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Part 2 of great Twitter cases:

Tweeding restaurant on wheels

Restaurants on wheels have already come a long way… Now the taco truck—a longstanding institution on the streets of LA—is getting a whole new spin thanks to Twitter and the infusion of some Korean spice.

Launched last fall, Kogi Korean BBQ takes the taste of Korean barbecue and melds it with the portability of Mexican tacos and burritos for a whole new category of delectable food. The mouth-watering food is sould through two trucks that are always on the go to new locations in the Los Angeles area—to know where to find them, customers must follow Kogi on Twitter (and more than 7,000 already do). Prices are recession-friendly—USD 2 for each taco—which may account at least in part for the fact that it’s not unusual to find hundreds of patrons lined up and socializing each evening while awaiting their turn at the Kogi truck, according to reports.

Take two taco trucks with a unique recipe, add a dose of Twitter, and you get a phenomenon the LA Times refers to as nothing short of “a burgeoning cyber-hippie movement affectionately referred to as ‘Kogi kulture’.”

Website: www.kogibbq.com

Ice cream truck that Twitters

Much in the manner of Kogi Korean BBQ and just in time for summer a new truck is cruising the LA streets— Coolhause, and it’s being followed by legions of devotees who track its whereabouts via Twitter.

Coolhaus sells handmade ice cream sandwiches from a pink and chrome converted postal jeep. Featuring local and organic ingredients whenever possible, Coolhaus sandwiches are 2-by-2-inch confections, about 1 inch deep, assembled to order using two cookies and a scoop of ice cream. Five architecture-inspired, “prefab” flavours are currently available from Coolhaus’s two-woman team (for example: the Frank Behry, made from sugar cookies and strawberry ice cream; the Mies Vanilla Rohe features chocolate chip cookies and vanilla ice cream), but customization is also possible, they say. The sandwiches are also available with an edible, rice-paper wrapping that can feature a brand, name or logo in edible ink. Pricing is about USD 3 per sandwich, or USD 3.50 with the edible wrapper, according to LAist.

In addition to broadcasting information about its whereabouts via Twitter (@coolhaus), Coolhaus actually partners with Kogi in Venice on Saturdays, LAist reported; coming soon from its truck are edible spoons and popsicles shaped like famous buildings.

Website: www.eatcoolhaus.com

Package tracking via Twitter

Some 6 million people visit Twitter each month, so it’s no wonder applications for the platform are coming fast and furious. Not only can consumers use Twitter to track their favourite taco truck, file civic complaints and apply for jobs, but they can now track their packages as well thanks to a new application from North Carolina-based Signal Engine.

Users with packages to track begin by following PackageTrack on Twitter (@packagetrack), causing the free application to follow them in return. They can then direct message PackageTrack with the nickname of a package they’d like to track along with its tracking number, separated by a colon—”Red Dress: 23345631243,” for example. PackageTrack then notifies them by Twitter each time the package’s status changes, including a Google Map illustrating its route. Launched earlier this year, PackageTrack currently tracks only UPS, USPS and FedEx packages, but it says it will be adding more carriers soon.

Website: www.packagetrackapp.com

Source: Springwise.com, LAist

I’ve been so and so regarding Twitter and I somewhat still am - to be honest I don’t really see why I should follow anyone on Twitter (or anyone should follow me :-). I created an account a year back, but I can’t really say that I’m using it, and why should I - what’s in it for me?

From a marketing perspective, you have to get people to follow you before you can use Twitter as a marketing channel and I would only follow a brand if I got special offers or VIP kind of deals/discounts etc.. I’ve seen too many campaigns just including a “Follow us on Twitter” or “Add us on Facebook” button on the campaign website, just so the client can say that they are on the beat!

But it’s just not enough to create an account and post a “Follow us on Twitter”…you need something more - what do you want to achieve using Twitter or Facebook? – You should use the media channels for the right reasons, not just because everyone talks about it…

That said the micro blogging mechanism is very interesting and it can work for brands if the right concept is there - like stock updates which you need up to date every minute etc. (have a look at this 1on1 describing how to use Twitter as a marketing channel).

I have found a couple of great cases where Twitter fit nicely with the concept and adds value. Here is part 1 - part 2 will follow tomorrow:

German utility company Yello Strom is clearly into accessible tech: it manages its meters directly via households’ broadband connections, and offers access to Google’s PowerMeter. Now, it’s keeping its customers informed by enabling meters to tweet about energy use.

Each “Yello Sparzähler” smart meter is allocated its own Twitter account, which is automatically updated with energy consumption data. The owner can follow the account to receive regular updates, leading to greater awareness and hopefully lower energy use. DIY power monitors such as Tweet-a-Watt are also capable of tweeting, but Yello Strom seems to be the first utility company to offer the service as an integral part of their smart meters.

While adding Twitter to their mix will undoubtedly give Yello Strom a PR-boost, the larger goal is to feed energy data into any tool customers may be using. As explained by Yello Executive Director Martin Vesper, “Our goal is to use as many different channels as possible to inform our customers about their energy consumption.”

Website: www.yellostrom.de

Public use of Twitter

San Francisco is the first city we’ve seen to accept citizen complaints and reports via Twitter.

A couple of months back San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom announced that San Francisco residents can now send messages to the city government via Twitter by directing them to @SF311. Customer service representatives are available 24/7, 365 days a year, for help with such matters as the need for street cleaning, graffiti removal, potholes, abandoned vehicles and garbage can maintenance. Users simply sign up to follow SF311, which will automatically result in a reciprocal follow connection. Photos and links to illustrate the subjects of complaint are encouraged, and the city also plans to send updates about planned and unplanned local events using the platform. San Francisco is using Twitter business platform CoTweet to track its Twitter-based conversations, according to TechCrunch.

Website: sftwitter.sfgov.org/twitter

Job sourcing

Riding the Twitter tidal wave, a Dutch marketing agency asked job applicants to apply in 140 characters or less.

Utrecht-based Energize was looking to hire an account manager and a strategic planner, and designed an application form that looks exactly like a page on Twitter, including an empty text field. Candidates entered a short message—their “twillicitatie”, or twapplication—describing why they’re the person for the job, plus their email address and Twitter username. Uploading a resume is optional. For privacy reasons, Energize won’t publicly tweet the applicant’s message.

While it might seem like a gimmicky way to recruit new staff members, the process highlights that Energize is looking for people who actively use social media. More importantly, by forcing them to be both engaging and succinct, it’s the perfect way to test a candidate’s writing skills.

Website: www.energize.nl/twillicitatie

Source: Springwise.com, Techcrunch.com