Twitter is the big buzz on the Web, but if you sell or service locally should you consider Twitter a must have in your marketing arsenal?
Personally, I feel based on strong Twitter use for my own business and that of my clients that Twitter is best used by businesses that are selling nationally or globally. Typically we see responses to tweets from around the world and just not the local service area. Based on that interaction, unless you have the budget for Twitter on top of money set aside for Google AdWords and Facebook, I would not consider tweeting practical for targeting local customers.
I do however feel that if your budget is limited that you should still consider social media, but maybe move Twitter down on your list or priorities.
I think you’re spot on with the observation that Twitter is probably most effective for the bigger national/global campaigns. For businesses who are concerned about at least maintaining a presence on Twitter and giving local customers the ability to follow, integration with Facebook can help generate Twitter content without necessarily taking up more time or resources. Attention to Twitter can then be scaled up as the audience and demand grow.