Update – Monday, Jan. 18, 2010 - 12:10 a.m. — As of this update, the event is fully booked. All 80 spots have been taken less than six days after the event was announced.

PLEASANTVILLE – There’s something brewing in Pleasantville — and I’m not talking about beer or coffee. What’s brewing is social media — and next Thursday’s big event at the Jacob Burns Film Center Media Arts Lab will take social media in the Westchester, NY area to the next level.

The Jacob Burns Film Center's Media Arts Lab © 2009 David Lamb Photography

The event is the 3rd Westchester TweetUp to be held January 21, from 7-9:30 p.m. at the Jacob Burns Film Center’s newest gem, the Media Arts Lab located at 405 Manville Road in Pleasantville.

Just one day after the event was announced, half of the event’s 80 available spaces have been taken. The first two Westchester TweetUps (held at POUR Cafe and Wine Bar in Mount Kisco) were booked to capacity. Much of the on-line buzz surrounding this 3rd event has been about the event’s acclaimed speaker, David Mathison, author of Be the Media.

Mathison is the host of a succesful radio show – recent guests include Seth Godin, Michelle Shocked and guitarist Chuck Leavell – and he has delivered addresses at many prestigious venues, including Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, the University of Missouri, the School of Journalism, and the United Nations.

Mathison will speak about ways individuals and organizations can harness social media to “reach an audience that only a few years ago was reserved for the multi-billion dollar media conglomerates.”

Attendees must RSVP for the event using Twitvite. A modest $10 admission charge will entitle them to food and drinks, networking with some of the Westchester area’s most forward-thinking people, and the value of Mathison’s keynote address. Guests will also be offered a tour of the Media Arts Lab’s spectacular facility, and they will go home with a gift bag.

The Westchester TweetUps have been organized by Westchester140 – a group of six that came together after meeting through Twitter. Westchester140 thanks the Jacob Burns Film Center for making the venue available for this event completely free of charge. The group also thanks David Mathison for donating his time and expertise to this event.

Pleasantville’s Sundance Deli is donating delicious appetizers for attendees and Flour and Sun Cupcake Bakery is donating mouth-watering desserts. Guests will also be able to sample beer from Pleasantville’s Captain Lawrence Brewery and wine from Mt. Kisco’s POUR.

Chris S. Cornell

Speaking to Twitter devotees about the virtues of this free micro-blogging tool is one of the easiest tasks I can imagine. After all, those who are actively using Twitter are the ones who already understand it. On the other hand, one of the most challenging speaking assignments I’ve had is trying to convince those who have never used Twitter that the 140-character blogging platform can produce tangible benefits for their business or organization.

Over the past seven months, I’ve gained a great deal of experience speaking before both types of groups. Wednesday at 5 pm (October 28, 2009) I will be speaking at a Pleasantville Chamber of Commerce meeting, and I suspect the group will be primarily comprised of those who have never used Twitter.

The Challenge: How do I sell the benefits of Twitter to people who are most likely doubtful of its value? How do I get past the glazed expressions? How do I explain something that is so easy to understand by someone who uses it, but so foreign to someone who never has?

The Objective: It occurred to me that I should take a step back, and take a look at the bigger picture. What is the underlying objective in all of this social media stuff? It really has to do with telling an audience a story — the story of a business or organization. And, even more importantly, listening to the responses you get.

The Answer: The answer has more to do with content than anything else. If I can get a business or organization to realize they have a story they need to tell, we’re on the right track. There’s no need to sell a tool like Twitter until there’s recognition that there is a story that needs to be told.

What is Your Story?: What is the message you’d like to communicate to you audience? When it comes to your business, you are the expert. No one knows your business better than you. If you had the attention of your target audience, what would you say? These are questions every business should have had answers to, long before Twitter and Facebook arrived on the scene. Now that these free social media tools are available, businesses can leverage their content to achieve even greater results.

Once a business or organization has a coherent story to tell, taking steps to tell that story will come naturally. If a business posts its articles on a blog regularly, the prospect of using Twitter or Facebook (or other forms of social media) to promote it will make perfect sense. Just make sure to listen to the feedback, respond to it thoughtfully, and let the dialogue begin.

