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I first heard about Yammer earlier this year when my colleagues on the West Coast mentioned that our team in Washington, DC should get on board and start using this unique communications tool. In general, internal communications should not occur on a public platform and Yammer has been specifically designed for this purpose and strives to enhance communication between employees and team members. TechCrunch reported that 10,000 people and 2,000 organizations signed up for Yammer on the very first day it launched. Answering the question, “What are you working on?”, Yammer is pretty much Twitter for companies and businesses. Like Twitter, one must stay within the 140 character limit on Yammer. Compared to AIM or other instant messaging platforms, it seems Yammer provides a less invasive way to quickly update colleagues, ask questions and provide insights in response and subsequently, increase productivity.

Set up is quick and simple and only individuals with the same email domain can access the platform. Yammer can be used for specific projects, to boost team building, or to provide global updates that enhance your company’s overall internal communication.

Recently, David Sacks, the CEO/Founder of Yammer said, “On Twitter, people write about the important and the mundane, like, “At school and debating whether I should have more coffee.” With a workplace focus, Yammer will not deal in such trivialities. People don’t want to hear from their friends five times a day about what they’re doing. But they do want to hear from their co-workers five times a day about what they’re working on.”

Why Yammer When I Can Twitter?

David makes an interesting point, and initially, I found Yammer useful when looking for immediate feedback or to quickly connect with colleagues. However, after a few weeks, I just could not find the time to continue updating my different statuses on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. and Yammer. I quickly learned I wasn’t the only one. Kristin Foster was kind enough to share some feedback she received from colleagues when she inquired about their personal experiences with Yammer:

• “Sporadically, to ask colleagues for ideas, or respond to colleagues collecting ideas. tough to find time to update Yam, FB, Twtr every morning…something is gonna give.” - Amy Messenger
• “I don’t think it’s working as I hoped… (sharing ideas, best practices, helping to know what our colleagues are working on, following specific projects or clients…) I guess we all feel a social media fatigue…” - Luca Penati
• “I think the major problem (at least from my position) is that the majority of my colleagues don’t even know what Yammer is - It needs to be promoted.” - Chris Heydt

These quotes echo the same sentiment I was feeling and I suspect others encountered after using Yammer for more than a couple of weeks. I’ve switched back to airing my thoughts and communicating with colleagues full time on Twitter. However, since internal communications, should be well, you know internal, there are other options. Enter the Group Tweet.

How Does Group Tweet Work?

• First, you must create a new Twitter account for your group or team and you need to make sure that updates are protected in the settings to keep the group private.
• Register your group’s new Twitter account at GroupTweet.com
• All group members must follow the group account you created at Twitter. Note that the group account must also follow the group members. (If updates are protected, you will need to approve each follow request)
• Members can broadcast a message to the whole group by sending a direct text to the group’s Twitter account.

Do you use Group Tweet? Which internal communications tool do you prefer and use most frequently?