Andrew McAfee's Blog - Latest Comments in “17 Things we Used to Do”

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Yoav Shapira — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 10:50:52 -0000

Great post, great comments below. I'm curious if you have updated thoughts more than a yesr later, having seen Twitter's help in revolutions like Egypt's?

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Brauche Kohle — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 03:06:52 -0000

When Twitter first appeared I didn´t take it serious and thought 'yet another trend I don´t like' but after twitter grows and grows I think it is used by so many different people that it will stay on focus for a long time. A exploding user amount like at twitter is a little bit scaring. But the concept of following everybody and everything seems to work.
By the way: Nice article, I will FOLLOW your site ;-)

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Jessica — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 14:27:44 -0000

I think one of the biggest contributing factors to how long a person uses Twitter is their personality. A simple example is that a person who is likely to "stick to something" is likely to use Twitter longer than someone who is more likely to "move on" as something doesn't seem to serve them. There is also a characteristic of how "connected" one needs to be to feel comfortable. Some people crave instantaneous feedback from others to know they're "not alone", and some are solitary by nature and actually enjoy a sense of isolation. Another factor is how much benefit a person perceives from using Twitter. Your car ingnition example is a very obvious one, but ones personality will dictate what value Twitter has to them, based on the relationship they have with the people they follow or are following.

Personally, I joined twitter and was posting about 1 tweet a day for about a week or two. After that, I checked it once or twice, and it's now been a few months since I've logged on. (I'm the type that "moves on".) I will probably become more active on twitter once I get my new cell phone with social networking capability.

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

daltxguy — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 18:24:25 -0000

Twitter is more like just *another* thing to do. It will eventually find its place amongst all the others 'things to do'.
Fundamentally, I think it does nothing differently but it's a shorter and faster version of everything else. It's blogging for the texters. It ADD inducing. How much shorter can our attention span get?
I can't tweet yet while walking around in my forest (no coverage whatsoever!) and I kind of like it that way. There will be a revolution, but it won't be twitter - it will be back to nature, people meeting people again and having conversations. Remember those?

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Domy Gryfino — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 06:45:33 -0000

Did you know that more than 50% of twitter users newer twitted? That 70% have no followers. It's more a toy and I think that in two or three years nobody will care about twittering.

D.G.

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

driessen — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 09:39:28 -0000

A bit late... Really nice post! My ideas for your list: expertise network and selling products.

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

K_Minks — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:03:07 -0000

I am part of the 50% who will remain on Twitter until something better comes along. As of right now, I can communicate with friends/strangers, get product updates, post pictures, and even go on a "flash drive hunt" around LA (markhoppus of Blink 182) all from one page. This by far trumps the multi-clicking necessary on Facebook and Myspace. Let's face it, with the number of great sites popping up increases every day, who has the time for more than one click on any site?

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Benjamin Ficker — Tue, 12 May 2009 10:20:51 -0000

It is amazing how quickly social media is changing everything. I'm a (relatively) young 26 year old and I am feeling left behind with twitter!

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Buenos Aires Apartments — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 13:31:24 -0000

I´m shocked to see how fast this social groups can grow and the importance that people gives to such way of communicating. Great topic.

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

wschampheleer — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 06:27:54 -0000

I refer to your interesting post and related it to Twibe groups in my blog http://bit.ly/Aquei.
It would be interesting to hear what you (and your class) think about Twibe groups and how they impact (enrich?) Twitter.

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

samcarew — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 18:31:12 -0000

....and in the six days since Oprah had 620,439 followers! Great blog post! I don't Twitter will fade out.. I don't think its fully mainstream here in the UK at least so there is still huge place for growth!

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

DrSandraCottingham — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 18:31:36 -0000

I wouldn't have been able to follow your article if I had not taken the plunge and decided to start twittering about a week ago. I have 32 followers. Perplexing, actually.
My purpose in joining on was to wrap my head around the phenomenon, not get left behind ( as I seem to have been with the whole facebook thing which is the life line of my 26, 25 2nd 24 year olds) and -- honestly ...3rd reason to twitter... to create traffic in the direction of a book I am about to release.
Most interesting to note is that I discovered ( someone explain if they can?) that unlike all of my other twitter followers/followees , I have direct message capability to both Barack Obama and Stephen Harper. How did that happen? Am I missing an option feature - can everyone establish direct messaging with everyone? I am certain I am not that special.
Anyway, my book is about lead exposure ( Called Lead Babies - www.nomoreleadbabies.com) and since Obama is all about the lead issue - and harper needs to be --- works for me.
As for the future of twitter ... I think it has mostly commercial appeal in the long run. I hope I can learn how to leash its full power to drive traffic to my site. I think the a percentage of users will dabble in the abstract messaging aspect - but the majority will be commercially motivated.
Your story about your rental car is great though! Doesn't mean that people with a purpose other than connecting socially, won't take a moment to also be altruistic.
Nice article. Thanks.
Sandra Cottingham, Vancouver, Canada

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

snesich — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 23:20:37 -0000

Good analysis and summary, Andrew. Thanks for sharing it with us.

I spoke at length today with a friend who just joined Twitter, mainly because as a small business owner, he kept hearing it "would be good for business." He said to me, "I still don't get what it's all about." I told him that I considered Twitter to be a technology vehicle for any individual's interests. If you're a teenager obsessed with rumors and gossip, that's what you'll use Twitter for. If you're passionate about environmental legislation, that's what you'll use Twitter for. If you're focused on the market for wireless technologies, that's what you'll use Twitter for.

