) hosts #TwitterChat(s) regularly, we’ve won various awards for the city’s social media prowess, and here’s a protip: if you know who to follow on Twitter, that’s enough to be “in the know” in this city.
So here’s a good list to get you started (subscribe to it here):
@BostonTweet
@OnlyInBOS
@universalhub
@BostInno
@ConciergeBoston
@BostonAttitude
@BostonReview
@morisy
@steveannear
@Fara1
@dbernstein
@HeyRatty
@senatorjohn
@TheBostonCal
@BostonTweetUp
@BriteBoston UPDATE: Inactive since 2015.
@CityOfBoston
Mayor: @marty_walsh
Food Trucks: @bosfood
Bikes: @bikeboston
@DoITBoston
@BostonGlobe
@BostonDotCom
@DigBoston
@MetroBOS
@BetaBoston
@WBUR
@wgbhnews
@BostInno
@BostonMagazine
@TheImproper
@cambridgechron
@7news
@CityOfBoston
@UniversalHub
@MassDOT
@BostonPolice
@BostonFire
@BEMSincidents
@BU_Tweets
@EmersonCollege
@Northeastern
@BostonCollege
@Suffolk_U
@UMassBoston
@BerkleeCollege
@EmmanuelCollege
@Harvard
@MITstudents
@SimmonsCollege
@MassArt
@TuftsUniversity
@SMFABoston
@allstonratcity
@YourAllstonBri
@BrightonMainSts
@SomervilleCity
@MissionHillMass
@JP_02130
@thefenway
@YTfenwaykenmore
@kendall_square
@cambridgeUSA
@WelcomeToDot
@DTownBostonBID
@HelloGreenway
@go_centralsq
@onthebar
@thedrewstarr
@petemfboyd
@hiddenboston
@mysecretboston
@mcslimjb
@bostonmixdrink
@eaterboston
@blumie
@boloco
@ZagatBoston
@TheWriteStuffSK
@lmennies
@thrillistboston
@RestoWeekBoston
@BostonChefsNews
@BostonChefsJobs
@backbaymemoirs UPDATE: Inactive since 2015.
@centralsqpigeon UPDATE: Inactive since 2016.
@lukeoneil47
@BDPizzaBrighton UPDATE: Inactive since 2015.
@The66bus
@TomBradysEgo
@iamchrisscott
@bostonmo
@AllstonPudding
@DigBoston
@Vanyaland617
@SoundofBoston
@BDCwire
@Boston_Calling
@together
@boweryboston
@LostinSound_org
@mmmmaven
@MASSEDMC
@lawnond
@GlobeMusic
@mfaboston
@ICAinBoston
@amandapalmer
@mideastclub
@zuzubar
@TheSinclair
@paradiserockclb
@GreatScottROCK
@Brighton_Music
@middlesexlounge
@The_Wilbur
@hob_boston
@ttthebears UPDATE: TT The Bears has closed as of July 2015.
@goodlifebar
@mbta_alerts
@mbta_bus_alerts
@MBTA_CR
@MBTA
@MBTATransitPD
@bikeboston
@Hubway
@Uber_BOS
@HailoBoston
@Lyft
@Bridj
@mettermedia
@haveyoumetter
@discolyssa
@saraherib
@kciccolini
@jasminejamboree
@angelabray
@heshi393
@sierraunsworth
Who are your essential Boston tweeters? Let us know in the comments!
Metter Media LLC is a Boston-based social media management company that implements community-based, localized social engagement strategies for small businesses and corporations alike. Need help with your social media? Email Lauren today.
It was pouring rain on a Wednesday afternoon when I sat down at Foley’s in the South End with Adam Gaffin, aka @universalhub. We were both dripping wet and armed with all the supplies we needed: laptops and smartphones, and both of us seemed to be running on very little sleep.
The night before was the first night that Twitter blew up with news from #Ferguson, Missouri, and if I didn’t already feel more like my old journalist self again, sitting with Gaffin and talking at warp speed about the way we ingest news nowadays made it so. He needs no introduction: @universalhub, the biggest source of real-time news in Greater Boston, convener of crowdsourced iPhone reports and hero of citizen journalism, especially via social media.
In short: we bro’d out for a very long time.Continue reading
Missed the Emmys? Never fear, Metter Media is here… with the highlights of the evening and some of their best reaction tweets!
From Seth Meyer’s opening monologue to that steamy kiss between the (MARRIED?!) Bryan Cranston and Julia Louis-Dreyfus – if you don’t know what we’re talking about then, gurrrrrrl, you need to scroll down!