A businessman visiting Honolulu recently said Twitter is not a business tool, but it is a marketing tool.

For Honolulu Realtor Kelly Mitchell, it is both.

The Prudential Locations Inc. agent recently closed a sale using Twitter, where her @name, or “;handle,”; is @HawaiiRealty.

“;Some people ask me for real estate advice, I get inquiries from other agents and I'm starting to get referrals from other agents in markets outside of Hawaii,”; Mitchell said.

She is also sending business to agents on other islands “;since I only work in the Oahu market.”;

The one sale she attributes to her presence on Twitter could multiply across other social media platforms.

“;I think this is the marketing of the future,”; Mitchell said.

“;Social media is going to have a stronger and more important role as days go by and as years go by.”;

Her marketing background includes running Honolulu-based technology company Six D Studios for nine years with her husband. During that time, some of her work included search engine optimization for HiloHattie.com.

“;I think from $400 a month we turned it into $4,000 a day,”; she said. That sort of work, and consulting for clients including Wimberly Tong Allison & Goo (now WATG), helps for me to see what the opportunities are”; in social media.

For Mitchell and others, monetizing their presence on Twitter is not the end-goal.

“;From an experiential and personal level, it's increased the value of my time. I'm interacting with people on a global level, and to be able to touch and hopefully impart things of value, while you're receiving it, too, creates symbiotic relationships,”; Mitchell said.

On the Net:
» www.Twitter.com/HawaiiRealty
» www.linkedin.com/in/kellymitchellinc
» www.facebook.com/hawaiirealty
» www.friendfeed.com/hawaiirealty
»www.flikr.com/hawaiirealty
» www.sociallyreal.com
» www.kellymitchellinc.com

Quiet TV news

Not all news about the local TV business generates big headlines.

KALO-TV, a religious station in Honolulu, changed hands last week as its sale was formally approved by the Federal Communications Commission.

Honolulu-based Pacifica Broadcasting, led by Christopher Racine and his wife, Judith Racine, sold the station to Honolulu-based One Love Outreach Inc. for $1 million.

One Love, formed on June 4, is led by David Tipton, a director of Pacifica Broadcasting.

On the Net:
» www.kalo-tv.com/index.html