Are you a self-proclaimed Twitter lover like me or do you roll your eyes when the platform is mentioned? Whichever category you fall under, there’s no denying that Twitter is a force to reckon with.
With over 353 million users worldwide, the platform has revolutionized how we communicate with people and stay informed. You can share information as quickly as possible with just 280 characters.
Twitter is a powerful social media tool for both individuals and businesses. Lots of companies leverage the platform to promote and market their products and services to the right audience.
For individuals like me, we use it to share our hot takes on trending issues with the world, stay up-to-date with breaking news, connect and communicate with friends, and also follow our favorite celebrities.
Just like everything in life, Twitter has its good and bad sides. We are going to explore all of them in this article.
So, if you’re still weighing the pros and cons of the platform before joining the “Twitter Wagon”, this post is for you. Hopefully, you’ll make a well-informed decision at the end of the article.
Let’s begin with the pros first.
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Pros of Twitter
- 1. Twitter is entertaining
- 2. It amplifies voices
- 3. You can easily engage with policymakers
- 4. There’s a lot to learn on Twitter
- 5. You receive instant feedback from organizations
- 6. It’s easy to find information on any topic
- 7. Twitter is user-friendly
- 8. It has a global reach
- 9. Twitter supports different languages
- 10. It offers great privacy options
- 11. You can earn from the platform
- Cons of Twitter
- What is Twitter Used For?
- Conclusion
Pros of Twitter
1. Twitter is entertaining
You can’t talk about entertainment without attaching Twitter somehow. The platform harbors lots of entertaining content.
To cool off after a long and tedious day, most users log in to the platform and entertain themselves with funny memes, viral comic videos, and posts made by other users.
There is usually a lot of banter on the platform too, which can take your mind off your daily worries.
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2. It amplifies voices
Another beautiful feature users enjoy on Twitter is its ability to amplify the voice of the voiceless. We all have something to say and crave to be heard and having a platform like Twitter where you get to share your stories and experiences is such a breath of fresh air.
And unlike other platforms where the level of post engagement depends on the number of followers you have, Twitter doesn’t function that way. Even if you have just one follower, your tweet can easily blow up.
Non-followers can retweet, like, and comment on the post. And the more they do, the more your post goes viral.
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3. You can easily engage with policymakers
No other social media platform is as politically-inclined as Twitter. In fact, during elections in most parts of the world, candidates take on the platform to campaign for their offices.
And even when they are elected, they stick to the platform to offer more insights on policy changes or reforms. A lot of political leaders know best not to wash their dirty linens on Twitter.
This way, they stay accountable to the citizens.
4. There’s a lot to learn on Twitter
One nice feature I love about Twitter is how it allows you to choose topics you’re interested in once you sign up on the platform, whether that’s science and technology, business, art and entertainment, politics, finance, or music.
The tweets that will show up in your feed will depend on your desired topic. It helps to streamline what you assimilate in the media.
Additionally, experts in different industries share helpful resources and insights which you can learn from.
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5. You receive instant feedback from organizations
I recently noticed that most businesses and companies on Twitter are usually on guard and work to stay in the good light. They know very well how a single post from their customers can either make or break their business.
A lot of users already know this and are currently leveraging this to pass their complaints and inquiries to the companies, knowing that they will receive instant feedback from them.
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6. It’s easy to find information on any topic
The hashtag feature allows users to search for specific topics and conversations. Also, once you click the “Search” bar, you’ll see current trends from different parts of the world. Save to say, Twitter keeps you up to date with information.
7. Twitter is user-friendly
This is another fascinating feature of the platform – it is super easy to use. You don’t need any hack or tutorial on how to use it. It’s easy to navigate making it accessible to users from different backgrounds and ages.
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8. It has a global reach
Twitter also has a vast audience base. You can easily connect with people from different parts of the world. It’s a great platform for networking, building professional relationships, and expanding your reach.
9. Twitter supports different languages
Twitter wouldn’t be this global if it was restricted to just one language type. It supports different languages. You can choose your preferred language for headlines or content you want to see on Twitter.
You simply need to click on the “Accessibility, display and language” option from “Settings and Privacy.”
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10. It offers great privacy options
Twitter is very high on privacy. You can decide what information you want people to see, and also who can message you directly. Additionally, you get to choose what content you want to see on the platform based on your topics and interests.
It’s also easy to keep your accounts private or accessible to anyone as well as mute or block users whose interests don’t align with yours. The best part is that Twitter permits you to decide whether it should monitor your online activities such as the websites you visit or not.
You can also choose whether Twitter should share your personal information with its business partners. The platform generally has high standards for user data and privacy.
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11. You can earn from the platform
This is a recent exciting feature on Twitter. Aside from sharing content and connecting with people, you can also get paid for doing what you love.
As a creator, you can host spaces like workshops, conversations, or meet-and-greet sessions and sell tickets to users willing to be part of the conversation.
This monetization tactic works perfectly if you have established a brand for yourself and have a large following on the platform. The best part is that you’re entitled to 100% of the revenue made after platform fees from Apple and Google have been deducted.