Twitter Professor is not affiliated with Twitter.com. Chris S. Cornell is not actually a professor, but he is helping build local Twitter communities. Follow Chris on Twitter at http://Twitter.com/ContentHarvest.  If you have questions or need help with Twitter, give Chris a call at (914) 960-1533. Feel free to add constructive comments, questions or criticisms in the comments section of this blog.

It’s been five months since the @Pleasantville Twitter account was established. A few days ago, a friend asked how the @Pleasantville Project was going. I wasn’t sure I had the answer to what seemed like a simple question.

Things have changed a lot since then, for sure. The number of local people on Twitter has certainly risen. The quality of many of the local Twitter accounts has improved dramatically. And the amount of interaction between local users has surged. But with all this progress, it is still obvious that for Twitter to live up to its hype, there is still a long way to go.

When will the next wave of Westchester residents hop aboard the Twitter bus? (You might want to make your entrance at some of the restaurants listed below in a Twitter limousine instead)

Will Twitter ever live up to the expectations? I’m not sure of the answer to that question either, but I have spent a lot of time lately thinking about the parts of Twitter that are working, and the parts that aren’t. And about the people that Twitter is working for, and the people for whom Twitter is of no value.

• Twitter works for people who LISTEN to others.
• Twitter works for people who GIVE BACK to the community.
• Twitter works for people who LEARN from their mistakes.
• Twitter works for people who CREATE CONTENT others can use.

I have found quite a few local Twitter users who score highly in each of the above categories, and featured many of them in an article I wrote last Friday. That article helped me learn some things about Twitter, and how it works. The response I received to this article was far better than that of any other I’ve written for a Twitter audience.

I think our local community is hungry for a Twitter experience that really works at the local level. And up to this point, there has been a scarcity of tools to connect users in any sort of systematic way at the local level. If there is one goal of this blog, it is to highlight the efforts of those Twitter users who are doing things that improve the experience for others.

This does not imply that those efforts must be altruistic or involving personal sacrifice. Some are simply using Twitter for their own personal or business reasons, but they are in the process, making Twitter better for the rest of us.

In my view, Twitter will take off at the local level when local businesses begin to feel that they are missing out by not participating. After finishing last week’s article, I announced that my next article would feature the Top10 Westchester Restaurants using Twitter. Then I was stunned by what I discovered. After a rather extensive search, I was able to find only about a dozen restaurants that were using Twitter in on way or another.

It’s hard to understand why there is so little interest in a free tool like Twitter, when so many restaurants spend so much of their precious budgets on paid advertising. I am not suggesting that restaurants cut back on their ad budgets, but why not set up a Twitter account with a link to their website and make an occasional Tweet to draw in a few extra customers?

My current project is to see if members of the local Westchester community can collectively influence the number of restaurants that Tweet, and the quality of the content they produce. I sense that the community would benefit from much of the information a creative resaurant owner or manager might be able to impart, whether it be recipes, details about the restaurant, specials being served, or culinary facts.

The List of Westchester Restaurants on Twitter:  Note: It is likely that I’ve inadvertently left restaurants off this list. If you know of an establishment that I’ve overlooked, please leave a comment and I’ll check it out. Also, I’ve only included accounts that Tweet information about the restaurant (at least a substantial percentage of the time), and include the name of the establishment in their Twitter information. This initial list is in no particular order.

• @KittleHouse - Chappaqua Restaurant built in 1790 as a barn, converted to a home in the late 1800′s, today cooking seriously good food.
• @LePainQuotidien - Part of a chain of  bakeries with seating, located in Rye.
• @AurayGourmet - Formerly the Auray Cheese Shop, located in Larchmont.
• @MaurosDining - Fine Italian cuisine, located in Ossining.
• @ZuppaRestaurant - Innovative Italian Cuisine in the Downtown Waterfront District of Yonkers.
• @QRestaurant - Westchester’s hip, urban bbq restaurants, located in Port Chester and Mt. Kisco.
• @42TheRestaurant - Restaurant at the Ritz-Carlton Westchester
• @Opus465 - From pizza to fine gourmet, “Armonk’s premiere caterers”
• @TarrytownHouse - Cellar 49 is the restaurant within Tarrytown House
• @MemesBakeryCafe - Memes is a brand new bakery and cafe located in White Plains.

