Random follow #290 - @genkibeth

There is no secret sauce when it comes to be a great tweeter.  It all comes down to being interactive, being engaging, tweeting about interesting stuff and talking to people.  Thats all there is to it.  @genkibeth does each of these and does them well.  Actually she does them more than just well - she does them excellently.

Beth is a Wellingtonian with taste.  Taste for food and flair.  And helping others to find food with flair as well.  Coffee, ginger crunch and many many other delightful treats await you should you peruse her tweets.  Well those things and many more.  Such as -

"Why do people say "Man power" when "People Power" just sounds better. Consonance man, it's writing101"

Its always good when someone makes it clear about where they stand on an issue but are able to do it in such a way that you're left with a smile on your face.  Beth is quite good at that and I imagine that in real life she really knows how to string people along with the very interesting approach to life that she has -

"I've been vetoed against living in a big commune with my friends, but how the else will I ever own a house, big veggie garden and a goat?"

And as we quickly approach the end of the year there is a slice of reality that we are all having to deal with at the moment -

"Who ever called this time of year the "wind down to Christmas" clearly NEVER HAD A DAY JOB."

Beth does so much more than just tweet like this though.  She also has some really great pictures and lots of really great suggestions that relate back to one of her fave topics - food.  Not just food for foods sake but the recommending of some of the finest eateries, coffee suppliers and all the other fineries of life.

@genkibeth is a perfect example of your really great tweeter.  She doesn't give too much away, jumps in and out of conversations with ease and over all is a really fun person.  If you're looking for someone normal to follow then you won't go wrong by hitting the follow button for Beth.

Random follow #245 - @takebacklocalnz

Getting a bit feisty and sticking up for what you believe in is a really great way to use social media.  So much of what we (used to) own and claim as ours here in New Zealand quite often isn't.  You'll find that the local brand that you've supported for years has in actual fact been bought and sold and all you're left with is a bit of nostalgia for an item or place that once upon a time really meant something to you.

Its for that very reason that @takebacklocalnz exists.  This is account that is heartland based and they have a clear headed and feet on the ground approach to all things New Zealand.  Biasedly based in the Waikato doesn't change the fact they are all about keeping it real and supporting the little guy.

Yes there are a few other 'popular media' sites who are trying to do this type of thing too but I reckon if we can get enough locals on the ground together then change can happen.  Here's a little snippet of what they bring to the twitter game -

"Calling all gluten free locals - be sure to check out Scott's on Ward. I've never seen so many options in one cabinet! #takebacklocal"

Yes I am aware many people may not know where Ward Street is but as I said up there ^^ this is a Waikato based account that is all about supporting the local guy/gal.  And there are the local news tweets that give you great tips on where to shop -

"Pirongia Craft Market has been an annual event since 1978. 200+ local stalls, Saturday 9am-3pm. #takebacklocal #localmarket #crafty"

Yes this particular account is about the Waikato.  But I think that if we can get these sorts of twitter accounts setup and people interacting across different towns then we really can start to TAKE BACK LOCAL!  And could there really be any better way of celebrating than this?  -->

"Looking for a way to keep dry tonight? Head down to @GoodGeorgeBeer for Brewfest! Two new beers to be revealed #takebacklocal"

Random follow #237 - @Kitti_word

The purpose of the RKT project is to introduce you to the people on twitter who are happy just being themselves out of the limelight and tweeting as they wish to.  One of the people who epitomises the is @Kitti_word.  She tweets away happily in her small space of social media and does so with much generosity and love.

With a really small number of followers and a comparably small number of follows twitter for Michelle is about value.  She values her friends and she values her timeline.  So much so that she has managed an astounding 17,500 tweets!   What I really like is that @Kitti_word doesn't suffer fools gladly.  Hence the reason why she keeps her friends really close.

One thing you'll find about Michelle is that she is honest.  She calls a spade a spade and won't try to convince you otherwise.  Here is one way that honesty is portrayed - 

" I totally buy a cheeseburger sometimes because I want the pickles" 

She is also a highly interactive tweeter.  So many interesting conversations are had with "real" people of twitter.  And its a joy to see.  And student like is far from easy as you can see - 

"Trying to last until midnight so I can find out my test results. It's getting hard."

Just a short post today cos @Kitti_word is one of those tweeters who you are best off to go over and check out for yourself.  how do I describe her in 10 words of less?  -->

Young, fun, honest, loyal, interactive, lovely, individual, prolific, student, lady.

