Can You Explain Twitter in 140 Characters or Less?
Are there some people who will just never get Twitter?
My wife asked me several weeks ago to explain “that Twitter thingy” and my answer barely satisfied her.
My barber asked me last week and I can tell he instantly regretted the question. And I regretted the haircut.
I might be able to ward off my wife and the dude with the scissors, but at work, where I’m the go-to social media guy, I am being pressed for answers.
I’ve been faced with what has turned out to be a fairly difficult task at work: explaining exactly what Twitter is to an older generation of folks.
Memos, presentations, projectors…and I’m still not convinced they get it.
Of course they are mostly interested in the bottom line. How they can leverage the craze and turn tweets into dollars.
Normally I can articulate fairly complex operations to just about anyone. But I recognize when I’m coming up short. That’s why I need your help!
In Twitter fashion – in under 140 characters – give me your best Twitter description. Your explanation should try to encompass the micro-blogging platform’s purpose and societal impact.
Not sure if this quite encompasses purpose and social impact, but here goes:
Twitter = river of info. You can’t drink it all, but you can jump in & swim! Magic happens thru interaction (@reply, DM, hashtags) & search.
Think birds, tweeting trying to get a reaction from similar birds but not minding if other birds hear. Pleasant to some, noise to others.
Now, you explain a telephone to me in 140 characters.
var i = new cell(); var u = i.getTxtmsg(); if (u == true) { alert(“Tweet!”); }
People talking about what they want, when they want, while listening to what interests them, what friends say and what’s directed at them
People telling other people what they are doing at any minute. People stalking people. Social phenomenon. The hot thing! Oprah vs. Ashton.
My Id is mchgun
As “texting is to cell phones, “Twittering is to Twitter or Twixting is to Twitter…
Hmm.. If I DM you can I get 280 chars? ;-)
Twitter is the ham radio of the 21st century.
IM for the ADD generation
it’s like watching txt messages sent between every person you know and everyone can see yours
Public online SMS (that can be searched as well).
Here are 140 of them: http://thefuturebuzz.com/2009/04/09/140-insights-from-twitter/ ;)
Cocktail party. Meet and hang with interesting people, ignore the others
It’s how the narcissistic keep in touch with the feckless.
Is 137 characters OK?
“It is part text messaging and part blogging, with the ability to update on your cellphone or computer, but constrained to 140 characters.”
I told this to *MY* barber recently–and later blogged about the experience: http://ariwriter.com/2009/03/how-to-simply-explain-twitter/
information junkies’ heaven where those with the info can pass it along to millions at a time and where news becomes old in minutes not days
Twitter is the first web application platform that runs primarily on ADHD.
http://twitter.com/fitzroy/statuses/1514721069
Imagine an IM service that send messages to everyone connected, or not, with you.
Forget explaining Twitter in words! Current TV did an excellent video which enlightens everyone that I show to what Twitter is about.
Twitter is public text messaging.
I love how everyone sees Twitter through their own prism. Very interesting stuff!
Twitter is a dynamic social orgy of ideas & communication occurring in real time.
if u use twitter, you can read news, msgs and your friends’ whereabouts all in one place + real time in a manner that won’t overwhelm you.
Twitter is listening out loud.
Or should we say Twitter is talking out loud?