We all know Twitter is blowing up. We know that it is helping artists like Amanda Palmer make some cash that her label can’t help her get. We know that Trent Reznor got so personal that he had to discontinue using the service. We even know that Chesterfrench and Asher Roth talk to each other from time to time.
We also know how accessible the service is through mobile phones, whether its texting to 40404 or using a mobile app on an iPhone or Blackberry. The most popular thing we have done so far with our artists and events is to integrate relevant real time Tweets into live shows via a laptop and a projector. Using a free download called TwitterCamp you can instantly setup an auto-updating screen of Tweets that use whatever phrase you put in.
photo by Adam Tinworth
There are 2 major advantages of using this at your shows:
1. Involves the crowd through interaction. Having a fan Tweet from the front row gets him/her involved in the show. People can talk to each other, meet each other and share media like Twitpics and 12 Seconds Videos.
This has been great at some Rock For Hunger shows where we had bands Tweet from backstage, post updates on money raised for charity and announce drink specials. It also allowed us to answer questions, engage with fans and let everyone at the event see that we were paying attention to everyone.
2. Expanding your reach beyond the show. Remember that when you Tweet, all of your followers see that message. Now think about a crowd of 300-500-1,000+ that send messages with your band name attached. Every one of their followers will see that message and have the ability to connect with you, retweet the message and check out your page.
TwitterCamp Features:
TwitterCamp was made by Daniel Dura and it runs of Adobe Air. You need to have Adobe Air installed on your computer and then install Twitter Camp to run with it.
Once you download it, you get some cool options to customize the appearance of the application and also what phrase you want to appear on the screen.Customizations include having a custom logo as well as colors.
To Hashtag or to Handle
Everyone has differeing opinion if it is better to use a hashtag (#) or a twitter handle (@) as the magic phrase that lets a Tweet appear on screen. My 2 cents says to use a Twitter handle as a band and here is why.
As a band you want people to check out your page and then your music as quickly as possible. Having your fans Tweet with @yourbandname gives their followers a quick way to click on the link to your profile, check it out and then head over to your website. Using a hashtag there is an extra step involved and for every step that you put in a visitor’s way, you lose out on a large percentage of potential fans.
Installation
- Download and install the Adobe AIR runtime.
- Download the TwitterCamp.air file here.
- Locate the TwitterCamp.air file and double click on it. Follow the installer instructions.
Involving your fans is something that can be truly powerful to build trust with your audience and get them excited to come to your shows and participate. Creative artists can have fans request songs in the set via Twitter. Rappers can use context for freestyles and DJ’s can take requests and announcements this way as well.
If you have used a Twitter screen in your live shows, know of other solutions to doing this or have questions on how you can use a Twitter Screen at your event, please leave a comment or shoot an email to marketing@genyrockstars.com.
-Greg Rollett
