Twitter as infrastructure for business? Not today
I’ve been busy this morning, but reading peripherally the twitstorm about user counts of tweets sent and inflated numbers. Mine currently shows I’ve tweeted 55,553 times. I know reality to be more like 18.5K, and I’m a heavier user than most Twitter accounts.
I haven’t researched this deeply. I’m not inclined to. As an enterprise architect and strategist, guiding business decisions, I can simply react. Twitter as a business tool or infrastructure element simply doesn’t exist.
We’ve all read how important Twitter is to business, although we mostly wonder if that’s true. We may be just making it up as we go. I’ll admit that, while many won’t. But let me follow through with my thought.
If’ I’m in business and using Twitter, I want metrics. ROI. WIIFM – What’s in it for me is the biggest metric of all.
The dirty little secret of Twitter ROI and metrics is that today everyone of them is bullshit. Statistically inaccurate whimsy, fantasy and lies. Anyone who tells you otherwise should not get a piece of paper from you that says “pay to the order of.” Remember that.
If however, I am a business using Twitter, the tightest measure I’m going to track will be average return per tweet. It will be valid when it can be tracked. However, if Twitter stats inflate my numbers, Twitter invalidates itself as a tool. If my perception is that I make 4 cents on each tweet at 15K tweets, and suddenly the stats say I’ve done 60K tweets, I no longer know what Twitter’s value is. Or maybe I do. Maybe the value just went to zero, or even negative.
Twitter’s cavalier attitude about issues like this has been widely seen over three years. As they said in the Twitter support forums, “this bug is a low priority issue because it does not prevent users from fully using Twitter. We do not expect to have this issue fixed in the immediate future for this reason.” You might read that to say “we don’t really believe we’re business capable infrastructure and neither should you.” That’s how I read it.
Think Twitter’s for business? Think again. For some business yes, but for many, it isn’t even on the radar scope. For good reason.
Is Twitter social? Absolutely
Is Twitter fun? Much of the time.
Is Twitter for business? Maybe
Is Twitter infrastructure you can either rely or measure? Not a snowball’s chance today.
Is it a technology issue? Not really. it’s a management issue. Twitter management wants to be core infrastructure at the vital level without putting in the work to earn it. They want a gimme. A pass.
I won’t give them a pass for business enterprises I advise and counsel. Play straight and call them the way they are.
on February 6th, 2010 at 2:52 am
Excellen observation, as usual, Ken. It’s amazing how people follow when something expands quickly, and jump on te bandwagon without really thinking about it. That’s why we need people like you!
:0)
on February 6th, 2010 at 9:28 am
I’m in partial agreement my friend…First thought that crept in was the same as you…Here goes my ability to calculate an already questionable ROI as it is, because of the inflated tweet #’s…
I also, and in agreement with you don’t think they are presently “core-infrastructure” to serious people with serious businesses. But I would definitely place Twitter in the “non-core” group. Meaning, assuming the model could actually benefit from the tool as you mentioned as well.
The reason Ken, is because as we have discussed many times, even with management’s cavalier and infantile attitude toward its potential serious applications, Twitter continues to represent a disruptive technology in my mind, but as you say, “is not a technology issue”.
So as long as Twitter as a technology continues to amplify the way we communicate and interact I think it should be selectively considered for its use, regardless of obvious nuisances and myopic viewpoints from management such as this latest one…But I don’t think I’d keep it away from an enterprise majority…
We’ll have to make an adjustment, perhaps figure out Twitter-time investment instead the “per tweet” as a benchmark metric and then compare to analytics in terms of flow and conversions….Also, let’s not ignore the mostly positive direct relationship impact that continues to take place regardless of the “human bugs”, this also has a direct effect on ROI.
But as always my friend you and Sheryl shine the light of reason on my weekend…always looking forward to chat with you…
Love,
Claudio
on February 6th, 2010 at 10:31 am
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on February 8th, 2010 at 12:10 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Ken, Sheryl Breuker, Luca Filigheddu, Keith C, Lewis Evans and others. Lewis Evans said: Twitter as infrastructure for business? Not today http://ow.ly/14wZn Pause for thought by my good friend Ken Camp [...]