As I browse the 100s of tw
eets and re-tweets on the subject ‘PR and social media’, which I have typed into my rather snazzy Hootsuite account, something occurs to me. These people have jobs and, dare I say it, lives. Yet, instead of blatantly sitting on Facebook looking at their 2nd cousin's holiday snaps they are tweeting. Granted, they are tweeting about things related to their employment, for example, today it is mostly on the Nestle screw up. Twitter can feel much more productive that other sites such as Facebook. Mostly, Facebook is for personal use and so is classed as non-productive work. Twitter, however, can be used for professional use, apart from the few tweets to Stephen Fry you slipped under the radar. I can’t help but wonder if this is really a semi-productive way to alleviate the boredom of office work.
I know that I am finding Twitter a pleasant way to waste my time and I am almost definitely sure it is because it is all in the name of the Digital PR course I am doing and so is therefore, technically, work. Also, I secretly hope to be discovered by some prospective employer so I won’t have to go through the rigmarole of actually applying for a job, but that is another matter.
Brian Solis talks about this very thing. Part of his argument is that it using social media during working hours acts as a little break and reinvigorates you to start on some ‘real’ work. But I suppose my point is much more along the lines of Twitter as a PR campaign tool. PR practitioners can tweet happily away in the name of the organisation they represent and feel like they are doing something. But are they?
Derek Hodge has mentioned many times in our lectures that there is, as yet, no empirical evidence that Twitter works for organisations. I haven’t found any but I have a feeling there must be some in the pipeline – someone out there must be aching for a year off to do a PhD is something just up this alley. So until this research comes out it can’t really be qualified as a viable tool for organisations though I can’t help but hope it turns out to be a profoundly large waste of time for everyone involved, just for my own amusement.
I totally agree with your friend. I have been on twitter now for nearly 2months and just can't seem to get into it. And I mean I love procastinating so you would think it would be right up my street however i have found the amount of information that i am bombarded with on twitter a little overbearing. It is constant. I mean it does have it uses but I think if i need information about a company or a celeb in future I will continue to google it rather than check a twitter or facebook page to get my info.
ReplyDeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to hear your views on your use of Twitter. You are entitled to your own opinion ofcourse and that's fine.
But I am the exact opposite. I've been using Twitter for over a year now and I find it extremely helpful.
I feel that Facebook appeals to people looking to reconnect with old friends and family members or find new friends online which is the original reason it has been created. Stay connected. And I do think that Facebook is understood very quickly and how it works, whereas with Twitter it's a bit different.
I feel that the usefullness of Twitter isnt as obvious, but I think it may be more addictive than Facebook once you get a hang of it. You can get so much information in 140 characters, which I think it's amazing. And I actually feel that it's so interesting as you can get so many immediate responses by people, from all around the world.
Which is why, I strognly believe, if social networks such as Twitter is used correctly, it is not a waste of time at all. One of the important things that organisations should remember doing however is not just sending their infroamtion (as I mentioned in my first blog http://sfantis.com/?p=39 ) but engage, and create a "two way communication" amongst its users.
My next blog post is actually on a campaign made purely on social media, so you might actually find it interesting, or even change your idea that social media is very much useful for a campaign tool.
But definitely not good while working.... =)
Thanks,
Sophia
I am on the fence about Twitter. On one hand I think it is a waste of time, and slightly self-obsessed in that people just talk about themselves.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, when people actually begin to discuss situations, business and events it becomes much more interesting and useful to millions of users.
It is an extrmemly useful tool if used properly. I have been on Twitter now for 2 months-ish and I have posted something ridiculous like 3 posts. But I enjoy seeing what people have said, particularly those I am following. I find out about events and get updates.
I think it depends on how one uses it. For me Twitter is used to keep up with fashion updates, PR firms and practitioners and funny people.
Twitter should be used for business. I think using it for personal use is a waste of time.
Gi
I have been on Twitter for 2 months and I can not achieve an information about an event or ask understand why people like it or what advantages could have for a company, I have not seen any successful public relation campaing in Twitter.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is only useful if you want to some questions about a product, places, etc., in a short period of time, but anything else.
In conclusion, I think that Twitter is not a good media to develop a campaign for a company. This will be a waste of time and money (in terms of campaign´s design).
Twitter seems to be something that may be slightly counterproductive because in its attempt to shorten and simplify information so it can be received and accessed quickly - they've opened up a world of seemingly endless tweets that can waste precious hours. And some people just can't be bothered.
ReplyDeleteI think many people are still wary about it or the people who use it don't fully harness its potential.