This post is written specially cos Michelle is doing it a bit tough at the moment.  She doesn't need new followers just for the sake of upping her follower rate.  But what she does need are some genuine people to pull alongside and ask - "hey, are you all right today?"  Hopefully this post brightens up her day a little :)

Random follow #234 - @BobbShen

Carving up your timeline and bringing some fresh energy is a random tweeter who I recently discovered.  He is a lover of art, architecture and food.  @BobbShen is a stunning tweeter who has such an eclectic and broad set of interests that his tweets pretty much have something for everyone in them.

Bobby is currently working on his thesis for his higher study.  What's magnificent is that his thesis is not an intellectual rant but a work of art.  Its all about architecture and how we both relate to and interact with it.  So here is a little snippet of what turned to be some great tweeting yesterday -

"OK, to spice up my layouting process I'll be sharing #thesis photos, enjoy! (I'll only put up good ones) Let me know what you think."

But like all things study wise sooner or later they come to an end - 

"Can't believe I have to find a real life architecture job at the end of the year
(or technically, if I'm to start then, now...)"

And then there is the common pain of every student's life - 

"I know this has been said so many times, but I hate referencing, argh. Nothing so PC in my life."

What's neat about Bobby is that he has a healthy number of followers and a good number of follows too.  So he has been plying his trade here on twitter for a while now having racked up just under 22k tweets.  So he''s not a newbie but rather a well seasoned tweeter.  Its really nice looking through someone's timeline and recognising names of people you already follow and value.

So what else does tweet about?

"Rostering volunteers in for Architecture Week, themed women in architecture this year! 

(which doesn't mean males can't help ;)"

Well he spends quite a bit of time encouraging people to engage with Architecture for Humanity Auckland 

(@AFHAuckland).  This group are a collective of design professionals who give their time to assist communities in need.  So its fair to say that Bobby is a person who places a high value on others.

In case you hadn't figured it out yet, here is my way of describing @BobbShen as a tweeter in 10 words or less - hard working, creative, giving, generous, interactive, sensational, mature, nice, expressive.  Worth a follow?  ABSOLUTELY.  5 stars right here.

Random follow #181 - @OrangeRogey

What makes a good tweeter?  If you were take a tweeter and dissect them or boil all their tweets down into their liquid form what would the key elements be?  Well lets try this little experiment - 

Key element #1.  Think about and support others.  "Hope that people are registering and supporting Riding for the Disabled gingerbread horse campaign. http://Www.gingerbreadhorse.co.nz "

Key element #2.  If you're going to tweet then make it interesting.  "Just waiting to go into a meeting so thought I would post a quick tweet. #stillalive #stillinteresting"

Key element #3.  Stay in tune with popular trends. "I feel I need to confess that I've started playing Candy Crush. Sometimes I am just so right now".

Key element #4.  Have an opinion, share it and stick with it. "Getting off twitter for a while cant bear the idiot comments criticising govt support for starving kids - get a life fuck wits."

Key element #5.  Take a contrarian view and be funny about it.  "Can't believe that we are having another series of NZ's got Talent. I thought we found out last year that we didn't".

All of the elements above come from one great tweeter.  @OrangeRogey is a tweeter who has been around for a while using the platform and has an innate ability to both converse with people while also maintaining focus on what is important.

Guy has a healthy tweeting volume.  He jumps in every now and then and offers an opinion, tells a joke or shares a RT with the twitter world as he sees fit.  @OrangeRogey is one of my cornerstone tweeters in my timeline.  He stays true to himself and his values and this shows through in his tweets.

There isn't too much more to say about Guy that can be well said.  Apart from the fact that he hails from Wellington the rest of the story about him can best be read by following and interacting.  So go on - what have you got to lose?

Random follow #180 - @MinxOnehunga

Shoes, boots, bags and jewellery.  Those are the core products that @MinxOnehunga sell from their wee shop based in Onehunga, Auckland.  And to many people (like all the men) that is probably not that appealing an idea for a twitter account to follow.  And for the ladies they may think - "YES - all my dreams have come true! A twitter account that sells everything I love and need!"

What I can tell you is that both of those reasons for following (or not) don't stack up when it comes to the ladies at Minx.  This group of ladies tweet about so much more than just the items they sell or have in store.  The twitter team bring much more depth and fun to twitter.  Their twitter presence captures the fun and bubbliness that you will encounter in person should you go in store.

