Twitter v Facebook - can they live together
By agvulpes
Twitter versus Facebook
Being relatively new to all the social networking applications on the Internet I could not quite get my head around the Twitter and Facebook phenomenon.
When I joined HubPages it was my first experience at writing and I resisted for quite some time to join the Twitter and Facebook 'thing'.
I called Twitter and Facebook 'things' because I was very green and did not know about the term used 'social networking'.
My aim with this Hub is not to give my opinion (although I will lol) on whether Twitter or Facebook are the best social networking sites. More to let the readers tell me what they consider is the best site!
First lets consider some of the things that can be done on each of the sites:
New Twitter
Twitter refers to itself as a 'real time' network and that we can follow the 'conversations' that we find interesting.
This is done by what has been referred to as micro-blogs called 'Tweets'. These Tweets cannot be longer than 140 characters in length.
There is now available a re-engineered New Twitter which has a much friendlier interface and allows us to see much more on our home page without having to refresh all of the time.
We can now look at the times we have been 'mentioned' on twitter (@Mentions), our retweets the lists we have and are on and more.
It seems to me that Twitter felt they were being threatened with being swamped by facebook and with this New Twitter it is possible to delve into the Tweets and watch videos, see images and lots more.
Facebook says that it is 'giving people the power to share and make the world more open and connected'. Now that is a bold statement and with such freedom in my mind carries a fair amount of responsibility on the side of facebook. With the big injection of capital from bankers Goldman Sachs just announced it remains to be seen just how 'open and connected' we will be allowed to stay. I believe this capital will make Facebook almost as valuable as other internet giants 'Yahoo' and 'Ebay, combined!.
It is reported that on Facebook there is literally millions of people around the world sharing an unlimited number of photos, links, videos and chat with people they know!
As well as doing all of this there are countless applications for doing all sorts of things. Things like family ties, games (Farmville)
I have just read a report that says that 7% of the worlds population is connected to Facebook in some way. Phew, whichever way you look at it that's a whole bunch of stuff!
Twitter or Facebook
What do people say about Twitter and Facebook?
After much reading and talking to various users of both platforms and 'reading between the lines', also being a little bit general, most folks seem to think there is a distinct difference between the two applications!
The consensus seems to be that Twitter is a great tool for businesses, getting their message out among the customers very quickly (instantly) and with the new Twitter adding more depth. Whereas facebook is favored more for the social side where people allow more time to chat and share there media and experiences.
My opinion
OK I did tell you from the start that I would have an opinion. For what it is worth I would like to submit the following observations.
I think the line is blurring between facebook being a social networking site just for friends to gather and share experiences and what not. I have noticed that facebook has become much more commercial and sometimes it is hard to pick whether it's a person or a business I am dealing with.
I also find over the time since I joined facebook it has become much more 'clunky' and I'm experiencing far more drop-outs and re-logs than earlier on.
I thought it may have been just me but other people have told me that they have a lot of trouble navigating their way around facebook!
I also have a blanket refusal on joining any of the apps presented to me for joining.
Another concern which I have alluded to above is the big injection of 'bank' money into the company. May this rob Facebook of it's independence and force them to toe the Company line?
However my biggest concern with 'facebook' is the apparent lack of scrutiny prior to acceptance of members applications. facebook appear to accept no responsibility of this at all. Twitter on the other hand give me the impression that they take this very seriously and I have often seen a 'follower' removed from Twitter before I even get an opportunity to check out their profile.
With the advent of the 'New Twitter' only just recently I am feeling quite comfortable that I am able to see who is 'mentioning' me and my belief is that Twitter is a much more open application and although not exactly the same as facebook will give them a good run for their money.
I will continue using both Twitter and Facebook and keep this Hub updated with my future experiences.
Twitter of Facebook
I am interested in how many people use Facebook or Twitter and for what use?
See results without votingComments
I onlu use thes networks because it seems to be what is required. i don't really understand them.
Ah my FFF passwords are the bane of my life. I have just updated my FB one again. It seems that everyone is queuing up to gatecrash FB accounts.
You being churlish me thinks not... well maybe just a little :D If a pig was being thrown at me I would be as well:-)
Who better to share words of wisdom from than our old friend Garfield :-)
@dahoglund, I see where you are coming from! The Buzz is that if you don't join and use certain sites you will not succeed. Unfortunately I believe that there is a certain amount of truth in the Buzz.
Our Hubs seem to live and die by the amount of 'page-views' they receive and Twitter and Facebook are a good source of 'page-views' usually though you would need quite a few 'followers' and 'friends' on both sites to make an appreciable difference.
Thanks for dropping by :-)
I've got friends who post links to interesting info.and videos on FB...and I use Twitter to follow up tech.and science links from Twit,EnGadget,Mashable and stuff like that.;)
Well there is a way you can separate what you promote on Facebook, and what you share with your friends. I even wrote a hub about it two days ago. That is why I have created Facebook fan pages for my sites, and all my postings go there. I love twitter in that yes, it is less clunky.
I must admit, I use Twitter much more extensively than Facebook. One little tip... not only post your Hub links, but reply to some of your followers Tweets. Even be so bold to reply to Twitter superstars... it gives you much more exposure.
@mentalist acer, being from another time era most of my friends (they ones that have not passed over) are not savvy enough to use FB in that way. A big worry of mine is the privacy settings on FB. Can they be trusted to never get broken? I also use Twitter for the latest updates on technology it is so 'instant'.
BTW: everyone I don't mind at all if you leave your twitter and facebook handle at the bottom of your comment, you are sure to pick up some more followers?
SweetiePie, Thanks for the heads up and I will check out your Hub on Facebook. I find that Fan option very confusing on FB and still have a big concern that privacy will become a big issue with the FB site.