Essentially no different than the telephone, Internet or email.

Practically speaking, as the head of a company that develops and manages conferences, events and exhibitions, I find Twitter extremely helpful for communicating with a team of individuals working together to execute a complex event. It can save hours if used well. And we continue to discover more about Twitter and its broad range of applications.

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Steven — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 22:15:33 -0000

Hi Andrew, I find Twitter allows me to access people who are considered thought leaders in thier field (like yourself), that I would not normally have met personally, nor have access to in other ways. I find people are less likely to accept Facebook 'Friends' or LinkedIn 'Connections' from complete strangers. (At least this is what I do).

#18 Twitter Spam (unfortunate consequence of ease of access)

@steven_cornish

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

friarminor — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 19:26:46 -0000

Hmmm, i find that Twitter gives out a signal to the world about your own presence in what really is quite a simple, frictionless way. Then everything else comes along with it like the power to contribute, connect, be informed and a kind of easily reviewable log of your own life as well - but with reference not just to time and event but to vis-a-vis set of people as well.

Great piece as always, Prof!

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Ellen — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 17:48:50 -0000

This is a great post, and I like that it draws the focus toward the ways twitter enables people to do what they would be doing anyway. People don't fundamentally change, but they do make different choices based on how well a solution enables them to achieve their original goals.

To me, the question is not whether Twitter will die down, but whether there are other options to easily connect with others. The students who felt that they would walk away after the class was over probably have enough seemless, relevant relationships in their lives. I would be interested to know if this is true. In essence, do they have a better way to achieve their original goals?

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Jane McConnell — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 15:37:47 -0000

I was very surprised to see the low rate of micro-blogging in my 2008 Global Intranet Strategies survey. I have just done a post referring to your post here, Andrew, where I feel you make a strong case (whether you intended to or not) for intranet managers to get their heads around micro-blogging.
I consider your post here to be a "must read" for all intranet managers: http://netjmc.typepad.com/g...

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

bussgang — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 13:44:21 -0000

Andrew - This is a great analysis and I'm thrilled that HBS is grappling with this phenomenon in real time (Twitter's mainstream popularity is really only 4-6 months old). My personal suggestion of another one to add to your list is that Twitter is a mechanism to mini-blog. I blog every few weeks when I have a meaty topic, but I enjoy using Twitter to share quick bursts of opinions. I confess to being a Twitter skeptic at first, but am now a convert.

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Salvatore Reina — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:35:24 -0000

How interesting that something so seemingly simple can yield relative complexity upon analysis. Great post and helps me further crystallise my thoughts on Twitter.

I'm definitely in the "continue" camp btw.

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Salvatore Reina — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:33:01 -0000

How interesting that something so seemingly simple can be so complex once one starts to dig. Great post which helped further crystallise my thoughts on Twitter.
Btw, I'm definitely in the "continue camp".

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Alex Bain — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:02:41 -0000

I like the notion that a prime source of Twitter's value is trivia. It struck me that the origin of the term "trivia" is relevant: In Rome, where three roads met, a number of signs would be posted sharing information. To any given traveler, some info was relevant, but much wasn't. You'd scan the info, takeaway what was meaningful to you, and move on.

Seems similar to how many people use Twitter.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Alex Bain — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 11:59:59 -0000

Great insight about the 0.5% hit rate. That's a pretty standard click-thru on banner ads, too. I wonder if it's a golden ratio of the internet: "1 out of 200 people will respond to any call to action".

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

AVD — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 11:58:23 -0000

Nah. I have a twitter account set to private with about 160 followers and someone whom I've never met and previously didn't know personally is now loaning me his turntables for my party (and has been added to the roster of DJs) after I asked the twitterverse where I could rent or borrow 1s & 2s. That's just an example. I've gotten a lot of feedback from relative strangers and met new people through twitter.

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Genuine Chris Johnson — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 10:21:33 -0000

Twitter is big brother's pilot program. And I'm sad to say that I'm utterly addicted to it.

Re: “17 Things we Used to Do”

Brian Gillooly — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 09:51:08 -0000

Hey, Andy. One of the things that ought to be on your list of 17 things is "Flexing our egos." I've discovered that for a great many people, whether they admit it or not (or realize it or not), Twitter is an avenue for them to massage their egos by showing how informative or knowledgeable they can be. It's the same with any cocktail hour conversation, you get the set of people who feel they have to show how knowledgeable they are on a topic and keep pumping the info, often multiple times. I see a lot of multiple posts from people that provide only incremental advances on a particular topic, and of course there are those who just post a whole lot in one day (talk about "what else did you used to do"; how do these people find time to get other things done?) And then there are those people who jump on Twitter early in the morning and stay on it well into the evening, as if leaving Twitter somehow messages to others that you're not dedicated, cool, or knowledgeable. So just by dint of the time they spend on it, I feel there's a bit of ego massaging going on. And of course, you get a lot of people who talk incessently about Twitter itself (not referring to you (!), and besides, you have to, your a professor of Web 2.0 technologies!), which to me is like talking at a cocktail reception about your car or your condo or whatever is the coolest "thing" at the time. Don't get me wrong, I like Twitter (it took some convincing) and I've learned a lot from tweeters, but I've definitely noticed what seems to be ego flexing, or at least attention grabbing, going on.
As far as staying or walking away, I agree with a colleague of mine who says that Twitter itself may suffer the "fad" fate, but this kind of asynchronous open community social networking is here to stay and evolve for the better. Twitter's downfall for me will be that I just don't have the time to read, or even sift through, all the tweets.