The twitter team have lots and lots of fun engaging with their followers.  And to say that the team are interactive would be a very fair statement to make.  By my reckoning there are more interactions with tweeters than there are stand alone tweets.  Yes they do tweet about the shop (thats what the account is about) - 

"lots of ladies rifling through the sale stock today...get in quick if you want to get a bargain!!! up 50% off EVERYTHING #sale"

But they also have diet tips - 

"wanted a pie. Ate an apple instead. Feel virtuous. And hungry."

And of course good ideas for gifts - 

"My Mr15 wants me to take him shopping for his gf's birthday pressie. Shes turning 16. Wonder what shoe size she is?? #EasyPresent lol"

This account is also about supporting the twitter community.  If you look through their timeline you will see a number of retweets of articles, blog posts and other bits and pieces from friends of the store.  The curators of this account understand that social media is about more than just your voice or the promotion of your own product.  A great twitter presence is about supporting your friends, family and the community as well.

This account is an exemplar of what makes a fantastic account for a shop or business.  It is about creating a personality, building a community of followers and engaging with your clients.  I for one know that if I engage with a business online then I will always go there first for a purchase before anywhere else.  Because at the end of the day its about people connecting with people.  And the ladies in the @MinxOnehunga store and the best example of what it means to be people people.

Having just recently cracked the 300 followers mark this twitter account totally deserves more twitter love from all of us out there.  And you don't even have to like shoes.  If you like fun times, great tweets and a brilliant sense of humor then you've hit the jackpot with @MinxOnehunga.

Random follow #165 - @keeweedoc

It doesn't matter what you do, who you are or where you live.  If you are on twitter you start at the exact same place as everyone else does.  On twitter - you're an egg.  And its from that egg that each and every account evolves and becomes something.  One thing I know for sure is that @keeweedoc is anything but an egg.

This incredibly nice guy is a dad and a doctor.  I put them in that order because that is the order of priority for Andre.  If you check out the photos that have been uploaded you can easily see that his kids mean the absolute world.

Andre is conversational, interactive and not afraid to share some little nuggets of medical advice along the way as he tweets.  And whats really neat is seeing the global scale of interactions with other people.  There certainly are not any geographical restraints or borders in social media.

When someone is tweeting out there to the big bad world you do like to make sure that you give people some sort of cultural context about where you are from.  And this tweet here certainly achieves that with a BANG! -->

"If it all gets too much you are welcome in new Zealand. After you've treated your first drunk dwarf you'll love it. #tipsfornewdocs"

@keeweedoc is an incredibly nice guy with a fantastic sense of humor.  If his bedside manner and patient interactions are as good as his tweets and online conversations then I bet his patients really enjoy see him come around to visit them.  He has a cool, calm and collected style that sees him tweet with ease and an ability to keep it real.

Occasionally he really turns your timeline on its head and comes out with what can best be described as "where on earth did that come from?" tweets -

"The senate has been a joke ever since jarjar binks was elected."
(Just to add some context this tweet was sent while Mr Rudd was overthrowing Ms Gillard).
Above all else here is one tip that transcends not the medical profession but also is a fantastic point to note for everyday living as well -

"Patients shouldn't be thought of as someones mother, father ect. All patients are someone and deserve your respect. #TipsForNewDocs"

Final word - all the best to Andre and his family with the addition of new family member number 3 currently under development.  We look forward to seeing the development and photos of said newborn upon their arrival!

Note - any spelling mistakes are the original property of the tweeter @keeweedoc! LOL!

Random follow #161 - @vivster81

@vivster81 is a really interesting tweeter in that she is a person of great diversity.  Diverse in really good ways.  That diversity is expressed through different interests and likes and also a really interesting life story that has gotten her to the point in life that she has reached today.

Vivian is a human rights advocate.  And a very vocal one at that.  She is one member of the team who tweet as Amnesty International New Zealand.  She also works for a charity (and I use the term work loosely because sometimes charity is work is voluntary as c.f. paid).  For some people keeping their 'corporate identity' tweets separate from their personal ones can be a challenge.  That is definitely not the case for Vivian.

@vivster81 is a very conversational tweeter and is often at the ready to chat about both the serious and the fun things in life.  She tweets pretty much anyone who takes the time to tweet her or if she sees that there is an opportunity to engage in a meaningful conversation with somebody else.  She also has lots and lots and lots of fun with twitter.  If you check out her photo's she has posted it won't take long for you to discover that she has a really great sense of humor.

So what does a tweet from Vivian look like?

The inevitable X-Factor tweet....

"urrgh was about to type, so what's on TV twitter, then saw that it was #xfactornz is there nothing else?!"

