Twitter is not only a great small business marketing tool; it turns out it can reduce the cost of both business and leisure travel! 

Two airlines are offering deals to people who use the Twitter social networking Web site.  United and JetBlu are sending out tweets to consumers putting them first in line for some discounted air fares.  The airlines hope the messages will help them fill planes that might otherwise fly with empty seats.

Last month, JetBlu sent out a tweet offering a last minute $9 dollar one way fare from JFK to Nantucket.

Consumers have to sign up to receive Twitter updates from United and JetBlu and you have to be able to act fast to cash in on the deep discounted tickets. The last minute fares are typically only available for a couple of hours

Interested in learning more about JetBlu?  Check out a streaming video from SBTV.com at http://www.sbtv.com/?segid=3810   Follow me on Twitter to learn more about small business issues and events to give you a competitive edge.  Just go to http://twitter.com/danitablackwood