There’s little doubt that Facebook and Twitter are the two most popular social networks worldwide. Of course, some people tend to argue that Twitter is more of a micro-blogging service rather than a social network. IMO, the follower – following relationships in Twitter represents as good an approach for social networking as the friends – fans approach on Facebook.
Twitter came into limelight much after Facebook and has been a major revelation ever since it’s inception. Is Twitter a more effective social media tool than Facebook? Is Facebook scared of Twitter? IMO, the answers to these questions is ‘Yes’ and I’ve very good reasons to prove my point.
Ease of use
Twitter is by-far a textual social networking service. For a new user, it’s much easier to signup and start using twitter than to do the same on Facebook. Of course, Facebook is jazzier as compared to Twitter and offers support for audio and video content. However, Twitter beats Facebook hands down when it comes to user friendliness and ease of use.
I’ve come across many new users who feel lost while navigating on Facebook. Moreover, Facebook has changed the positioning of its menus and buttons way too often to my comfort.
Privacy
Facebook has often been under the hammer for flouting privacy norms. While Twitter keeps privacy simple and there’s no risk of your sensitive information being exposed to others, Facebook has made a complete mess of it in the past. Periodic policy changes have often left users confused and furious on Facebook.
Wider Reach
Twitter allows a much wider reach than Facebook which is limited to your inner circle of friends. You can follow just about anyone you want – be it your favorite politician, your favorite film star or any other celebrity. There are better chances of finding these people on Twitter as compared to Facebook. Twitter is a pure communication tool with rapid responsiveness unlike Facebook which is an amalgamation of a social network, communication tool, multimedia components and an advertising platform.
Anywhere Anytime Access
You don’t need to be logged into Twitter to get updates, you can just use one of the thousands of RSS readers or other tools available for accessing and updating your Twitter feed. Facebook is more of a web application and its best experienced by using a browser. Though there are mobile applications which provide Facebook access, the mobile experience is no match for a web-based experience.
Open API
The sheer volume of Twitter applications and third-party tools is a testimony of the popularity of its Open API. Though Facebook Connect is quiet popular as well, it’s more of a closed API with several restrictions. Further, Twitter Open API is very thin and allows development of robust and powerful applications while using minimal memory and CPU. In comparison, Facebook Connect is more taxing from a resource management perspective.
Massive Advertising Potential
Though Twitter is yet to launch it’s announced advertisement model, it has the prospects to be a game changer in online advertising. On Facebook, advertising is limited to Fan Pages. As compared to Facebook, Twitter offers more opportunities for subscription-based revenue streams.
Wrap-up
Twitter is ‘sweet and short’ and I’m sure most people love it that way. There’s no doubt that Facebook is more glamorous, however it certainly has lessons to learn from Twitter’s phenomenal success story as an ‘Effective Social Media Network’.
Also, Facebook has been copying twitter, look at the @replies they recently implemented.
Thanks for this post. I value it because it put the case clearly. As someone with a small amount of technical knowledge and a huge amount of Twitter experience, I've struggled with Facebook. I've not made the time to understand the potential of Facebook. The thing I don't like about Facebook is the befriending process. I've vacillated between planning to expand number of Facebook Friends, welcoming all – and sticking to people I really know in some way.
I'm about to set up a Fan Page on Facebook for my business but I wonder how easy I'll find that to serve. Twitter has got to me. I've developed the habit of tweeting and it sticks. As you say or imply Hootsuite, Tweetie (the 2 I use), Tweetdeck and other platforms make Twitter so easy to use.
However, Facebook users are many. I know I want to go to where others are at and link with them wherever they gather for interesting conversations. So, even if Twitter is better than Facebook, the sheer size of Facebook attracts me.
Thanks for getting me to think out loud about this.
Facebook's UI is a mess. I don't get it sometimes, it wraps around and around itself, and you have to hit “home” to get back to something you recognise.
As for FB's security and it's constantly shifting-sands model of security/customer service (they are linked fools!), some of us are nursing elderly parents into the 21st century, and getting them on Facebook is a nightmare scenario!
In my opinion, one more reason why Facebook should be worried is that twitter is a lot easier to use for the users. Facebook can tend to get really overwhelming to the user and really taxing on the users machine and internet connection, with various applications. At least that's what prompted me as a user to switch from Facebook to Twitter
Are you kidding me facebook rocks every social networKing has it's problems personaly I rather use facebook although I'm a Twitter fan;)
i totally disagree.
Twitter is not better than Facebook, nor Facebook better than twitter. They are just in different leagues. They may be both social networking.. that doesnt mean there should be a way to compare them. Facebook is rich in media content… Twitter in sharing what u think or doing in 140 chars. In twitter, u can follow anyone u want? yes. But who says you want that on Facebook?
Maybe, sometimes, you just want your friends, your real ones, not your followers.. to see ur pics.. or videos.
Facebook is more personal, is more closed.. is more friendship.
Twitter is more open, is more easy, but is also more one way, unidirectional, messangin system.
Conclusion: They are different tools for a different purposes.
If not, as anyone with a Twitter account if they have stopped using facebook? likewise, those using facebook after being first at twitter.. are they stopping using twitter?
Why, because none of each one is replacing the other.