Another way to monetize your content on the platform is through influencer marketing. Companies can pay you to promote their products or services and products.
To top it off, Twitter is a free platform. There’s no fee attached and signing up is as easy as pie.
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Cons of Twitter
As much as Twitter has a lot of benefits, it’s also important to know the drawbacks of the platform before using it.
1. Twitter has a limited character count
This is the most glaring setback. Twitter only gives you a 280-character limit to share your thoughts which can be challenging especially if your ideas or thoughts are complex and can’t be captured in just a single tweet.
Though a better way to approach this is to share your post in different parts. However, people hardly read past the first tweet.
They will only expand your tweet if the first paragraph is engaging and intriguing enough.
2. It can overwhelming to deal with information overload
Twitter is designed in such a way that you’re exposed to a stream of tweets from other users whether you are following them or not. Hence, it becomes difficult to separate irrelevant content from high-quality content.
It can be overwhelming consuming information and opinion from different users. If not curtailed, you’ll eventually get to a point where you can’t hear your own thoughts anymore.
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3. There is a lot of cyberbullying and harassment
Most people are staying away from Twitter because of the level of toxicity the platform harbors. Once you have an opinion contrary to that of the majority, you’ll be bullied to either delete the tweet or log out of the platform.
This somehow makes it difficult for some users to voice their opinions for fear of being lynched.
4. It can get addictive
Like any social media platform, if you don’t curtail how you use Twitter, you’ll easily get addicted. You’ll get lost in user banters, trends, and notifications.
The more you try to stay up to date on news and also participate in conversations, the more time you spend being unproductive.
5. There are a lot of bots and fake news
Twitter is a breeding space for fake accounts. Your account can be suspended if Twitter notices frequent engagement from these spam accounts.
Also, with how easily information spreads on the platform, there’s little or no time to confirm their accuracy.
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What is Twitter Used For?
If you have not tried Twitter before, here’s a refresher on the basic stuff. Down below, I will briefly discuss what the platform is used for.
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Twitter is a social media company founded by American internet entrepreneurs, Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone, Noah Glass, and Even Williams. It was launched in July 2006 and has garnered lots of active users.
From staying updated on what is happening around the world to connecting with friends and sharing opinions on trending issues, Twitter exists for a variety of reasons. They include:
Twitter users, especially news agencies and journalists, take to the platform to share real-time updates on current events happening around the world. Other users use the platform to stay informed on these trending issues using specific hashtags.
The more retweets a post gets, the more viral it goes. The platform helps to promote social and political causes.
2. Connect and build professional relationships
This might be surprising but Linkedin isn’t the only social platform to build professional relationships.
Twitter also allows you to network and connect with people of similar interests from around the world. But first, you need to set up your bio such that it reflects what you do.
By posting regularly about your works using the right hashtags, you’ll garner lots of engagement. The good thing about Twitter is that your posts are not only limited to just your followers.
3. Building personal brands
This is one of the beautiful things about Twitter. You don’t need to have a business or run a company before creating a brand for yourself.
Even as an individual, you can create a niche for yourself on the platform. By simply sharing your thoughts and ideas on specific areas, you can establish yourself as an expert in the field.
And the more your followers increase, the more brands and organizations will reach out to you for influencer marketing.
4. Marketing and promoting products and services
Companies and businesses also rely on the platform to sell their products and services. This is easily achieved by running targeted ads and also using relevant hashtags to reach a wider audience.
Brands can also partner with influencers in their industry to promote their products or services and build more brand awareness for them.
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5. Customer care service for companies
Twitter also serves as a customer care service platform for lots of businesses and companies. Customers can easily reach out to them with their complaints and inquiries and the company will attend to them.
To make the process easier, some companies have Twitter accounts specifically created to handle customers’ inquiries, questions, and feedback promptly.
6. Promoting advocacy and activism
A lot of real-life social and political movements usually spring up from Twitter. Because the level of engagement on your post does not depend on the number of followers you have, tweets can easily blow up. It only takes one person to tweet about a situation.
A good example is the Black Lives Matter movement that happened in 2020. The hashtag #BlackLivesMatter generated lots of conversations and eventually led to a nationwide protest in the United States over police brutality.
Overall, Twitter is very versatile and serves different purposes, from sharing trending news to promoting advocacy and activism around the world. One unique feature of the platform is the ease with which information is shared.
Posts are short and straight to the point. Most people refer to the platform as a “Mini blog” because it allows users to share their posts in short sentences including links and images.
Other users engage in the post by either liking, retweeting, or commenting on the post.
Conclusion
As you can see, Twitter is a powerful social media platform that can be both a blessing and a curse.
Its ability to disseminate information quickly, keep users up to date with trending news across the world, and amplify the voices of those who have something to say is exceptional.
However, we can’t ignore its addictive nature, character limitation, exposure to cyberbullying and harassment, and the danger of spam accounts.
Just like other social media platforms, it is up to us to weigh both the pros and cons before signing up.