I just have a feeling FB is trying too hard to be 'all things to all people' I am getting quite used to the New Twitter now and think it is a big improvement on the old version.
Thanks for adding to the conversation. I am learning something every day :-)
Jai Warren, great to get another opinion. I do have a concern that Twitter may punish us for over promotion, do you see that as a problem?
Great tip on the 'exposure' idea, I have never considered replying to Super Stars, in fact I'm not sure how to 'reply' to anyone. lol
Thanks for adding to the conversation, that's something else I've learned today.:-)
I am on face-book.Enjoyed reading your hub.
ed77burns thanks for the input and I appreciate the kind words:-)
I use both Twitter and Facebook. I have several Twitter accounts, 3 Facebook profiles, and I have quite a few FB pages. They all serve their purpose and I have ways to keep up with all of them. I use TweetDeck and HootSuite and other 3rd party websites as well.
Joyce thanks for dropping by and sharing your uses of twitter and facebook. I will catch up with them along the way.
I have tried using Tweetdeck but can't quite get the time to learn it! I'm not too sure what Hootsuite is?
Facebook is the one I use most , mainly to keep in touch with my domestic and foreign xbox friends. Twitter is used by myself occasionally but I find the Twitter interface harder to use. Both sites however are good for posting any new hub links so they both have their uses.
Good hub, thanks for sharing.
paulgc thanks for contributing to the discussion :-)
I can see where facebook is good for keeping up with people if a longer conversation is needed, although i believe that the new Twitter interface is a much needed improvement in this regard. Personally I have more trouble with the FB interface, to my mind it is too cluttered and the navigation seems to change without notice?
I do agree that both sites are good for promoting Hubs.
The consensus appears to be the Twitter and Facebook can live together!
I figure I spend far too much time on FaceBook as it is so I probably shouldn't go adding any other social networks into the mix :) no Twitter for me
TSA, thanks for sharing. That's the very reason I prefer Twitter, I used to waste too much time on FB. With Twitter it's basically, in,see whats up and out again :-)
G'DAy agvulpes, Good subject for a hub.
I'm not overly fond of any social bookmarking sites, and although I do get some juice from them , it still seems insignificant to me. I have a lot of friends on Facebook, but many are from other interests. I would be surprised if facebook or twitter have much affect on the bottom line of my adsense income.
G'day earnestshub thanks for dropping by and contributing to the Twitter v Facebook debate!
With me the jury is still out on whether Twitter or Facebook is better for boosting my figures:-)
There are a few people selling facebook apps that go and hit on your groups, and like many other ideas, has been pumped as a big money spinner. I checked it out on the warrior forums and it appears to be a lot of hype and a waste of money.
Why is it that any idea that may grab you an extra few hits is promoted as a quick road to riches.
A bit like claiming a pogo stick to have Ferrari performance and comfortably seat 5 people.
Yes the old 'snake oil salesman' is still alive and well and living on the Internet. The last 'Pogo Stick' I took for a test drive gave me a real pain in the... well you know where ;-)
As new as the Internet may be it is still the WWW (Wild Wild West) and the old adage of caveat emptor still applies today as when it was first coined.
Unfortunately the phrase applies equally to Twitter as well as Facebook :-)
I do use both Facebook and Twitter and they help my hubs.
I started FB on January 13, 2010 and have reached the maximum number of friends. Twitter is more difficult for me probably because I cannot express myself concisely.
G'day einron, I did not know that Facebook had a maximum on their Friends :-) You must have a lot?
Hmm expressing oneself concisely on Twitter now that is a whole new story and requires a lot of practice! However if you do get it right I feel that Twitter may finish up more valuable/hour spent than Facebook.
Thanks for dropping by and adding your opinion. It is much appreciated :-)
Maximum is 5,000 friends. I have a second a/c with 922.
I write mostly on religious matters and some on food and cancer, etc.
Wow 5,000 followers on Facebook + another 922 that is very impressive. That must keep you very busy staying on top of all of the messaging? As a comparison how many followers do you have on Twitter?
Twitter - 1475 followers.
Once again very impressive amount of follows! Have you thought of putting a Twitter link on your profile page?
Thanks for the tip. Great!
I see you now have links to both Twitter v Facebook on your Profile! I hope it attracts you more followers and friends :-)
Thank you for your most welcome tip to update both Twitter and Faceboo on my profile.
At one time, my Twitter a/c had reached following 2000 (maximum) and my followers were about 1550. I decided to discard following more people. I lost about 100 followers, but now I am following about 450 people. It is more healthier this way. Thank God I was able to reverse the trend of following more people than having followers.
You are welcome and I hope it is a good move for you!
I fell into the trap on Twitter of 'following' people to be polite and then 'following' the people that I wanted to!
This created an unbalance I can't seem to reverse. However these days I am becoming more selective in who I follow. I am trying to maintain at least a 66% relationship which I feel is OK. I tend to not follow people who have a low incident of not following back or not making 'tweets'.
Thanks.
Another great one to bookmark.
Thanks for sharing this very well informative hub.
Take care
Eiddwen.
You are welcome and thanks for taking the time out to read my Hub on Twitter and facebook. It's nice to know that you thought it informative.
Cheers:
Agvulpes
I use facebook much more, only because I only access it from my laptop. If I used it from my phone, I would probably use twitter more. Good info here, very informative!
@carcro thanks for the feedback:-) I am starting to use Facebook more because I think it has become more user friendly.
Although at this point of time I still prefer Twitter for it's immediacy :-)
Feline Prophet 16 months ago
I am only on Facebook (imagine trying to remember yet another password!)and I use it only to keep up with friends and their pictures! And occasionally share words of wisdom from Garfield. I routinely ignore invitations to apps and other stuff, and people have stopped throwing pigs at me since I am churlish enough to always duck them! :D