Watching Twitter cross the chasm
It is hard to believe that something as simple as 140-character posts from millions of people on one website would grow to become something so crucial. Twitter is about to cross the chasm. Like a meteor that flies close enough to see only once in a while, we are about to see Twitter rise to critical mass. It is really worth watching.
We’ve seen it happen with many different things, like the iPod or Google. Products that changed the way we behave. Twitter is beginning to change the way we communicate through crowd sourcing. By being connected and transparent we can get a sense of how humanity is feeling, thinking, and experiencing our world.
More often than not, Twitter is breaking the big story. Much like Youtube became the way to share video, Twitter is quickly becoming our open public wire service. It is no wonder national newspapers are feeling a pinch. The news is now being recorded by eyewitnesses in realtime, and shared with millions. How do you compete with that?
Compared to the biggest sites in the world, Twitter is relatively small. With the addition of new celebrities and constant mentioning by media companies it is only a matter of time before Tweeting is as well-known as Googling.
So what are the lessons that we can learn from the rise of Twitter?
Free wins
Twitter, much like Facebook and Gmail, rose to its popularity because it was free. Free wins because it is like a gift to customers. They complain less and are willing to put up with a lot in order to keep using the service for nothing. Free makes it easier to spread because there is minimal barrier to entry.
Get it right
Early on the popularity of the service even caught Twitter by surprise. They had a series of embarrassing outages that made them look amateur. They promised to overcome these issues, and ultimately they did. If they hadn’t, it wouldn’t be as popular. I believe these issues helped dramatize their story. It also proves that people will stick with free even if the service is interrupted from time to time.
Less is more
Twitter is very easy to build. That doesn’t mean it can’t win. I find myself even trying to solve complex problems to create a new product. Twitter doesn’t. It is so simple and easy that that is why it works. Google was simple, iPod made it easier. Twitter is proof that 140 characters is better than a blog post. Constraint makes us get creative and keeps it very simple for less dedicated users.
Ecosystems
SEO is Google’s ecosystem. The accessories for the iPod are an ecosystem. Facebook applications are an ecosystem. Twitter’s cottage industry of sites, clients, and tools provide an ecosystem. Ecosystems ensure that their product travels far and wide. By providing a very open API that allowed easy access for developers, it made Twitter posting standard in many applications. They even worked with competitors to make sure their Twitter integration was supported. We all can learn a little something about not being a walled garden.
Unintended
When Twitter started, it was an internal product used by the developers of Odeo. Odeo was hammered when Apple incorporated Podcasting into iTunes. Twitter, an internal communication method, would soon become much bigger and more important than Odeo. The creation of Twitter was for fun, to solve a real problem. The popularity was unintended. You need to play around a little to see which products work and which don’t. Always sticking to the plan may lead you in the wrong direction; you may need to deviate in order to innovate. So have some fun and make what you feel passionate about – you may be surprised by the results.
Language
With Google we got page rank, search optimization, and relevancy. With the iPod it was playlists, dock connectors, and Podcasting. Twitter follows true with its own language of Tweeting, Tweeps, and a whole host of words to explain what we are doing and who is doing it. From time to time I even find myself accidentally entering @name into my email client. Twitter is modifying our behavior, which is a true sign of critical mass.
These are just a few examples of how Twitter is about to go from an internal communication method for developers to one of the most powerful communication methods on the planet. I always felt there was something special about the service because it was so simple to use compared to Facebook or Myspace. It is nice to see everyone make this realization as well, and know that simple will never go out of style.
Twouble with Twitters
Just a cartoon I found online that adds some humor and ridiculousness to the Twittersphere.
http://current.com/items/89891774/twouble_with_twitters.htm
Posted on Mar 26, 2009 by Kevin Milden
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