People have always wanted to stay connected to each other. Even back in ancient times, people used messenger pigeons not just to send messages to each other, but to stay in touch. Friends always want to keep in touch and update each other on significant matters or mundane topics such as family, work life, even favorite meals.

The Internet is the latest innovation in this type of connectivity. With it, people can stay connected and keep everyone updated through blogs, e-mail, and personal websites. Still more recently, people can now stay updated with the latest craze, known as Twitter.

Twitter is a relatively new service that provides people the means to social network and micro-blog. Twitter lets people post updates through instant messages, e-mails, and SMS within short (140-character long) messages. You can post updates conveniently either through Twitter's website or through some new applications, such as my personal favourite; Twirl.

These short messages, known as "Twits," let users easily post very frequently, even posting moment-to-moment updates. Because Twitter's messages are short but highly informative, they have become of great interest to Internet marketers. Several of them have thought of ways that Twitter could help with Internet marketing, me included.

Twitter as a service is still fairly new. It was launched in March 2006. However, many people think that it's a hot new trend that may entice hundreds or even thousands of visitors to come to one's own website, if used for marketing.

Perhaps Twitter's greatest strength is its simplicity. Because messages are only 140 characters, you don't need to be wordy or use fancy language to get a message across. It's easy to tell your friends that you're going to watch a movie tonight, just as it's of no effort to say that the latest Harry Potter movie is out in theaters this week.

This is definitely going to be a great new opportunity to reach a target market and advertise more directly. For Internet marketers, the best thing about Twitter and its "twits" is that you can include links in your updates. This can help encourage people to visit a particular website. Besides this, you can use Twitter in even more ways to help with Internet marketing. Here are some ideas:

1. You can infiltrate communities.

Because Twitter is very much concerned with social groups, it caters to people's desire to belong. You can foster relationships with potential customers by joining these communities as well. When you join communities and become part of these social groups by making friends with members, you may not only get more visitors, but you may also help entice others to invite more visitors as your twits appear on your friends' homepages.

2. You can encourage your visitors to return with twits.

Besides adding friends yourself, people can also add you as a friend and tag your website with "badges" or "Twittering Widgets." What this means is that a visitor who makes friends with you is updated as to what's happening on your website. This encourages them to visit your home page again and again because it becomes more convenient for them to do so.

3. Make your twits enticing and interesting to read.

If you want to attract more people to your twits, send good twits in the first place. You should only send twits that are interesting to your readers. If you say something that people either find boring or useless, they'll stop reading them. They might even take you off their lists. However, if you keep sending amusing, funny and catchy twits, people will look forward to reading them. At the same time, you may even be able to encourage them to do something that will help you in your marketing.

There are lots of other ways to use Twitter for your Internet marketing needs. Because Twitter is fairly new, there is no doubt there's going to be lots more ways to be creative and take advantage of its newness. If you're looking for a new way to reach your target market, take a look at Twitter. It might just be what you need.