HUBSPOT INBOUND INTERNET MARKETING BLOG — We all know content that spreads helps attract more people to your business, and a major way that content spreads on Twitter is through ReTweets (learn more about ReTweets on this free webinar). Here are a number of things you can do to have the best chance of getting the most ReTweets...

NEW YORK TIMES — Conan O’Brien has almost sold out his nationwide comedy tour -- and all it took was a few Twitter messages. It was an experiment of sorts for Mr. O’Brien’s team -- and they quickly found out how loyal the comedian’s online fan base can be. "It was expertly done," said Geof Wills, the president of Live Nation Comedy, who said he was astonished to see how successful the untraditional communications approach was in selling thousands of tickets. The O’Brien team relied on no traditional advertising, just the Twitter messages to his 600,000-plus followers...

WALL STREET JOURNAL — The vessel was one of about just 600 sold in 2009 by Folbot Inc., a small retailer in Charleston, S.C. " You can't buy that exposure," says the firm's co-owner, David AvRutick, who claims the incident speaks to the value of using social media for marketing. But Mr. AvRutick's experience may be the exception, rather than the norm. In its short lifetime, social media -- services like Facebook and Twitter -- have become popular marketing tools for small firms due to the low cost and easy-to-use format. Some entrepreneurs say they're highly effective, but new evidence suggests otherwise...

BRANDWEEK — Wendy's is attempting to insinuate itself into this year's NCAA Basketball Championships with a social media push designed to create real-life parties. The fast feeder has worked with Kaplan Thaler Group for Facebook- and Twitter-based promos dangling gift cards for Boneless Wings to consumers who organize viewing parties over the social network. The Facebook effort, breaking today, gives 100 random $50 gift cards to such consumers...

SOCIAL MEDIA B2B — Today at SXSW Interactive in Austin, Texas, Evan Williams, CEO of Twitter, announced a new ad program for Twitter. These new ads are called @Anywhere. When you find a reference of a Twitter account, you can roll over the link and bring up a Twitter card. It shows if you are following the account or not, recent tweets and other details about the account. You can also follow the account directly from the card. This tool lets you interact with Twitter from the site, without ever going to Twitter.com. You can also sign in to the site using Twitter more easily than ever before. The platform is launching on a limited number of sites like ebay, Yahoo and Digg. B2B companies are using Twitter to build networks of followers and ultimately generate leads for new business, and this new @Anywhere approach is a way to build those networks and make sure the followers are relevant...