Enough with the "I Don't Get Twitter" Already!

I have heard about 10 billion people from this planet and beyond who have said to me, "I understand the value of social media, but I don't get Twitter."

Sigh.

Thing is, since we are social beings and quite intelligent despite our actions in Iraq and elsewhere, business value can be found, models can be modified, technologies can be adopted and adapted to provide business value. If you have a vast social network of people who are "twittering" meaning they are broadcasting their activities during a day to thousands and even millions of others - sometimes by the hour, by the moment, by the minute, by the day, ultimately, it seems to make sense, once the twitterdoubters get past the "its so narcissistic" phase of it, that it is a broadcasting channel for information. Consequently, not only individual activities need to be the subject of the broadcasts. Content and links and all kinds of other marketing info that isn't terribly obtrusive or obstructive can be "twittered" and since the links are hyperlinks, you can instantly link on content that you want. Plus if you watch or befriend one of the content providers, you'll know up to the minute what they are doing - just like a live RSS feed, rather than a pushed RSS feed.

Oh the possibilities.

So here are a couple of uses of Twitter that I hope will quiet the doubters - the nattering nabobs of negativism re: Twitter.

One from Adrants and one from ZDNet Blogs:

Now go sign up and stop worrying about all the revenue you're losing. Twitter is potentially a great marketing/branding channel for content distribution. And if it isn't that? We'll figure out something else. Or else in a year or two, Twitter will die or something will replace it and the ten billion of you who don't get Twitter, won't get that either.

Innovation never sleeps, does it?

Technorati : Twitter, customer value, marketing, social network

Comments

[Dan]

Social presence = Over-inflated ego. 99% of "friends" you meet on twitter or whatever are people from another state or country, someone you would never meet in real life. How can you even begin to call these people "friends"?

Just because I read your blog, doesn't necessarily make me a "friend", in the sense of the word. I mean, do you really know me? Or do you only know OF me based on what I post online? Research says between 60%-90% of communication is non-verbal. And words on a page convey even less information then talking. So know, you really don't know anything about me, based on what I "twit". But it sure feels good thinking I'm your friend, now doesn't it?

[Paul Sweeney]

One phrase I've heard for this is "ambient messaging" and "social presence". It's important. Imagine tying this capability to socialnetworks where people get instant updates? Why aren't special offers distributed this way? It is very early days for this company and my bet is that it will be another year before you see the "oh yeah, why didn't we think of that" element to Twitter. There again, Twitter may end up as the "Friendster" to some other "Facebook" if it gets some key elements wrong.