These days, I get a lot of questions about why I use twitter. It's a popular question and surprising considering how mainstream the micro-blogging service is becoming. It seems as though many individuals, brands, and organizations are jumping on the bandwagon. Recent reports show that Twitter has actually surpassed MySpace in terms of traffic.

Validation? Sure sounds like it.

Here are my top five reasons for using Twitter:

5. I can follow my interests.

4. The content stream is ongoing.

3. Oftentimes, the first source for important news updates.

2. Participation is easy and fun!

1. Ability to network.

The good news...is that there's plenty of room for participation on the level of "creators".

There’s an old saying that “A picture is worth a thousand words”. You know it when you see it…those wonderfully crafted and delicately developed works of art that stop and grab your attention commanding your every thought and visual focus on the subject at hand. There’s art and then there are classic pieces of art that completely outshine the rest surviving the test of time.

In advertising, some ads lead to millions of dollars in sales and some…well, let me just say that they are a bit distracting. A good advertisement makes a clear call to action. Advertisers spend lots of dough trying to catch the attention of the masses.

Hollywood on the other hand is in the business of creating visually appealing and emotionally charged full length motion pictures in an effort to entertain. Of course, we each have our own tastes when it comes to the movies. Some films such as Titanic, Independence Day, Million Dollar Baby, and more recently Avatar explode onto the scene and make a huge impact taking home a nice chunk of change.

Are we just so in love with big boats, alien invaders, and the bold blue of the Na’vi that we rush to theaters in droves eagerly awaiting the opportunity to burn our hard earned cash? Nope. Don’t think so.

The success of memorable ads and movies is completely built upon the art of storytelling. The ability to capture our attention and take us to a place we’ve never been is a vital component of measurable success.

Let’s apply this to new media. What will happen if we take a moment to look beyond the vanity of social media and recognize the power of a good story? Making an effort to connect with others is wonderful and an essential part of being an online citizen. However, bringing value and authenticity to the table is completely hinged on our ability to tell a good story.

Engagement is built around the ease and multifaceted dynamic of making it easy for others to tell your story.

Where do you want to take us? Where are we headed? Down a boring road of the same old’ uneventful hogwash or are we headed towards a new arena of impact and influence?

(Image Source)

Sometimes we become a bit distracted by the awe inspiring and aesthetic elements of our environment. We tend to focus on the fun and exciting aspects of what we see without considering how we could add value. Social media has caught the attention of the masses and for good reason. Anytime we hear the word 'social' we become engaged in the possibilities of meeting new people. However, with social media, we must not forget about why we are here.

Louis Pagan has an excellent post over at Latino Rebranded about the various types of social media users that exist. He does an excellent job of exploring the different personas and user types engaged in social media. We have the insiders and outsiders each with their own goal in mind when it comes to participating in social media.

Rather than focus on our position, let's key in on our purpose. Are we simply looking for a new audience or target base upon which to pour on the sales hoopla or are we actually interested in adding value and engaging with others? Social media success is built upon an effective approach to adding unique value. It becomes easy to point out the outsiders very quickly because they are focused on the aesthetics as opposed to the dynamic inner workings of this phenomenon we call web2.0.