I now twit. I’m not proud of it, but I do. I do it because many of my friends in the blawgosphere spend more time twitting than blogging. They comment about blog posts on twitter, and if you don’t read twitter, then you won’t see their comments. In the process, twitter has become incredibly mainstream for lawyers, particularly with twittercheerleader Kevin “Give me a ‘T’…” O’Keefe pushing to process forward.
But the momentum of twitter seems to headed in a direction that may spell its early and unceremonious demise. Rachelle Cunliffe at Mashable posts about the 10 ways that twitter will change blog design in 2009. To sum it up in one “way”, she contends that twits will become integral components of blawgs, viewable and responsive, in the near future. Uh oh.
For the moment, twitter is something of a refuge, even for those for whom desperation marketing is their prime motive for blogging Twits come. Twits go. They can have a twitchat with others without fear that it will frame their marketing persona, carefully crafted on their blog to gain maximum self-promotion.
This means that their twittering, both to others and amongst themselves, must change from actual communication to yet another vehicle for self-promotion. Yesterday, somebody could happily twit that they were taking great pleasure in reading a few Archie comics in their leisure time (That Veronica is such a meanie!). Tomorrow, it will be War & Peace, lest their potential targets think their choice in literature inappropriate.
Appearance is everything when marketing. Once twitter is firmly ensconced in the broader marketing scheme, it too must maintain the appearance of professionalism, decorum and probity.
And then it will be a bore. And we will stop twitting. And twitter will die. And there will be no one left to notice or care.
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Twitter is having problems figuring out how to monetize and may die from that, but I don’t see it dying from formalization. I don’t see Twitter becoming a place for effective marketing. Not searchable and people have to choose to follow you to see your messages so you can’t really sell yourself to someone.
BTW, all the techgeeks are now moving on to FriendFeed so expect it to be the next thing.
I already see (and use!) some small amount of Twitter integration into blogs, but for me at least, it doesn’t change how I use Twitter. I prefer to think Twitter’s informality is a bonus on my blog, not a marketing negative.
If Twitter and LexTweet are fora where we learn what comic strip was funny this morning and what Prof. Althouse had for lunch, it seems like just one more distraction interrupting a lawyer’s thought and work flow. I don’t know which is scarier for clients (or managing partners), hourly-billing or fixed-price lawyers stopping to Tweet (not to mention to do their blawg-related activities and to jump on to “the next big thing”) throughout their workday.
Interesting post, but you’re oh-so-wrong, Mr. Greenfield;)
Twitter will evolve-and it may evolve into an entirely different animal, just as blogs have done.
Blogs used to be simply online personal journals and evolved into a new way to communicate about anything and everything.
Twitter is just the latest phenomenon in the spectrum of what is “social media”. It won’t die, nor will it be forgotten. It’s an important building block and, IMO, will go down in history as the beginning of something big;)
We shall see, Your Highness, but when the next “BIG” thing comes down the line, will you forsake your beloved twitter and say the same of the newest phenomenon? We shall see.
Twitter is so 2008…. already those in the *know* are using a members only service, invitation only, that is so secret … I cannot reveal the name – more secret even than Freemasonry – another very useful social networking system if you are into advancing yourself.
I regret that I am not able to let you, or anyone else know about this new upscale system for networking – but I have only just been ‘elected’ – a little old fashioned…. it was a small plume of white smoke from a building in Rome that let me know I was *IN*…
Now…. I must go to a theatrical shop and buy a sword and a black Tricorn hat with a yellow feather… this new ‘networking’ society likes a bit of ritual and regalia… Oh yes…. nothing like a bit of ritual and regalia.
Right…. better get on… back to my blog as it is a requirement of membership that all blog posts be seeded with hidden messages based on Fibonacci mathematics
White smoke from the Vatican? I guess M’lud won’t cut it anymore, your Excellency.
People who use Twitter need a cool moniker to keep the momentum going. Something that you can say with pride at parties and in client meetings when people ask you how best to contact you.
You can say something like, “Twit me babee!”
Or you can mention that you are a Twitterer or a Twitite or perhaps even a Twitmalian.
What would you call a gathering of Twitites? A tweet of twitterers?
What would a Twitter hacking be called?
We have to have something to describe such a heinous invasion into yet another web innovation. Say what? You got Twitjacked?
It can’t die. The possiblities are endless it seeems.
I like a bit of papal bull…
You joke, but the language is already out there. The verb is “tweeting”, as in “Tweet me!” A gathering is a “tweetup.” People you tweet with are “Tweeps.” Just this week, I heard “twitjacked” used to describe a recent situtation where someone took over a number of the top 50 Tweeters (including Barack Obama).
Lawyers, Media and Twitteratti
Every once in a while, a variety of admonitions, seemingly unrelated, come together in one place to make a very good point.
Lawyers, Media and Twitteratti
Every once in a while, a variety of admonitions, seemingly unrelated, come together in one place to make a very good point.