By all means, follow some of these accounts, and encourage them to help make the local Twitter community stronger.

Twitter Professor is not affiliated with Twitter.com. Chris S. Cornell is not actually a professor (he runs Pleasantville’s Cornell Gallery Custom Frame Shop in his spare time and you can also follow him @CornellGallery), but he is interested in helping build local Twitter communities.  If you have questions or need help with Twitter, give Chris a call at (914) 741-1203. Feel free to add constructive comments, questions or criticisms in the comments section of this blog.

What I have done, after consulting with a few of my social-media expert friends, is compile a list that I believe is a good starting point for a Top-10 List of Westchester Twitter users. Many factors were considered, including the quality of the Tweets, frequency of Tweets, the number of followers and the number following, and the web address listed in the user’s profile. Also considered was the degree to which the site helped others and/or helped the user reach his own goals.

I expect to receive some feedback on this list, and I know there will be critics. I’m actually looking forward to it. I will read every comment with an open mind, and will take the comments into careful consideration as I update the list on a regular basis. I also intend to add categories, which will make this concept even more useful. Please suggest nominees for the following categories: Best Retail Twitter Users; Best Restaurant/Eatery Twitter Users; Best Non-Profit Twitter Users; Best Individual Twitter Users; Best Group (Geographical, Interest, etc.) Twitter account. With your help, these lists will be released in the next few weeks.

Without further ado, here it is - the First Top 10 Twitter List For Westchester, NY, in no particular order.

• @MidWestchester - Chappaqua’s Walter Olson is a social media pioneer. He created MidWestchester to build a local Twitter community, and has done an excellent job finding and creating worthwhile content to Tweet. Olson also manages @WalterOlson on Twitter and writes the blog OverLawyered.com (often referred to as the oldest law blog).
• @WestchesterMag – this is the account for Westchester Magazine.  Creative Tweets linking to Westchester Magazine’s own content, plus quality interactions with their followers. Linked to the magazine’s impressive website.
• @CDessi – An excellent mix of cutting edge social media information and other Tweets relevant to the events around us. Dessi’s Twitter account links to his always interesting Social Media blog, ChristopherDessi.com.
• @LoHud - Nothing flashy. Everything Lohud. Lots of Tweets linking to the content produced by Lohud.com.
• @ThisisRobThomas - This Briarcliff Manor resident is one of the country’s top songwriters and performers. He has also established himself as a darn good Tweeter. He encourages debate and comes off as genuine as any celebrity I’ve seen. He and his wife Marisol also created the SidewalkAngels Twitter account (see below).
• @David Parmet - David accurately bills himself as a New York based PR and social media marketing guru who helps businesses and agencies navigate the seas of social media. A good one to follow if you’re looking to stay near the front edge of the social media wave.
• @Martha Stewart – Martha’s bio says: Curious,  inquisitive, experimental entrepreneur who cares about the world we live in. Oh, by the way, more than a million followers care about what Martha has to say.
• @IndieBoundMeg - Meg Smith makes insightful Tweets about Indie Booksellers, and links her account to the IndieBound.org website. Good material for authors, publishers, booksellers and those interested in the industry. Makes you wonder why any bookstore or author would choose not to be on Twitter.
• @WestchesterLife – The profile summary says it all. A modern and fresh two cents on the good, the bad, and the severely deficient of Westchester living. C’est la vie. My prediction: this account will take off if the Tweets keep coming. There is definitely an audience for this kind of no-punches-pulled content.
• @ConsumerReports – Based in Yonkers, the well-known consumer advocate makes excellent use of Twitter, posting important (including recalls) and timely information along with a link to their website. Also check out the related ConsumersUnion and Consumerist accounts.

