Facebook & Twitter: The new form of GPS

I can’t remember when, how, or why I set up a Facebook account. It must have been at least three or four years ago, or possibly even longer. To be perfectly honest, I don’t remember what life was like before Facebook. There was MSN Messenger, which I probably started using in sixth grade. Before that, there was the telephone. And no, I don’t mean cell phones. I’m talking about landlines. Remember those? Facebook has turned into an empire, and a person can do virtually anything social through this medium.

Twitter, referred to by some as the “mini-Facebook,” has exploded all over the Internet in the last few years. It is essentially a huge, constantly moving forum. People all over the world are communicating with each other every minute, every second, every day. Both of these social networking mediums are insanely popular, and many people seem to either love (or hate) each one. Therefore, I’m going to ask some people why they use (or don’t use) both Facebook and Twitter, and see what they think it means for future communication.

The first person I decided to talk to was myself, because frankly, it’s easy. I do not use Twitter, but am on Facebook every day. The reason why I choose Facebook is because I feel it is more personal. I can access more of a friend’s information, and learn more about the current events in their life.
Strategically speaking, it would be a dream if every corporation in the world could have access to every single person’s Facebook page. It would basically be like millions upon millions of free surveys. They could learn what people like, what they hate, what they are interested in, and most importantly, where they spend money. This would be a huge advantage, because it would answer the question of “who is our audience?”

Many of my family members use Facebook, but none of them use Twitter. When I asked why, some said because it’s still “too new.” Others replied that they just “haven’t got around to it yet.” This is interesting. It took my family years to get onto Facebook after it became popular. Initially, they were opposed to it as well. Therefore, maybe people become more comfortable with technology the longer it is around. I don`t know what this means strategically, but I suppose that once a person signs up for either Facebook or Twitter, they will most likely be using it for awhile.

To find some Twitter-ers (I just made that word up) to talk to, I looked towards my classmates. Last term, we were asked to sign up for a Twitter account in class, and then blog about it. I signed up for mine like a good little girl, wrote my blog, and proceeded to forget the account existed. (It`s either blog or tweet... I don’t have time for both, and I choose blog!) Many others embraced the new technology, and others already used it.

They find Twitter helpful for a variety of reasons. First, you can keep up on what everyone is doing, and it can be quicker than Facebook. Second, you can learn about what virtually ANYONE is up to, including Barack Obama and Ellen DeGeneres. Sure, you could try adding them on Facebook, but most people I’ve talked to feel that Twitter is much easier. Last, if you sign up to follow the Winnipeg Free Press, or any other news source, you receive constant updates about what`s going on in the world. Overall, you can basically connect to everything and anything you want to.

I think that Twitter is a HUGE tool for any sort of corporation or company. It isn’t as detailed as Facebook, but a followers list can reveal a lot about a person. Also, what people feel is important enough to tweet can tell you a lot about what they actually value.

Here is an interesting side note, but it ties directly into what I am writing about. I was watching Operation Repo with my boyfriend last week, and in one episode they were going to a mall to repossess a moped bike. Part of their job is to track down the vehicle, but in this case, they checked Twitter. The girlfriend of the owner of the bike tweeted which mall they were at, and the time stamp attached to the tweet told the Repo guys when they arrived. The bike was repossessed (with a struggle, of course) and Twitter saved the day! Afterwards, one of the men explained that they are starting to use both Facebook and Twitter as a strategic tool to repossess cars more effectively. Many people publish their whereabouts or evening plans on one or both of the sites, making it very easy to find their vehicles!

To end this post, I just want to say that I think Facebook and Twitter resemble a 21st century tracking system. This is fantastic for people who want to know who to market to, but for the rest of us, it could be a disadvantage. My only advice would be to set privacy settings high on Facebook, and watch who you allow to follow you on Twitter. Don’t get me wrong, I love using Facebook, but I recognize that there can be a downside if one isn’t careful.