Throw in a sports tweet....

"Hashtag confusion must just make it harder for those wanting to filter out, otoh #absvsfra makes me think all kiwis have abs #Mmm #nzlvsfra"

Customer service tweets....

"aww you know it's a bad day at @FlyAirNZ when their hold music breaks. currently listening to static"

But these are the very few tweets I could find that were stand alone tweets.  Over 98% of her activity on twitter is conversing with or talking to other tweeters.  This is a highly interactive twitter account that moves quickly, stays current and keeps fresh. 

In summary @vivster81 is an an active, vibrant, enthusiastic and energetic tweeter.  She takes a common sense approach to tweeting and puts out the good stuff.  She is encouraging, thoughtful and honest while also being personable and forthright.  And another thing - Vivian's tweets will inject some sunshine into your timeline.  Because lets be honest - we all need some smiley, happy chirpy people around us to help keep our spirits up.  I think this account is one that totally deserves following.  

Oh and another thing.  I am trying to work out what a 'pastafarian' is.  If someone can let me know I would really appreciate it.  

Random follow #140 - @robrendell

In the 1970's and early 80's the highlight of the movie was the car chase.  It is the point in time that everyone looked forward to because you it was the crux of the movie.  It quickly spawned a saying which I like to use a lot - "cut to the chase".  In other words hurry up and get on with it.  Quit mucking around and say what it is you've got to say.

That is a pretty accurate way to describe @robrendell.  He doesn't fluff around with his tweets.  He calls it like it is and hardly ever actually hits the 140 character limit that is imposed upon us all by twitter.

Here a few tips if you decide to hit the follow button - 

• read every tweet twice - "thjis is a typo."
• keep up to date with current events - "What is your beef w/ Miami?" - or read his tweets in series and not standalone
• make sure you like sports 'cos in another life Rob would make a fantastic sports commentator - "Brilliant! Form has returned it seems. #nrlbriwar"

So what are you going to get if you follow him?  Its like having a mate over to watch sports with.  He sits at one end of the couch and you sit at the other end.  You can chew the fat, toss around facts and figures, argue over whether or not that was or was not a forward pass and then walk away after the final whistle and still be mates no matter which team you were cheering for.  The good part of this is that he won't eat all the chips but then he won't get up and get you a beer from the fridge when you're out either...

When he isn't tweeting or watching sport (both of these things tend to be simultaneous) he is a dad.  Rob has a healthy number of twitter follows and followers which is good to see because he deserves them.  Rob is a good bastard who hardly ever has anything bad to say about anyone.  I have no idea what he does for a real job but I do know that if he could combine his passion for sport and social media then he would be on to an absolute winner.  Maybe Radio Sport or Sky TV have need of a live tweeter commentator?

And so @robrendell gets the last word - 

"Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight tweeps!"

Random follow #103 - @nikbol

@nikbol is a young man on a mission.  Well I'm making a huge assumption in writing that statement but hey when you're 18 who isn't on a mission?  18 is the year you can legally do pretty much everything.  It used to be 21 which was lowered to 20 and now its 18.  Kids sure do grow up sooner these days than we did. 

Nick is a tweeter based out of Dunedin.  Tbh I have no idea what he does as far as making a living and I'm sure that really matters.  What really matters (for the sake of this blog) is what he does as a tweeter.

Be it Arsenal (editor - cough, choke), Wellington Phoenix (huge applause!) and supporting cricket you quickly get an understanding that Nick does enjoy his sports.

One really cool thing about Nick is that he is interactive.  You tweet - he replies or says something witty.  He doesn't post too many tweets that don't involve or aren't focused on others.  And when he does they are usually something good.  Like -

"Finding 20 euro cents in my wallet was not something I planned to do today." or
"Cats are the backbone of the internet economy."
"So leaving the o out of the word 'Count' while in a facebook conversation isn't the best Idea..."

And for a young fella he has a very keen sense of humor and excellent perception of current events -

"Build a stadium. Contribute 90% of your GO money for the rest of the game and halfway into the next. #DunedinMonopolyCards"

Here are the top 5 reasons to follow @nikbol -

1. Football  tweets
2. Funny tweets
3. Sports tweets
4. Comic and movie tweets
5. Some of the best ReTweets on the internet

Oh and by the way.  he has a ratio of follows to followers of 9 to 1.  So I think he would appreciate having a few more twitter friends if you know what I mean.

That's about all I know about Nick.  And I think thats about all I need to know to be able to recommend him as a good tweeter to follow.  You're welcome.