If you’re among the millions of people using Twitter, you may have noticed a tweet or two including #spon. The hashtag has caused quite a stir lately, eliciting a backlash from people opposed to the idea of tweeters being paid to post about sponsors’ products and services. Major brands like SeaWorld, Blockbuster, Sears and Kmart have jumped at the opportunity to sponsor conversations about their products and services.

I’m not here to argue for or against sponsored tweets — I can see both sides, and think it’s better to examine the idea on a case-by-case basis. In my opinion, the sponsored tweets I’m reading for Blockbuster aren’t all that intriguing… but then again, I’m not really in the market to rent movies this weekend either. On the other hand, I follow the tweets of several bloggers that BLAST works with on a regular basis who have taken part in the SeaWorld promotion. Personally, I think that when well-executed, a sponsored conversation can be just as informative as any other – as long as the tweeter or blogger offers compelling content, using their personal voice rather than sounding like an advertisement. Just like with any other social network or traditional media outlet, people make choices about who to follow on Twitter, and as long as people are straightforward about whether they are being compensated to tweet about a particular subject (by incorporating the #spon hashtag), users can choose if they want to pay attention to them.

SeaWorld seems to have successfully utilized social media to help launch their new Manta roller coaster, with many top blogs posting about their experiences. But don’t take my word for it – Mashable, an authoritative source for social media news, gives a more in-depth look at SeaWorld’s social media campaign here.

P.S. Don’t forget to follow one of SeaWorld’s stars on Twitter: @RealShamu – a great example of how the brand is engaging consumers.

P.P.S. If you would like to see a social media campaign unfold in real time, follow me on Twitter (@careyhart). Over the next week, I’ll be tweeting about my experience of going to the Indianapolis Zoo‘s annual fundraiser – #IndyZoobilation. Full disclosure: the Zoo and Indy Hub gave members of their Twitter team a free ticket to the event.