Twitter is so noisy
Anyone on Twitter has heard it all before- “Twitter is too noisy,” “Twitter is just a big pointless chat room,” “Twitter is stupid,” and “no, I won’t use Twitter, now get off my lawn.” Once fully immersed into the social microblogging network Twitter, people start sounding like that guy who used to weigh 400 pounds but lost 200 and now looks like an after picture. That guy wants everyone to join him in his fabulous weight loss quest and it comes up in every single conversation you have with him.
So what? If there was a magic pill that cured obesity, don’t you think everyone would be talking about it? If there was a magic social network that bridged all others and was growing like crazy wouldn’t it be prudent to look into it? The 2008 social media statistics were just released: Twitter grew 752% in 2008 which is the equivalent of 400lb guy losing 350lbs- it’s insane.
Still not convinced?
No? I wouldn’t be either because those are just numbers, right? I mean, who cares that Twitter has a fairly well educated, high income demographic? Who cares that it is a naturally informal place conducive to genuine connections that offers up a trust relationship at a break necked pace? Who cares that Twitter is catching up to Facebook in monthly traffic? Who cares that moms, athletes, Realtors, lawyers, CEOs, java programmers, journalists and Shaq all congregate somewhere that people let their hair down on a level playing field? Who cares that the same people calling Twitter a waste of time actually spend their time ON Twitter? Who cares that the use of Twitter leads to “tweet ups” where people take these relationships offline and often to a business relationship? Who cares that in many cases, Twitter has replaced texting and email? Who cares that 70% of users joined in 2008, and are new just like you?
Twitter is not a chat room although it has some of the same functionality. Twitter may some day evolve into something else and we understand that Twitter is just a tool or a vehicle, but the culture of open and instant communication will live on regardless of the forum. If you’re not on Twitter, it can feel like a giant chat room at first because the age of early adoption is over and many users are well established in the network and “speak” accordingly. You don’t have to use Twitter, but if you do, you’ll be the formerly 400lb guy in no time talking about the amazing connection potential.
