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Twitter is sort of like the ‘Twilight‘ franchise: You love it, you hate it, or you really don‘t understand why people are so crazy about it. As a social media geek, I am a huge fan of Twitter. Today, I want to talk about the reasons Twitter is a fabulous and useful tool for all people. No matter your career, interests, or walk of life, there‘s a niche waiting for you on Twitter.

Twitter users are sending 55 million tweets daily, and Twitter‘s search engine gets over 600 millions queries per day. While Twitter traditionally works more effectively in larger cities, there‘s no reason that we in East Texas can‘t benefit from all that Twitter has to offer.

Twitter allows for real-time updates about anything, as long as you keep it under 140 characters. While wordy types may struggle with character limits (not that I would know anything about that), nearly everyone appreciates the brevity of Twitter updates. One hundred and forty characters are just enough to let people know where to go, what to do, or how to do it. Instead of the feed becoming cluttered with lengthy anecdotes, Twitter updates pack a punch and get right to the point.

As a matter of fact, many are turning to Twitter as their primary search engine. By visiting search.twitter.com and typing in a search term, users are able to view real-time results of conversations that are taking place regarding their search terms. Twitter is rapidly becoming a fantastic news source as well, since news has the potential to reach many people in a very short amount of time. Due to a process called "retweeting", which is basically re-posting something that was previously tweeted by someone else, news can quickly become viral.

By using Twitter as a search engine, you‘re not necessarily getting the same results Google would give you, but you‘re getting responses and opinions from people who are knowledgeable, experienced or opinionated on the subject. Some examples of people who love and use Twitter on a regular basis are as follows:

Moms. By connecting with mothers across the country on Twitter, you‘re building a community wherein you are able to answer each other‘s questions and support one another through motherhood.

Niche Bloggers/Hobbyists. Are you a foodblogger? Lifeblogger? A blogger who blogs about other bloggers? Are you into photography, fashion, or fitness? There‘s a niche for you on Twitter.

Sports Lovers. If you‘re looking for sports news, Twitter is the place to go. Many team representatives and enthusiastic fans are on Twitter. Get a Twitter account and cheer on your favorite team during the game.

Celebrity Stalkers. Tons of celebrities are on Twitter and many of them tweet on their own (i.e. without the help of a representative or ghost writer or, in this case, ghost tweeter). If you can‘t get enough of your favorite celebrity via the tabloids, look to Twitter. Chances are, they‘re at your fingertips in 140-character updates.

Please keep in mind that Twitter is extremely multifaceted and I‘m only hitting the very tip of the iceberg. I‘ll be chatting more about Twitter and social media in the future. If you have questions, please send me an email and I will attempt to cover them in an upcoming column. I‘m hoping that many of you will jump on board and make the choice to become fellow Twitter fans. Trust me, it‘s easier than the ultimate decision: Team Jacob or Team Edward?