Any Twitters or Tweeters??

Okay. I just signed up at www.twitter.com I don't know exactly what I am doing- trying to make a smart (and free) business move... Does anyone here know how the thing works? I haven't got a clue. I posted a few entries, but I didn't see any fireworks coming out of my screen or even any sign that anyone was interested!! How can some folks have 10,000 followers responding to them, and where are the Black folks on twitter? Seems there is no real search function on the site unless I'm missing something. I guess you can look for friends, but only if you use one of the public emails (gmail, yahoo, etc).

I'd love to hear your feedback and expertise on twitter. Has anyone had any luck using it for business marketing? I'm trying to drive traffic to my website and my blog ( www.bittybabyshop.com/blog ) What's the best approach? Avoid personal comments?

Thanks friends.