Twitter is Hot Sh*t Right Now
March 13th, 2007 | Categories: marketing, networks, social media
Wow, it seems like nothing is more popular in the blogosphere right now than Twitter. Everyday I see a new headline proclaiming the service. My feed reader is full of Twitter posts and testimonials.
All of this has happened in a relatively short period of time. I feel like an outsider, not being a user of the service (yet). But have no fear, I will try it out…
So what is Twitter and who cares? The concept is so friggen simple it boggles my mind. Yet its simplicity speaks volumes about the ingenuity and creativity of the people behind it. The front page reads:
A global community of friends and strangers answering one simple question: What are you doing? Answer on your phone, IM, or right here on the web!
Sounds novel, but seems like an easy concept to copy. It will be interesting to see how the company erects barriers to entry to protect against competitors.
What has me excited about the company isn’t so much the product itself, but the level of enthusiasm around it. It isn’t often that an Internet start-up garners such a high level of press and publicity. The only other recent example I can think of off the top of my head is Joost. This is due in large part (say 98%) to the previous success of the founders.
Another interesting facet of the company is its name - Twitter. When I think of the name, I picture a little kid running around the mall, yelling and screaming, i.e. a twit. In any case, I think the service works in much of the same fashion. Users are screaming/exclaiming/informing people as to what they are doing. It’s a very ego-centric type service when you think about. Users are assuming that everyone is interesting in what they are doing.
If you use the service, let me know your thoughts and your views… I am very eager and interested to hear tales from the trenches.
March 13th, 2007 at 7:10 am
Aidan, I have been using Twitter for the last two weeks after learning about it at Northern Voice. While initially some spoke about it as a time waster, I have found myself intrigued with it, even to the point that I find it comforting working late at night (3:00 am +) while still receiving quick posts from colleagues and friends who are also awake / in different time zones. I blogged about it more than once (even very early this morning http://www.silenceandvoice.com/2007/03/twitter_uses.html), as have many of the edubloggers and blogging marketers and communications folks I follow, all sharing a certain fascination with it. Finally, I like that I can use it web-based, without having to download and install something (due to organizational firewall restrictions). Not quite sure about its business usability or profit factors, but there is a human element to it that thus far has defied a simple explanation.
March 16th, 2007 at 11:12 am
I’ve been using it for a little while now and actually find it quite useful. It’s great for posting and keeping up with your friends on the fly.
I think the reason it’s been getting some much buzz lately (especially at SXSW) is because conferences and events are when the service is most useful especially to coordinate with your friends and see what sessions others are attending.
March 16th, 2007 at 1:23 pm
I’ve twittered post too and found that this is a double edged sword. It can be leveraged to one’s organisation’s advantage but can be used as a competitive disruptor as well.
March 16th, 2008 at 10:38 pm
[…] New Hot Sh*t] - Almost exactly a year ago (March 13th, 2007 to be exact), I wrote a post entitled “Twitter is Hot Sh*t Right Now”. Well, a year has passed and the Twitter hype continues to build. The skeptics are eating their […]