ANTenna Blog -- Internet/Web

If you still didn't think Twitter had arrived as a serious marketing platform, it's time to think again. Salesforce.com is continuing its relentless drive to incorporate all aspects of social networking with Salesforce CRM for Twitter.

Having just gotten into bed with Facebook, Salesforce.com today announced that users of its Service Cloud product will be able search, monitor, and join relevant Twitter conversations from within Salesforce.com. The capability will show up as a new tab in the Salesforce Service Cloud feature within Salesforce CRM this summer, at no extra cost. (Service Cloud packages start at $995 per month.)

You can monitor Twitter conversations from within Salesforce.com.

Kraig Swensrud, Vice President, Product Marketing, said that Twitter users don't necessarily expect an immediate response when they tweet about their experiences with a product or service, but they do expect that someone -- not necessarily someone they know, but perhaps from elsewhere in the Twitter communit -- will eventually reply to their questions or concerns. These conversations are very public and very searchable, Swensrud says, and Salesforce CRM for Twitter is designed to make it easier for the company in question to be part of that response.

The new service will let you search Twitter from within Salesforce, and then hit a button to monitor selected conversations. That automatically links to the conversation from Salesforce, and updates it when new tweest appear. A Twitter text field lets users tweet without leaving the application. You can even create a "case" or "trouble ticket" based on the Twitter conversation, and the system will recommend links to information from the corporate knowledge base that could address the concerns raised on Twitter.

Alex Dayon, Salesforce senior vice president of product management, said customers have been asking for Twitter integration ever since the Service Cloud was announced in January.

What's less clear is whether Twitter users are desparate to hear back from the companies they tweet about. Searching and monitoring conversations about your company and products is definitely a good idea. But make sure you respect Twitter's social dynamics before inserting yourself into the conversation.

Salesforce now lets you monitor conversations about your comany in multiple social networks.