Understanding Twitter – Why do so many people fail to?
By Dave Parrack
Twitter is the latest in-thing. YouTube, Facebook, blogging and the like have already been on the tips of everyone’s tongues whether they use it or not. This is exactly where Twitter is right now. The user base is growing at an incredible rate and the usefulness of the service is growing as a result. There’s just one problem – lots of people still don’t understand Twitter.
Not one of my real-life friends is using Twitter right now, and very few of them have ever mentioned it to me so they may not even know of its existence. This is in stark contrast to Facebook, which is used by the vast majority of my acquaintances, family, and RL friends.
So it’s easy to see that Twitter hasn’t yet reached the mainstream, despite having been around for a couple of years now. The main reason seems to be that non-users, those who haven’t yet taken the plunge, don’t fully understand Twitter.
I’ve read numerous comments from people on articles related to Twitter stating they don’t understand what it is, what it does, or how to use it. And I don’t understand why this is the case. In it’s most basic form, Twitter is one of the simplest Web apps I have ever used.
Anyone who is putting off trying Twitter out should just take the plunge. Create an account, send your first tweet – a message of 140 characters or less, and then let nature take its course. And I guarantee it will do.
Twitter can be used in a variety of different ways. At its most basic level, it allows you to keep people updated as to what you’ve been up to. Social networking etiquette will tell you to avoid telling your followers (people who choose to keep track of what you’re saying) about your toilet habits. But rules are there to be broken. The main thing is to start conversations and add something to the ones that are already taking place.
The service has evolved over time to become more than it was intended. Twitter can now be used as a news source, by following your favorite Web sites. Celebrities are also rife on Twitter, so if you love gossip and up-to-the-minute news direct from the mouths of the famous, Twitter can replace your weekly magazines.
The point is, nothing about Twitter is complicated or hard to understand. Some of the language that has evolved can be strange to new users but it quickly becomes second nature. By watching how others act, what they say, and the methods they use to communicate, Twitter can be easy as pie.
As with every new innovation, trying it out for yourself is the only way to truly discover what it can do for you. So if you’re still not sure, here’s where you sign up. And feel free to follow me if you’d like to hear inane ramblings at all times of the day and night.
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March 13th, 2009
Great article. And no, we’re not related, but I do see Dave Parrack’s posts on Twitter, because I follow him, and enjoy his tweets.
There are a variety of characters using Twitter to get their message out, ranging from John McCain to Neil Diamond (I tweet, therefore I am).
Most of us don’t have a consistent message, just a few rambling thoughts. But we have fun!
–Wayne (AKA 6pence)
March 13th, 2009
I use Twitter and have over a 1000 followers and still don’t understand how to use it. http://twitter.com/mrbill15
March 13th, 2009
How can you say that Twitter is easy to understand. For you, yes. For me, yes. But not for everybody. You are right that it is best to jump right in, but I wouldn’t judge other people’s ability to understand stuff. Everybody is different. Your article sounds condescending to me.
March 13th, 2009
The name has something to do with it. twitter sounds like “witter”, “litter” ,”trivia”,it sounds like it offers nothing,and is easily ridiculed.
Whereas “Facebook”,and “Myspace” have clear,literally “spelt-out” identifiable provenance for social networking.
However,it’s the name we are stuck with,and i cant really see a “re-branding” having any real worth…and as 6pence says,it’s fun,which the name reflects..
Coming back to your thoughts,Dave..Of course the fact that “Twitter” Is still out of the “mainstream” only adds to it’s cache,(for the “Twitterati”)and i think,the nature of the level of discourse it can facilitate will NEVER enter that “Mainstream”. Maybe It’s just too apparently ephemeral for the “mainstream” “Facebook”/ “Myspace” user to bother with. There’s nothing wrong with retaining a bit of elitism i’d say.
March 13th, 2009
I suspect the Twitter divide may have something to do with working from home vs working in an office. For those who work alone, Twitter can replace the buzz of chat you get from colleagues at an office.
I think a lot of people also come to it with the social networking mindset and see it as fairly limitless/pointless compared with Facebook. To me the distinction is useful as I use Facebook to keep track of people I know in ‘real life’, whereas Twitter is for my online-only contacts.
March 13th, 2009
Well, the thing is… you missed the point of what people are confused about.
When someone says they don’t understand Twitter, they are not saying that can’t figure out how to technically use it. Everyone gets that it sends updates to your followers about whatever it is you want to talk about. That is immediately understood by everyone.
What they mean when they say, “I don’t get it” is “Who cares? Who cares what I am doing at any given moment. I don’t get it! The utility of bothering to send my random status out to random people escapes me.”
The Twitter adopters are mostly the marketing type crowd or celebrities who have a vested interest in communicating in an easy and meaningful way with a volume of people.
For someone like my brother, for instance… he has 200 friends and family on Facebook, and he happily communicates with all of them. He sees no use whatsoever in following techie news updates, and even less use in posting his current status to random followers.
And I suspect he represents the majority of people out there.