One of MTSU’s own, Dr. Don Roy, has been recognized by MBAPrograms.org as one of the top 50 business-school professors to follow on Twitter.

The list includes business professors from all over the world who use the social-media site to network with others in the field and muse about developments in the business world.

Dr. Don Roy

Variables considered for inclusion for the list are number of tweets, number of followers, business-school name, connections, “pithy insights” and more.

Roy, a marketing professor at MTSU, excels in each of those areas, tweeting bits of advice like, “Brand meaning: You define it or it will be defined for you—which do you want?”

The MBAPrograms.org list was not the first compendium of influential Tweeters that featured Roy: He’s also often featured on Social Media Marketing Magazine’s top marketing professors list, too. In fact, he’s number 65 out of 100 on that list.

Roy says one of his Twitter usages is promoting his blog, “Marketing Dr: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly of Marketing” (http://marketingdr.blogspot.com), which he updates weekly with advice for young professionals. He also includes his own reflections on marketing techniques, new products and other developments and provides a list of links to other noteworthy business blogs.

People working in all fields are using social-media sites like Twitter more often, so Roy’s insight on social networking is helpful even to non-business majors.

While his business background heavily influences his views — he advises his students to “manage their professional careers using marketing principles learned in the classroom” — his advice on using social media is practical for anyone.

Roy’s understanding of social media is not limited to its potential for job seekers. Twitter also helps businesses and customers, he says, by giving both sides a voice, instead of the traditional corporate control of the flow of information.

Complaints as well as customer-influenced ideas for new products can be addressed through Twitter, and some companies promote job openings through Twitter, too.

The site is especially helpful for small-business owners, he notes, since the only cost involved might be in paying personnel to keep up with the tweets.

“One of the things I think distinguishes Twitter as a social-networking website is that so much of it is interest-based,” Roy says. “For example, most of the people who I follow or who follow me have an interest in marketing, business education or sports, because I’m a sports fan and also teach sports marketing.

“I don’t know very many people who I follow (on Twitter) on a personal level, which is quite the opposite of Facebook, where you wouldn’t take friend requests from people you don’t know. But the basis for being on Twitter is shared interests, so whatever a student’s major field is, there are going to be people and companies communicating. Why not join that conversation?”

To read Roy’s blog, visit http://marketingdr.blogspot.com. You can follow him on Twitter @Don_Roy.

— Rachel Nutt (news@mtsu.edu)