There. That wasn’t so difficult. TwitterProfessor’s first-ever top 10 list is on the board. Unfortunately, I know I inadvertently left some deserving Tweeter off the list. So to remedy any possible wrongs, I have two solutions: 1) I’m going to list 20 more deserving Twitter accounts below. These are all people or organizations producing good quality content on Twitter. I strongly encourage you to check their accounts. 2) As I mentioned above, I encourage you to contact me (using the comments form or contact page, or by calling me at 914-960-1533) if you have any information you’d like me to have as I update this list in the coming weeks.

The Best of the Rest:

@ExaminerStone – managed by Adam Stone, the publisher of The Examiner newspaper, a weekly covering local Westchester communities, including Pleasantville, Chappaqua and Mount Kisco. There is plenty of quality information being generated by The Examiner — can’t wait until more of it is posted online, so Stone will have the ability to provide followers with links.

@StationStops - StationStops focuses on those things related to traveling via the MTA. StationStops is currently engaged in a somewhat heated battle with the MTA which you can read about in this blog post.

@Small_Bites If you like food (and who doesn’t), this is a Twitter account that will make your mouth water. Linked with Liz Johnson’s Lohud.com blog, the Tweets include photos of food, recipes and news about food.

@AmyPaulin - The account of NYS Assemblywoman Amy R. Paulin. Legislative news from Albany and community happenings in the 88th district (Westchester, NY). Tweeting since mid-July, off to a good start. Keep it up.

@Everything Julie - The account of former LoHud.com staffer Julie Moran Alterio.  Bio: Writer who explores the intersection of culture, commerce and technology. Also a mom with too many Cheerios in her carpet. Reformed night owl. 

@EverythingLuLu - In their own words: The dress may take the cake, but the cake speaks for itself. This Scarsdale bakery is doing a great job promoting itself through Twitter and a top-notch website. Great images. Setting a great example in social media.

@ArtBizLaw - The account of Larry Berglas - Husband, Father, Writer and Lawyer, Lawyer and Writer, Professor, Guitar Player, Swimmer and Solving Problems with Pineapple Chords…  Interesting and informative, entertaining and balanced.

@News12WC – Links (and lots of them) to content from News 12.

@Joe_Wallace - Pleasantville author who lets followers get an inside look at much of what goes on in the book-writing profession. Seems to be an excellent way for an author to promote his career. Very interesting Tweets.

@AndyBarovick -  I am an atypical plaintiff’s medical malpractice/personal injury lawyer who loves time with family, music, biking and blogging.

@Blythedale - Blythedale Children’s Hospital is dedicated  to the diagnosis, care and treatment of children with complex medical and rehabilitative needs. The hospital posts information and news, but also makes Tweets aimed at helping to keep all kids safe.

@PaulFeiner – Bio: Greenburgh Town Supervisor; former Westchester County Legislator, President Westchester-Putnam Town Supervisors, former national recipient Common Cause Award. Feiner has made a habit of listening to his constituents, and Twitter provides him with another effective medium.

@FlourandSun - Pleasantville’s cupcake bakery has set an excellent example for other businesses to follow.  Great pictures of spectacular baked goods, consistent Tweets, creative use of the medium.

@RCAChap - Owner of Red Carpet Antiques, Vincent Fulgenzi Tweets about art and antiques, current events, and an impressive blend of culture and history. Particularly knowledgeable about NYC.

@Warner_Library – Nearly 1,000 followers. Useful Tweets for anyone interested in programs or services at the library.  Good use of Twitter.

@HHValley – Bio: We create the Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze and Legend Weekend. We preserve six museums of history, including Washington Irving’s Sunnyside and Kykuit.

@MarchofDimes – Daily pregnancy tips from Beverly Robertson, National Director, Pregnancy & Newborn Health Education Center at the March of Dimes.

 @SignalPatterns – Twitter account of Ran Zilca, founder and CEO of Signal Patterns – a company that develops psychology-based mobile and web applications.

@WestchesterFam – This is the account of Westchester Family Magazine, and it sneaks into the list mostly on potential. This magazine should have no trouble putting out content, and it’s apparent they understand how Twitter is used. As of today, though, they’ve only made 16 Tweets. As they say, if you Tweet it, they will come.

