Is Twitter's Sun Setting or Rising for B-to-B Marketers?

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Is Twitter's Sun Setting or Rising for B-to-B Marketers?

Posted by Patrick Maness on Thu, Nov 19, 2009

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In a recent article penned by CNBC's Silicon Valley Bureau Chief, Jim Goldman, he posed the question, "Has Twitter's Finest Hours (Seconds) Come and Gone?" As a B2B marketer, I believe the answer to this question is...maybe. But let's look a little closer at the trend and take a minute to separate fact from fad.

In his article, Jim points to a steadily declining user-base, miniscule growth, and an overall lack of direction. No doubt Twitter will have to evolve - maybe even figure out what it wants to be when it grows up - if it is going to remain relevant and survive. Otherwise, it will be surpassed by the next great whiz-bang platform for communicating with one another. That is, if it doesn't run out of funding first.

More to the point, I believe the declining usage cited in the article is represented by the millions who latched onto it earlier this year after it was declared to be said "next great whiz-bang platform" and just as quickly, left. People signed up by the truckloads to find out what all the fuss was about and then...they didn't get it. Or, they got tired (I've experienced a few bouts of Twitter fatigue myself). Or, they totally got it and leveraged it so well they tweeted their way to a new job. Or, they realized they can't make thousands of dollars a day from home just by Tweeting.

When it comes to B-to-B marketing, there is no shortage of experts actively exchanging ideas on Twitter; often with links to excellent blogs on everything from SEO to PPC to Inbound Marketing and yes, blogging. Speaking for myself, I am part of the team at our B2B marketing agency that shapes the inbound strategies for our clients (and our agency), and so far, the benefits of dedicating a portion of the inbound marketing mix to Twitter are nothing but positive and trending up.

I could go on, but the point is that I don't see current declining usage as a sign of Twitter's imminent death. Will it someday die or forever fly? I have no idea, but I believe we'll all have a collective say in it one way or the other.

As Jim states in his article, "Twitter continues to drift through the marketplace like a dandelion seed, going where the winds of trend and word-of-mouth and hype take it." Call me crazy, but given the audience it caters to, this mindset may be the basis for its survival.

Pull up a rock and let me know what you think.

Patrick Maness is a strategist with B-to-B marketing agency MLT Creative and heads their Rhode Island office.

Known as the Idea Launch Pad^TM for B-to-B marketers, MLT Creative's services include strategic planning, positioning, brand development, advertising and sales promotions for business-to-business clients.

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Tags: B2B Marketing, Atlanta B2B ad agency, Rhode Island B2B Marketing, Rhode Island Ad Agency, Rhode Island B2B Ad Agency, Rhode Island Advertising Agency, Rhode Island Ad Agencies, Rhode Island B2B Marketing Agency, Patrick Maness, B2B Social Media Rhode Island, Twitter

Comments

Hi Patrick,

Good question. It's tempting to write off Twitter because after all, other social networks have come and gone (Friendster). But I think Twitter is different because like eBay, it uses a technology sandbox to change the way people form relationships with one another.

In this, Twitter has an advantage over rivals like Facebook and LinkedIn because those networks replicate the relationship models that we use in the real world. They are permission based. I need to have trust and experience with people before I agree to enter into a relationship with them. But Twitter is different. In the real world, we have a name for Twitter’s relationship model: stalking. But thanks to technology and some shared group rules, Twitter creates a new, lower-level entry point for people to enter into relationships with each other. I call it the viral relationship model. I follow you because I share a few interests and like what you’re saying; you’re flattered and feel safe so you follow back. Then I follow your friends and am able to expand my network at a scale and pace that has simple never existed before.

And as people have pointed out, it is an intelligent network. By using searches and keywords, I can build a network that feeds me intelligence (again) on a scale and pace that I’ve never experienced before. Everyone has the incentive to become more involved. All you have to do is want to learn and share–only two of the strongest impulses we humans have.

Of course, the relationships that Twitter gives us are pretty basic. But the point is that it is a new entry point for building deeper relationships that we just didn’t have before. For B2B, I think this important because customers are looking for peer relationships and marketers are desperately seeking market intelligence. I get much more valuable information through my Twitter network than through any groups on LinkedIn or Facebook.

Twitter’s relationship model means that it has a tremendous opportunity to become the platform for online relationships. We just need better ways to parse the information and share. Of course, Twitter hasn't made a dime yet. But I can't help thinking that if they find a way to parse this intelligent network better, they will be able to attract advertisers. Meanwhile, users who are there to learn, will find the network too valuable to give up just because of some ads.

Posted @ Friday, November 20, 2009 4:02 PM by Chris Koch

Patrick

You raise a good point and I echo your sentiments that the doom-mongers are a little premature on this one. Millions of people have tried it and then left. But surely that leaves an ever-growing percentage of enthusiasts? I see Twitter as maturing as people find more uses for it. And, personally, I see value in searching and information gathering as much as I do in relationship building. But the fact that Twitter led me here and gave me a chance to see what you guys have posted on this blog makes me, I think, a little richer in experience for it.

And Chris, your point about Twitter giving you a different entry point to relationships is very insightful. You don't have to be best buddies to share information - but you do need to establish a link on a basic level, and Twitter does this better than anything else at the moment. If the Next Big Thing is going to blow Twitter out of the water in 12 months' time, I look forward to it, because that Next Big Thing will be even more useful to me!

Posted @ Monday, November 23, 2009 5:54 PM by John Bottom

Chris

Thank you for sharing your insight. First, I can’t agree with you more. Second, I found myself thinking about – and even questioning – the concept of viral relationships. Do you believe the objective of entering into one of these relationships should be to continually migrate through the relationship funnel as trust grows? Or, have we redefined what relationship means? And, is that a good or bad? Like anything, I guess it all depends on your perspective.

On one hand you could see this new layer of relationship as a lower rung; meaningless relationships (in the more traditional use of the word) where people are using one another or taking and not giving in return. On the other you could see it as having a greater sense of belonging with the group or community where you’re actively exchanging knowledge. I prefer to think of it as the latter, but the truth of the matter is that there are all types of relationships and they are what you make of them...just like Twitter.

Posted @ Monday, November 23, 2009 9:59 PM by Patrick Maness

John

I’m happy Chris and I were able to inspire you to respond. I’m really glad you got something out of this post and hope you’ll check back in the future. Don’t be a stranger.

Posted @ Monday, November 23, 2009 10:00 PM by Patrick Maness

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Is Twitter's Sun Setting or Rising for B-to-B Marketers?

Patrick Maness is a strategist with B-to-B marketing agency MLT Creative and heads their Rhode Island office.

Known as the Idea Launch Pad^TM for B-to-B marketers, MLT Creative's services include strategic planning, positioning, brand development, advertising and sales promotions for business-to-business clients.

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Is Twitter's Sun Setting or Rising for B-to-B Marketers?

Patrick Maness is a strategist with B-to-B marketing agency MLT Creative and heads their Rhode Island office.

Known as the Idea Launch PadTM for B-to-B marketers, MLT Creative's services include strategic planning, positioning, brand development, advertising and sales promotions for business-to-business clients.

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Known as the Idea Launch Pad^TM for B-to-B marketers, MLT Creative's services include strategic planning, positioning, brand development, advertising and sales promotions for business-to-business clients.