What is a Discussion List?
Most of us are familiar, at least in theory, with today’s top social media platforms; Facebook, Twitter, and Google +. In addition to using Twitter or Facebook personally, many businesses have found them to be very beneficial as well.
Twitter is known as the biggest conversation. At any given time you can look at Twitter and see tons of things being talked about. Because of it’s restriction in message length, 140 characters per post, people use some of its functions to communicate. If you like a Tweet, or post on Twitter; you retweet it. If you like it a lot; you favorite the post. Those two actions show that you like it, without you having to post back to the person who sent it to tell them.
Facebook is similar in that you can simply click the “like” button to tell someone you like their fan page or an article, video, or the like. Some people post small conversations on Facebook, which gives the feeling of closer communication than Twitter, but not so in depth as picking up the phone and calling someone.
Google + is primarily for business and allows you to carry on short conversations as well. Google + has some marketing advantages and so it is gaining in popularity.
The main constraint in all of these social media platforms is the ability to have in depth discussions. You can engage in short conversations, however, if you want to discuss different points of a matter you simply can’t do it.
Here in lies the definition of what a discussion list is. It is an online platform, like the social media platforms, where people for either personal or business purposes can post conversations, and then receive in depth answers as well as more questions etc., on the same platform. When you post a comment or question, everyone on the discussion list receives a copy of it in their email box and they simply have to reply to the email to continue the discussion with you.
When you subscribe to a discussion list, you have the option to receive all the messages from everyone in the group on a daily or weekly basis. This allows you to tailor the email announcements to something that is easy for you to handle.
One discussion list that I really enjoy is called FreeCycle.org. This list is divided up in to geographic regions. Each member can list items they want to give away, or items they need. Everyone on the list receives each post. To claim a free item you simply reply to the main message. I have received a lot of things I needed, but could not fit into my budget, from this list, as well as being able to help others with things I no longer needed.
There are lists for almost every type of business or personal interest. In my next article, How to Use Discussion Lists to Expand Your Readership I will show you the value of running a discussion list to help you increase your audience which will in turn help you to sell more books.
Happy Writing!
Follow @ThriveandGrowMe
Twitter is known as the biggest conversation. At any given time you can look at Twitter and see tons of things being talked about. Because of it’s restriction in message length, 140 characters per post, people use some of its functions to communicate. If you like a Tweet, or post on Twitter; you retweet it. If you like it a lot; you favorite the post. Those two actions show that you like it, without you having to post back to the person who sent it to tell them.
Facebook is similar in that you can simply click the “like” button to tell someone you like their fan page or an article, video, or the like. Some people post small conversations on Facebook, which gives the feeling of closer communication than Twitter, but not so in depth as picking up the phone and calling someone.
Google + is primarily for business and allows you to carry on short conversations as well. Google + has some marketing advantages and so it is gaining in popularity.
The main constraint in all of these social media platforms is the ability to have in depth discussions. You can engage in short conversations, however, if you want to discuss different points of a matter you simply can’t do it.
Here in lies the definition of what a discussion list is. It is an online platform, like the social media platforms, where people for either personal or business purposes can post conversations, and then receive in depth answers as well as more questions etc., on the same platform. When you post a comment or question, everyone on the discussion list receives a copy of it in their email box and they simply have to reply to the email to continue the discussion with you.
When you subscribe to a discussion list, you have the option to receive all the messages from everyone in the group on a daily or weekly basis. This allows you to tailor the email announcements to something that is easy for you to handle.
One discussion list that I really enjoy is called FreeCycle.org. This list is divided up in to geographic regions. Each member can list items they want to give away, or items they need. Everyone on the list receives each post. To claim a free item you simply reply to the main message. I have received a lot of things I needed, but could not fit into my budget, from this list, as well as being able to help others with things I no longer needed.
There are lists for almost every type of business or personal interest. In my next article, How to Use Discussion Lists to Expand Your Readership I will show you the value of running a discussion list to help you increase your audience which will in turn help you to sell more books.
Happy Writing!
Follow @ThriveandGrowMe
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