No offense, but a lot of people can't understand how to use Twitter, for all its simplicity. That's why you see tons of people signing up and then abandoning their accounts forever. While Facebook is definitely not 'simple', a lot of users get used to its features as those have been present since the days or MySpace, Orkut and Bebo.
I'm a big Twitter fan, and I don't like Facebook all that much, but it's kinda ridiculous (at the moment) to say Facebook is scared of Twitter. Facebook has over 450 million users, and most of them are active. Twitter has some 100 million accounts, about 10-15% of which can be termed 'active'. Maybe things will change in future, I sure hope they do, but for now it's Facebook all over the place. Heck people are even starting to consider it bigger than Google, even if it's just about raw numbers. That's saying something.
I use twitter more than facebook cause my office blocked facebook, the feature that I love in facebook is hide friend status, so we can select which friend we want to follow
I agree 100%. Twitter is more open and laissez-faire. I do not have to put my personal information out there if I don't want to, I don't have to spend hours editing my details, I simply say what I want to say and post what I want to post. Being a young woman, I have found that Twitter causes less problems – “Did you see her relationship status on Facebook?”, “Look at what she became a fan of!”, etc. Facebook is nice if you are into gossip and catching up with old friends. However, it does not have anything on Twitter. I plan to get rid of my Facebook once I am out of college, but I will keep tweeting until I can no longer use a smart phone or the internet.
there just 2 different tools, its like saying a hammer it better than a screwdriver. I use facebook for friends and twitter for the rest of the world.
Yeah unsure if I'd put both Twitter and Facebook in the same leagues on this one. As others are saying here, they're both tools in the same online game – but both with much different audiences using in my opinion. I've just found there to be two camps online, both having their own preference – regardless of ease of use (or the hoopla on privacy issues with Facebook).
I'm surprised Facebook and Twitter is being compared. They are totally different social networking medias. Almost like an apple and an orange; both fruits, but different ones.
Totally 100% agree. I love Facebook and it serves a purpose but Twitter is more effective because of the network, the privacy that comes with following others, and the talent required to message effectively in 140 characters. I'm relatively new to the world of Twitter *blush* but I've realised what a powerful tool it is to receive great, relevant, targeted content for me and what an opportunity it presents to push my organisation and site content out to others. 3 cheers for Twitter! Hip hip…
I WISH twitter was easier than facebook! I have found the opposite to be true .. FB has the buttons right there and is pretty self-explanatory. I STILL don’t know how to do tiny URLs in twitter .. let alone attach a piece of music. Nowhere on the site does it explain how to do these things. I am also inclined to deeply disagree that the two are in competition .. they are SO very different.
Please, please, please:
Use “IT’S” only when you could say “IT IS”; all other time use “ITS”, no apostrophe.
I agree that they’re relatively different. Facebook is more personal. Whereas, Twitter is more casual. I do prefer Facebook for these reasons. It’s more visual. It’s easier to have an in depth conversation on Facebook because it’s easier to follow a single thread. The new sidebar on Twitter is helpful. But, I’m tired of reading comments on Twitter and wondering wth are they talking about, and wth are they talking to. Then, you have to jump back and forth to try to follow what someone’s saying. And, I prefer how the links and photos on Facebook have a small preview. I like to have an idea if it’s something I’d be interested in at a glance. I hate to click on something, open an external page, wait for a pop-up, only to find out, I knew this was a waste of my time. And, if you’re looking for something specific and have to do that like ten times in a row. A real pain.
The randomness of Twitter serves it’s purpose because it’s abroad base of lightning fast information. And you can engage a broader audience of people than just your “circle of friends”. But sometimes it can get too random. And, the anonymity factor is cool too if you just wanna share your thoughts without putting your personal business out there. But, I don’t really like all the fake names, fake accounts, and posers. I know these Bieber fans/etc. are pretty “die hard”. You can tell they’re mostly kids, and it’s actually kinda cute. But, I think that encourages more people to hide behind a computer screen and not be willing to stand behind their word. That’s something else I noticed. Seems like twitter attracts a younger audience that’s more willing to create alter egos and seek out strangers, because they’re sort of still searching for an identity. Whereas, Facebook attracts a more mature audience that’s a bit more selective about who they associate with.
Summation. They’re similar tools. But their subtle differences give them different purposes. Twitter is more like a casual blog where you can share ideas and information rapidly with a larger audience. Facebook however, is a more personal network where you can connect, share, and have conversations in a more in depth way.
I disagree.
Twitter more user-friendly and easy to understand as a new user than Facebook? I strongly disagree with that. I see real potential and usefulness of Twitter for online media sites (posting links to new content and thus driving more hits) and celebrities (to keep their fans up to date with their activities) but beyond that it seems very limited. Twitter’s main tool is as a pointer or link to content on other sites. Facebook offers all this and much much more.
I too agree with the above points. Twitter is a lot friendlier that Facebook is. I remember to have started using twitter far later than facebook. But I think I am so clued to twitter all the time that i have nothing to be put up on Facebook. Pics? We have twitpic. And if i have to share a news i do not have to think whether am i spamming people’s timeline. this is not the case with facebook. Unnecessary photo tagging ticks me off… So any day I prefer twitter over facebook.
Cheers!
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