Imagine that you’re the PR Director for a small, private company that is preparing for its Initial Public Stock Offering and hoping to secure the attention of institutional investors. What would constitute a home run is a glowing, front page article in the Wall Street Journal touting the numbers and the euphoria surrounding the next most anticipated Wall St. debut since Facebook. Today, it happened. Twitter, the latest social media darling received a glowing endorsement from corporate news editor Dennis Berman. The numbers appear to add up and seem rather convincing if you believe his analysis. Certainly some investors don’t share this enthusiasm, particularly after the miserable stock performance of Facebook following its own IPO. However, the significance of this positive news article in arguably one of the nation’s most respected business newspapers can’t be overlooked. What do you think is the value of this single article?
Piggyback PR 
Twitter has really redefined the social networking sphere. Facebook came on the scene promoting a way for people to connect and share their everyday activites with friends. Twitter has come on the scene to start a conversation between people who have similar interests, for celebrities to connect with fans in a more “real” way, and for companies to engage in CRM. Twitter is very versatile, it’s an open source software that people can use for any purpose, this versatility and the social networking trends really helped spark it’s success. It’s not surprising that Wall Street Journal compares it to Google, Twitter is unique and it facilitates information sharing just like Google! Since so many organizations have joined this space it’s a tool for people to create or follow a conversation in real time with a real business. The value of this article is tremendous, it’s something that Twitter didn’t pay for and it will generate a lot of media attention because of the title! Journalists and media outlets are likely to pick it up because it is astounding data and Twitter will generate free advertising and positive coverage.
You’re right about the open source. I was reading an article the other day that talks about how Twitter allows you to use their API and write code that queries their servers. This allows you to find out what’s trending on your own, follow comments about your brand, etc. This is very innovative. Facebook does some API work as well, but I haven’t ever heard of them opening it up so you could query conversations.
I don’t have a Twitter account but I do have a Facebook account. Maybe if Twitter came before Facebook, I would of have a Twitter account. But I feel like they are the same thing, person signs on and share things. So therefore, I just don’t have that much time and effort to control two account that probably have the same people following me, knowing the same type of information. Although, when Twitter came up, its seems like a lot people caught on because many celebrating are actually talking about using their twitter account and using it in public. I think that makes a lot of people trust Twitter more and draws attention. I am pretty surprised Twitter had gotten so big, now every business must have a Facebook and twitter account to be notice. And why not it’s low cost, easy, efficient and wired.
I also have a Facebook account and not a Twitter account. It is hard for me to see the up side for advertising on Twitter. The ads cannot be as interactive as on Facebook, and it has limited number of words. There are things that differentiate the two accounts, but if Facebook is struggling to generate revenue through advertising I can only imagine it will hard for twitter. It will require a solid PR
*team to demonstrate that the company is worth the investments.
I think twitter is more professional that the other popular social media as Facebook or Pinterest. I think we can say that Pinterest is a share of pictures and visuals, Facebook a share of updates of personal lives and Twitter a share of informations. I think that Twitter is more respecting the privacy of the users compared to Facebook. I think that Twitter is really exchanging content and relevant informations. Since users can “follow” people according to their interest, I think that Twitter stays very journalistic and informational.
I agree with you, @Juliette. Twitter has proven to be a valuable social network for marketing among businesses. Facebook loses credibility by constantly changing its privacy policies and trying to make money by charging fees to contact people you are not “friends” with or the ability to promote status updates. Twitter is also simpler than Facebook, because it doesn’t have as many advertisements and games and apps that “friends” can request you to play with them, that get annoying. You don’t have to verify that you know someone in real life to follow someone on Twitter, and they can follow you back if they want, but they don’t have to. Also, the 140-character limit keeps user updates succinct so they aren’t able to go on a long rant like they can on Facebook. Earlier I remember seeing an article that said content on Twitter has more virality than Facebook. I wish I could find it so I could share it with you.
@Spring, I think Twitter makes brevity a mission, with their 140 limit. This short length makes people think about how they want to word something or what they can say, which by default can make it more business like. And my hypothesis for the ‘virality’ is that it’s easier to share quick one-liners, since all users have to do is click retweet.. simplicity makes it easy to pass things around!
I agree with you, Juliette. I think in the future Twitter will be more popular than Facebook because Twitter contains variable of information. People are able to view the latest news and other information which is also much faster than other social medias sometimes. But I am curious about how reliable the context in every post. From my experience, I just feel sometime I can’t trust all the information from Twitter. We have to have critical thinking regarding to read different options. I wish Twitter or even other social media could provide a platform for people who are looking for more reliable information online.
Strictly speaking in terms of business I think Twitter and Linkedin are more business oriented and are appropriate for stock value. I think that the value of the stock for twitter would be greater thank facebook, since twitter carries more depth and can be used for networking purposes. I also think twitter is more useful for updates on certain topics in the real world as opposed to myspace of facebook. I am sure while Dennis Burman was conducting the analysis, he found data or numbers which added up in terms of value of how twitter operates, and therefor feels this way. The analysis must have had positive results which show that an endorsement could be made, which adds value to the brand twitter itself. I think that 10 years from now twitter will be used a major networking tool for consumers to seek out jobs and be connected with the industry they desire.
I was just reading an article that was highlighting the power of social media. When it was evaluating Twitter it highlighted that Twitter has actually generated revenues for businesses when celebrities tweet about them. There were some pretty ridiculous figures like, when Kanye West tweets about a business it can generate $25k in revenue! I am not sure how they quantify tweets like that, but the article did not mention “Likes” on Facebook as revenue generators.
