Thanks to @tomburket for the heads up this morning on this new Yammer feature, as described in the Yammer blog:
You can now import your Twitter updates into Yammer, using the #yam tag. After linking your Yammer and Twitter accounts, any tweet (message posted to Twitter) that contains the #yam tag will be automatically imported into your Yammer network.
The Yammer blog gives instructions for how to do this. It’s really simple. Tom got the tip about the new feature, which was announced yesterday, from @steverubel.
Initial thoughts:
This was really easy. I got the direct message from Tom about this on Twitter at 7, checked it out a couple of minutes later and adjusted my Yammer account settings. Then I sent a test #yam tweet at 7:08.
It works well. My test #yam tweet showed up in my Yammer feed at 7:09. Here it is (click to enlarge):
This will be good for Yammer. It makes it much more likely that #yam will be a trending topic in Twitter search, at least as people test it, which will increase Yammer’s visibility in the Twittersphere.
It may also be a practical way to ensure that messages you are sending outside your company are also communicated to work colleagues. For example, there may be things I tweet about that don’t interest my team members at work. Hard to imagine, I know. But if they follow me on Yammer, and if I tag posts with the #yam tag if I want to be sure they get them, I can share both externally to the world and specifically to teammates…without having to go to Yammer and send a separate message. It could increase the signal-to-noise ratio for my colleagues, while also making it simpler for me to share information.
Assignment:
- Join Yammer if you haven’t. (See Yammer 101)
- Adjust your Yammer account settings to add your Twitter account name. (You do have a Twitter account, right? If not, check out Twitter 102)
- After you’ve completed the first two steps (and any necessary remedial studies!), send a tweet with the #yam tag (in Twitter) and watch it show up in your Yammer feed.
- Share your thoughts about this new Yammer feature in the comments below.
3 Comments
It worked as described. We’ll see how my group likes this. Certainly saves time trying to update several sites. I think Lee is right about allowing some selectivity. The #yam tag is something my team can benefit from, as they tend to use Yammer and I use Yammer and Twitter. Thanks for the tip!
Thanks, Jim…I’m working on a post (hopefully this evening) about how to create system for sharing info…with some real-life illustrations.
Glad to hear your work team is using Yammer.
Do you know whether or not the #yam uses the Yammer API or some other protocol?