Twitter is a social networking and micro-blogging tool. It doesn’t have an identity and it doesn’t have a personality. However, there is a prevailing set of norms that govern Twitter use. They’re created by the expectations of the user base.

If you’re just getting started with Twitter, it can be tough to develop a sense of the best way to use your newfound Tweeting power. There is a dominance Twitter culture and a “way of doing things”. Getting into the flow and learning the rhythm of the site isn’t always easy.

Here’s one way around the problem: Follow a few people with big follower bases and watch them for awhile. Learn how they use Twitter and recognize the techniques they use to be a real voice in the conversation.

If you watch a few of the “big boys” doing their thing, you’ll soon figure out how you might be able to use the site effectively in order to meet your online goals.

Learning from the best isn’t a new idea. It works, though. And it works very well when applied to learning the lay of the Twitter land.

One of the reasons Twitter is really growing is because of all the great third party tools and support dedicated to the site. Twitter is AOK on its own, but those extra tools really ramp up its power and value.

Twellow is a great example. It’s sort of like a business phone directory for Twitter. Users can be uncovered based on their field, which makes it a spectacular way to find people in your industry quickly.

One of the big challenges of getting the most out of Twitter and building a quality social network is the decision of who to follow. Twello makes it very easy to start uncovering the kind of people with whom you’d like to interact.

If you’re a little less than impressed with Twitter’s own search tools (most people feel that way), Twellow is one of those third-party options you can use to overcome the shortcoming. It’s a great way to find the people you need to find to maximize Twitter’s value to you.

Hit http://twellow.com and see if you can use this great tool to make your Twitter life a little easier.

Your Twitter reach is defined, in large measure, by the number of followers you have. That means you want people to seek you out and to follow you whenever they have interests that overlap with your own.

Unfortunately, many people are unwittingly decreasing their follower counts. Here are two ways people are limiting their Twitter effectiveness.

No photo. If you don’t upload a photo, Twitter gives you that default avatar. You know who else ends up with that default avatar? Lousy spammers. Most robot accounts and spamming accounts feature that image because the folks behind them were too lazy to upload a picture. If you don’t have a picture, people will assume the worst about you.

Bad username. If your username is bad, you won’t get as many followers. There are two main instances of bad usernames that I see regularly. First, there are those with the long number sequence in the name. These are also the kind of handles that spammers end up with, so when I see one, I sort of assume that the owner is a spammer. If your handle is Bob199938, be prepared to be unpopular.

The other “bad name” is the one that makes it perfectly clear to the reader that you’re not very serious. This includes the profane usernames an silly ones like “ILuvMyKittyCats”. Get a good username.

Once you have a decent name, add a picture. These two “little things” can make a huge difference.

Twitter is more than idle chit-chat. It’s not just a big instant messenger and there’s some valuable stuff happening below the surface. Sure, the way some people use the service trivializes its significance. That’s undeniable. There are others, however, that are figuring out that Twitter can be a serious tool.

Just in case you haven’t been converted to the pro-Twitter side yet, here are three more reasons to take the social networking service seriously.

First, it creates a splendid opportunity to monitor and evaluate what your customers and prospects are really talking about. Can you say “free market research”?

Second, it gives you another outlet to extend your reach. It’s a low hassle way to supplement your website an blogging endeavors to reach another audience.

Third, it gives you the opportunity to create a social network that has a strong interest in what you’re doing and then allows you to approach those people with marketing messages. Not so shabby, huh?

Twitter may not be the game-changer some people want to pretend that it is, but it certainly isn’t the triviality others pretend it is. There are good reasons to take Twitter seriously.

I know, I know. Twitter is the joke of the moment among the online elite. It’s micro-blogging in 140 character bursts, nothing special. It attracts users who are more interested in chatting for the sake of chatting than it does anyone else. The so-called Twittersphere is filled with important stuff like random cubicle-dwellers talking about the need for a roll of Tums after a Taco Bell lunch.

Heck, the biggest story to break on Twitter lately was a not-all-that-hot picture of Demi Moore’s backside, shared by Ashton Kutcher. Ashton Kutcher. For a lot of people, that’s reason enough to think of Twitter as a joke.

It isn’t, though. Here are three good reasons to stop laughing about Twitter.

1. It provides a dead easy way to make connections and to network with people in your industry or niche.

2. It all happens in real-time, giving you instant access to conversations about you, your business, products that matter to you and other topics of interest.

3. It allows you to tap into a constant stream of potentially valuable links, resources and ideas in a way that you can’t accomplish otherwise.

Sure, Twitter can seem silly. The way some people use it IS silly. But if you look under the surface, you can see why it’s no laughing matter.