@SidewalkAngels – a non-profit established by Marisol and Rob Thomas (@thisisrobthomas), works hand-in-hand with charities in and around America’s big cities.

 @GetinLoop - Spirited Hyper-local news, focusing on Larchmont, Mamaroneck, New Rochelle and Rye.

You’ll find all of these accounts, plus many other good Westchester-relate accounts on the “following” list of @ContentHarvest.  It’s easy to add them as accounts you follow by simply scrolling down that list and selecting the ones you want.

Editors Note – Chris Cornell’s wife, Connie Cornell is the manager of the @Blythedale account. Accounts managed by Chris Cornell, including @Pleasantville @ContentHarvest and @CornellGallery have been excluded from consideration at this time.

The @Pleasantville Project continues to progress on many fronts. Local businesses and individuals continue to join the local community, and many have followed the @Pleasantville  Twitter account. As of this writing, @Pleasantville has 142 followers, the most recent local follower being @PCTV76 (Pleasantville’s TV Station). There is a great deal of conversation taking place in Pleasantville these days about how businesses can best apply this new technology. There is also a rather sudden interest in all this from the news media (more about that early next week).

On the other hand, convincing fellow merchants that Twitter might hold some tangible benefits to their business is not always an easy task. The reasons for not wanting to be a part of this online community almost always stem from a lack of understanding about what Twitter is. “What if someone posts negative comments on my site?” one local business owner asked me last week. “I don’t have time to read all the messages,” said another.

Most of the stated objections are easily overturned with facts and logic (No one else can make a post on your account, and you needn’t read any message on Twitter that you don’t want to read) but often an underlying fear of the unknown is what’s holding the person back. The reality of the matter is, Twitter is a free communication tool with some very real benefits. The downside, on the other hand, is virtually non-existent.

So instead of focusing my efforts on converting the uninterested, I’ve decided to use my energies to highlight the ways Twitter is being used well. There are dozens of individuals and organizations right in Pleasantville who are making excellent use of Twitter. There are many more in the surrounding towns. I talked about several of them — JBFC_NY, FlourandSun, MidWestchester and Joe_Wallace – last week, but there are many more interesting stories all around us.

As the manager of the @Pleasantville account, I read quite a few tweets in the course of a day. These 140-character messages are created by a diverse group of people who are linked (for the most part) by their interest in the Pleasantville community. Occasionally, a tweet makes such an impression that I’m compelled to hit the “favorite” button. Weeks later, it’s interesting to go back and review the list. Although my method for selecting favorites is far from scientific, it’s notable that some of the same names keep popping up again and again. (One note: I manage more than one account, so some of my “favorites” may not appear on the @Pleasantville account.)

As this @Pleasantville Project continues, I will attempt to learn a little more about the people behind the tweets. One individual I noticed a while back was Briarcliff Manor’s Peter Barossi, a multimedia producer who has developed, produced and shot film and video projects in several genres.  I first noticed Barossi when he posted the following Tweet from his @PeterBarossi account:

First New York State politician that tweets me gets my vote in the next election… I may even trow in a keychain! 12:13 PM May 13th from TweetDeck

A short time later, New York State Senator Suzi Oppenheimer responded, and even notified Barossi of a typographical error on his post. (Many of Oppenheimer’s posts have since been taken off the public timeline).

Barossi had been trying to get answers from New York State politicians about what he described as an “archaic” law which requires pending LLCs to post legal notices in both a weekly and daily local news publication before the LLC can become a legal entity. “Since then we have tweeted, emailed and phoned back and forth a few times about the issue. I don’t know if it will make a difference, but at least I know that someone is aware.”

Barossi left his position at a respected NYC interactive firm in March of this year to start his own production company, and to pursue freelance opportunities. While acknowledging that it is a challenging time to start such a venture, he is encouraged by what he sees as a growing demand for video content, especially for the web. His new company, Dravot Carnehan, LLC is currently going through the legal formation process. The URL http://www.dravot-carnehan.com will take you to his current freelance website.

