Update March 2014:
Tweetmeme and Krumlr are no longer operating so the information in this post is no longer relevant.
Tweetmeme is a service which aggregates links on Twitter and displays the popular ones on the TweetMeme site.
Website owners can add a TweetMeme button to any kind of web page and there is a dedicated WordPress plugin which is easy to install.
The advantage to people surfing websites is that when they discover content they like, they can tweet it by hitting the TweetMeme button.
The advantage to website owners is that it gives them a way to enable their visitors to popularize their web pages – one that is very easy for their visitors to use.
In my opinion, the Tweetmeme button is easier, more prominent, and more inviting than the Add This or Add to Any widgets (useful though they are) or any of the other widgets that a web surfer might be invited to click on when he or she visits a web page.
Of course TweetMeme is limited to tweeting to Twitter, but from the website owner’s point of view that can be a powerful way of promoting a page. That’s because each visitor has his or her own circle of Twitter friends, and Twitter is highly interactive.
Krumlr describes itself as social bookmarking on Twitter. When a member adds a web page to Krumlr, they also tweet it.
While Krumlr describes itself as ‘social bookmarking on Twitter’ it is also an appealing social bookmarking site in its own right.
Where Krumlr scores is in the high visibility it gives to its members.
Not only are the web pages – the ‘krums’, I guess – saved, displayed and tweeted, but the Krumlr users themselves – the ones who are feeding those good web pages into Krumlr and onto Twitter – are also featured.
And the more well-regarded web pages a member sends to Krumlr, the more visible that member becomes on the site, thus further promoting the pages he or she has added.
There is always a slight worry with social bookmarking sites. What if the site closes – what happens to all my bookmarks then?