Reading the signs of tweeting

Sony recently announced that it has sold more than 1 million pounds' worth of Vaio laptops via . . . Twitter. Yes, in 140 characters, Sony has convinced followers to buy. Its Cyber-Shot camera also received a sales boost from company tweets. In other words, social media is not just for building relationships--it's also good for stimulating purchasing, giving it a measurable payback from marketing investments.

The head of corporate communications tells New Media Age that social media will now be integrated into Sony's multimedia campaigns:

Even if we decide to run a big above-the-line campaign or focus on TV, we’ll apply social media amplification.

Dell was among the first firms to show how tweeting can get customers buying. The company also says it uses social media comments as clues to emerging problems.

By heeding early warning tweets from customers, any business can analyse its situation and react quickly to solve emerging problems before they become major firestorms. The key is to constantly and consciously monitor Twitter and other social media, with an eye toward understanding what is being said about your brand, your products and your service.