So how has Barossi used Twitter to benefit his career? “After 10 years in a staff position at one company, I realized that my professional network was rather small,” said Barossi. “I needed a quick way to get to know who the talented people are and what kind of work they are doing. I also wanted them to get to know me. In less than 3 months I have built a respectable list of followees and followers in the film, business and local communities. I now have contacts all over the US as well as Europe. I can ask them advice, see what they are working on, and tap into their networks.”

Barossi is also enthusiastic about Twitter’s future at the local level. “I think it is absolutely the best way to build an online local community. It’s about thoughts and words not images. It’s about getting your message out as clearly and efficiently as possible. That’s how you build a community. I want to meet other community members that have the same appreciation for Westchester that I do and are trying to spread the word.” He cited @PhilAlbinus, @Bewildia and @MidWestchester as a few outstanding local tweeps.

Another local Twitter contributor I noticed a few months ago was Pleasantville’s David Oliver, one of @Pleasantville’s first 10 followers. Oliver, who can be found on Twitter @DavidMOliver , runs a small mobile software consultancy, with clients mostly from New York City and the Northeast. Oliver writes software that supports Twitter access from mobile devices, including iPhone, TMobile G1, Blackberry and the Palm Pre. Oliver’s business website is http://olivercoady.com/ .

Oliver says he finds Twitter useful, but not all-encompassing. “I find Twitter useful in a ‘keeping tabs’ kind of way, and an ‘adds interest’ kind of way.” Twitter is not the center of his universe, he says, ” but I do make sure I check in daily and monitor what my friends are up to.” TwitPic is Oliver’s favorite Twitter application, because “it means that a person doing something interesting can provide a nearly-live feed of information to his/her community of friends.”

When asked about Twitter’s use in building local online communities, Oliver’s thoughts seem mixed. “There are reasons to believe that support for localities is valid and useful,” he said. “I think it could be a valid vehicle for dialog between community members. There is another question, though, as to my interest in joining a ‘local community’ of Twitter users. I’m not sure I want my twitspace taken over by local causes or complaints about the neighbors, or whatever. However, it might be a good place for local government to ‘broadcast’ what’s happening.”

Oliver’s actual updates on Twitter include many that are exactly what a local online community should have. He tweets about his children’s activities and accomplishments, about local businesses and about community events that affect his life.

Oliver spoke, however, about the challenge Twitter presents by allowing a user to have a single ‘community’ of followers and followees. “When I send information out, that information might cater to some, not to others, for example: technical thoughts on mobile software; my curiosity as to why the recycling guys always leave an item or two in my front yard; as well as my musings about the beauty of the current day. Therefore, much of what I tweet could be considered ‘spam’ by people who might see Twitter as a ‘local’ channel.

Oliver concluded, saying “Cynically, Twitter is just another tool valued by people who want to have a voice bigger than they naturally have. This is human nature – the need to be recognized. And as with all things on the Internet, there are good uses of Twitter and bad uses of Twitter. And again, as with all new things, Twitter will take time to balance out.”

Pound Ridge’s David Parmet is a social media consultant, who is a prolific Tweeter with nearly 6,000 updates sent. Parmet also writes an informative and useful local blog.  He can be found on Twitter @DavidParmet. Parmet also has a website for his consulting business, http://www.parmet.net/pr/.

TWITTER TIDBITS – Noticed a Twitter post from Greenburgh Town Supervisor @PaulFeiner that requested lawn-cutting help for a man who was unable to get the job done himself because of health issues. Less than a week later, Feiner reported on Twitter that another resident had come to the man’s assistance…   More and more, I’m being asked about Twitter as I travel around my local community. Was pleased to see @PCTV76 join Twitter yesterday. Pleasantville TV station may be one of the local organizations best suited for Twitter. They can promote their great new website, and post links to their excellent video content right on Twitter… @SundanceDeli also joined Twitter in the past week. They already have a very useful website http://SundanceDeli.net, and I’m enthused to see how they use Twitter….  Also a big welcome to Matt Jaros who signed up his retail business Glass Onion Originals, @GlassOnionOrgnl…   Looking forward to the two remaining sessions of the Social Media Primer being taught by Gerald Stern, (@GMStern) of WOW Productions. This series of classes is sponsored by the Pleasantville Chamber of Commerce…  Just started paying more attention to the Twitter account managed by medical malpractice attorney and blogger @AndyBarovick. He makes good use of Twitter, and some of his blog posts have addressed timely and interesting local issues…. I also already have interviews planned with a couple of other local Twitter users in the works. Stay tuned…  If you are interested in getting more involved in the local Twitter community, you can exchange ideas, ask questions or provide information by commenting on any of these blog posts, or by using the Contact Us form. Comments on the blog post are greatly appreciated, and certainly help promote the prominence of this forum. Feel free to post a relevant URL in your comment. Happy Twittering!

