Twitter has launched the first in a series of what it is calling Twitter stories – okay they are testimonials, but they are very nicely done and highlight some great uses of Twitter that will no doubt provide ideas and inspiration to others.

It has posted nice little videos of great uses of Twitter both large and small. From the Portland bookstore saved by a tweet, to the man saved in Tunisia during the Arab Spring by a tweet, to the athlete who took a hundred of his followers out to a crab dinner and to the Japanese fishermen who use Twitter to sell their catch before returning to shore.

There are also stories closer to home such as how UK luxury brand Burberry created a fashion first at London Fashion Week in the autumn by tweeting pictures of every look before the model went down the runway.

Usually, only industry insiders get the first glimpse of the future of fashion, but this time people following @Burberry on Twitter actually saw the looks before anyone in the exclusive front row seats.

Excited to announce the first ever #Tweetwalk Show. SS12 looks will be on Twitter before the runway. Follow @Burberry today at 4pm #LFW – CB Sep 19th 2011

There are lots of stories posted on the Twitter website, but the one about Broadway Books in Portland Oregon is great. It is always nice to see a bookstore saved, but beyond that it is a great example of how a small business can use Twitter to reach out into its community. It reminds me of a piece I blogged a couple of years ago about how a small ice tea business from New Jersey, Mary Anna’s Summer Sweet Tea, used Twitter and social media to tap into a community and get results.

In Portland, the small 20 year old bookstore was facing possible closure back in 2008 in the run up to the Christmas period, but a single tweet by the bookstore owner’s son, @everydaydude, saved the day.

He blogged about his mom’s bookstore closing and said he had $1,000 credit left on his card and would personally buy everyone who bought a book from his mother’s store a burrito out of his own pocket.

His blog got visited hundreds of times and customers poured in through the door and snapped up books. That was three years ago and every year since the store has done better and as its own says it all started with that one little tweet.

It is a great example of how a single simple idea can catch on and how Twitter can help deliver that idea to thousands of people with such positive results. Take a look:

Twitter is looking for other stories that highlight an interesting use of Twitter. You can submit your story by mentioning @twitterstories or by using the hashtag #twitterstories