In my e-marketing class last night, some graduate students did a presentation on this company called Izea that pays influencers to tweet about products. They use a lot of celebrities, but they also have non-celebrities who are considered influencers as well, who post sponsored tweets and other social media posts. Here is the link to their website if you are interested in learning more: http://izea.com/
I’ve thought about Facebook vs. Twitter on celebrity endorsement. I’ve heard plenty about celebrities being paid to endorse a brand and tweet about it. I’ve even heard of celebrities tweeting about a brand and not being endorsed, yet still boosting revenue for that brand. But I’ve never heard of any revenue boosts from Facebook.
I have a Chinese version Twitter, called “Weibo.” Now, I use Weibo much more than Facebook. Instead of showing my real name and other information to some “friends” even I don’t know them very well on Facebook, Twitter ( Weibo) is more open to everyone. I can follow people without sending friend requests. Also, Twitter is simpler than Facebook, because users only need to take a picture, add few words, then tweet it. All the followers can read the tweet and make the quickest responses back. Personally, I use Intragram more, because I think picture is the simplest way to see.
I think you make a good point about not having to send “Friend” request on Twitter, you jsut select to follow a person or business. I think that is the key element that sets Twitter apart from Facebook when it comes to creating value for businesses.
I don’t use Twitter but that’s one of the elements I like most about it – you don’t have to friend someone. I feel like on Facebook by being friends with someone I will automatically be associated with that person, even if I don’t know them that well. Twitter is much more casual/ open and it really works for them.
I am perhaps one of the few people left that do not have a Twitter account. On an individual level, I don’t see the point of using it as a social media tool. However, for any company that is looking to grow and promote their business, Twitter has become an integral part of reaching new and existing customers, more so than Facebook. For Facebook, you may “like” a company because you want to show that you like their products, but for myself, I don’t then keep track of what their posting after that initial “like.” From what I understand, Twitter seems to be a tool that a business can use to seem more transparent to their customers— which consumers tend to see as valuable.
i’m not really a social media person, but from what i heard from my friends. twitter in the arab world is really famous and almost everyone has an account in it and they check it hourly. but the social media in my point of view is good, and on the other hand, it’s confusing because i don’t know what to choose.
I think that this article could hugely benefit public perception of Facebook. Even though they have faced some bad publicity from their recent presence on the public market, this kind of optimism for their company performance could really provide a remedial effect. The saying “any publicity is good publicity” is not completely accurate, negative publicity can cause an incredibly great decrease in positive brand image. this article is a good step towards regaining the image that Facebook as a company once had.
Facebook
I would be spectacle. I am not a seasoned investor, but when I think about investing in twitter the way Dennis Berman did, I get butterflies. It is always hard to replicate what a giant has already accomplished. Twitter and Facebook both rode the wave to the top. Facebook and apple remind me of each other in the sense that they dominate so hard in their market, which they don’t need to follow the same rules as everyone else that plays in their field.
The upsides on investing in a company such as twitter would be that Facebook is plagued with management issues. It’s like Zuckerburg is a ticking time bomb ready to destroy his business in a single public press conference. I do like the idea of investing in twitter in the sense that I don’t know anything about their management’s dirty laundry. Sometimes the best locker room is a quiet locker room.
This one is hard to foreshadow. I’m going to go with my gut and say that twitter is a good investment, and it will grow as Facebook declines slightly. Facebook is and forever will be the B.F.G in this story, and Roald Dahl will always be the best kid’s author. Something’s just never change.
Twitter is still a more credible source than Facebook, and I believe it will always have a purpose. This article drives home the significance of twitter and how it stands up against the face of our industry. Twitter is as integral a part of business interaction as Facebook is with social interaction. This article alone delivers an incredible amount of brand identity to Twitters stock.
I think twitter has a power to generate business opportunity as facebook. Having a twitter account is to give the companies tool for PR and social media. today for most of company should have twitter and facebook accounts because it’s no cost and risk and many people pay attention to these social media everyday.
Most people think the twitter is more professional use comparing to Facebook. Currently, the Twitter’s stock price has went done about 50% of its value in the past 3 months, and what most people say is that the twitter still not making enough money from their services or the advertisement to break-even. However, some people believe that Twitter is going to turn out like Facebook did. Facebook experienced exactly same situation, the stock went very low few months after IPO then bounce back and keep rising.
Twitter is currently underperforming compared to market expectations for revenue and growth, but I don’t think that means investors should abandon ship.
Twitter is still relatively small in the world of social media and the internet in general. Think about how many people you meet who, when you mention twitter, reply by saying that they “just don’t really get Twitter.” Twitter understands this and is continuing to change its product to make it more approachable to the masses.
The fact that Twitter is still small is a good thing. It means there’s lots of room to grow, and investors have more opportunity to make money.
Facebook has completely tapped out its market. It cannot reach any more people through the internet. This is true to the point that Facebook recently began buying television ads— some of the most inefficient ads available today. They’re doing this because they think they can reach the television audience and hopefully convert them into not only Facebook users… but internet users in general. Yes, Facebook has to encourage people to use the internet… and then their product. (This is true internationally as well, through Mark Zuckerberg’s non-profit, internet.org.) This means Facebook has to invest much more money into generating new users than Twitter does.