Twitter Professor is not affiliated with Twitter.com. Chris S. Cornell is not actually a professor (he runs Pleasantville’s Cornell Gallery Custom Frame Shop in his spare time and you can also follow him @CornellGallery), but he is interested in helping build local Twitter communities.  If you have questions or need help with Twitter, give Chris a call at (914) 741-1203. Feel free to add constructive comments, questions or criticisms in the comments section of this blog.

The goal of this endeavor is to help connect businesses, individuals and other organizations in the local community through the use of the fast-growing micro-blogging platform called Twitter. I created the Twitter.com/Pleasantville account on March 31, and began tweeting (the updates on posts on Twitter are known as Tweets) information and news I thought would be of use to the Pleasantville community.

Within a couple of days, Pleasantville was following and being followed by several local people, which was encouraging — but a closer look at the list made me realize just how powerful this tool called Twitter could be. The connections that can be made at the local level is amazing.

One of our first Twitter connections was Chappaqua’s Walter Olson with his MidWestchester account. Walter’s posts provide information of use to anyone in the area of Chappaqua and surrounding communities, including some more general Westchester content. What Walter was doing with MidWestchester was helping to bring together people and organizations in a local community.

Upon further examination, I discovered that Walter Olson was no stranger to effective communication on the web. He is an author and a former practicing lawyer, who runs Overlawyered.com , possibly the oldest law blog in existence. Olson also runs the blog for the Manhattan Institute, PointOfLaw.com.

Another early Pleasantville connection is local author Joseph Wallace. His account, Joe_Wallace, includes many posts that provide insight into the life of a working author. Wallace has just begun work on a new novel. The book he recently finished, Ruby Diamond, is due out in 2010.

There are also Pleasantville businesses making good use of Twitter. One excellent example is FlourandSun, Pleasantville’s new cupcake bakery, that lets followers know what types of cupcakes have just come out of the kitchen. FlourandSun uses Twitpic.com to let followers click to see photos of the freshest, most creative cupcakes in Westchester.

Pleasantville’s popular movie theatre, the Jacob Burns Film Center, can be found on Twitter at JBFC_NY. The film center’s account links to their extremely useful website, and Twitter posts notify followers about recent programming changes or additions.

There are many other extremely interesting people and businesses interacting with Pleasantville on Twitter. Greenburgh Supervisor Paul Feiner is one of our followers, as is State Senator Suzi Oppenheimer. There are realtors, a pizza maker, a hair salon owner, an emergency preparedness businessman who has appeared on TV’s The Office, and a martial arts studio owner. There is a law student; a science fiction author and blogger; and a lawyer who writes books and plays guitar. The list goes on and on. I will  introduce many of these businesses and individuals in my upcoming blogs.

As of this writing, Pleasantville has a following of 115 mostly local individuals and organizations. The next goal for the @Pleasantville project is to dramatically increase the number of businesses participating, giving local residents more incentive to sign up for Twitter. I’m shooting for 500 mostly local followers by the end of June, and my plan is to make regular posts to this blog to keep readers informed about our progress. The real goal, of course, is not about numbers of followers, but of bringing benefits to the local community.

Twitter Professor is not affiliated with Twitter.com. Chris S. Cornell is not actually a professor (he runs Pleasantville’s Cornell Gallery Custom Frame Shop in his spare time), but he is interested in helping build local Twitter communities.  If you have questions or need help with Twitter, give Chris a call at (914) 741-1203. Feel free to add constructive comments, questions or criticisms in the comments section of this blog.