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Do You Care that Twitter Does Not Make Money?
October 9th, 2008
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by Warren Whitlock · Filed Under: Making Money with Twitter · Social Media
I just read a piece on Slate’s The Big Money by Chadwick Matli that sought to address the issue that “Everybody wants to know how Twitter will make millions”
Really.. Everybody?
The article suggests that Twitter is suffering from Peter Pan Syndrome and does not want to grow up. It’s way beyond me to question whether that is true. I never was much for psycho-analysis of corporations. Supposedly, a reporter at The Slate, where they have a history of trying every monetization plan ever on readers, would know all about this.
I won’t bring up all the ways Twitter might choose to make money someday. In my own outsider opinion, many are credible, few are likely and they all really don’t matter to us.
The fact is. Twitter has become a lot more stable over the last several months, gained a lot more mainstream users and continues to grow its’ base with very little chance that this will change soon.
I think what “everybody wants to know” would more like be How Can I Build My Own Revenues With Twitter and Social Media?
Moreover, regardless of Twitter.com’s future, the Twitter Revolution in the way we communicate, meet and build meaningful relationships will continue.
If you’ve been using Twitter for more than a very short time, I ask you
===> “Can you imagine going back to a world without micro-blogging?”
I’m looking to add more Twitter Success Stories, Twinterviews and inputs here on the Twitter handbook blog. Please share your answer to this question here, and remember to add you Twitter @ name to the post so we can follow you.
Hi Warren,
Interesting blog. Yesterday, I was clearing old email from 2006. It’s amazing how many Internet marketers have disappeared. I think that Twitter will continue to bring people together but I am not sure if the same people will always play.
At any time, another social media system could become more popular. What about Google buying Jaiku? You must agree that posting video has an advantage. Also, I like Jott where you don’t even need to type, just talk and the system posts for you.
Twitter is more stable. However, I miss the features that have dropped off over the last year, which most tweeps don’t even know about. I shouldn’t have to leave Twitter to go to another ap to get the information.
Like @DrMaini, I found intimate connection with just 40 friends. Now that I have almost a thousand friends, I can’t read every post. I spend time reading a screen or two and reply, but I miss reading everything my friends want to share.
Thanks Warren and Deb for your terrific Twitter Handbook!
Get off the computer and enjoy life…
@jeanettejoy
I have some reflections on Twitter. I’m still a new Twit, just over a week. Whether Twitter makes money or I make money on Twitter is not really on my radar screen.
I love it because….
Thinking in 140 character messages is brilliant. I’m writing about 5 Tweets a day, a mix of personal, professional, and inspirational. I’ve been starting each day with a morning quote and then writing when I have time at intervals throughout the day. And I love getting the character count at exactly 140 without abbreviations and with punctuation. The writer in me loves that game.
Reading 140 character messages is equally as brilliant. I get snippets of people’s lives that are insightful. I’m keeping up on the type of information I really want. I’m adding tweeple as I learn they are tweeting and want to follow their updates.
For me, social networking is about putting relationship building first.
Make it a Magnificent Day!
Jeanie Marshall
I forgot to answer the main question! I don’t care if, when, or how Twitter makes money. Aren’t they already advertising for revenue in Japan?
This is a question that I have thought about and discussed with other long time tweeps. I care in that I want the tool to remain viable (remember the dark days of the Fail Whale, makes me shudder to remember)and continue to provide value. From a human standpoint, I of course want to see the developers and founders get paid for this incredible tool. Twitter has delivered a great deal of value for free, and I am acutely aware that I am getting much more than I paid for it.
@Jeanette Twitter is not advertising for revenue.. the are being paid by advertisers.. a deal that has been going for some time.
We’ve featured interviews here where they explain that they have the cash to focus on building out quality.. not immediately focused on revenues
@karenswim agreed. Of course we’d like to see them do well.
I was tempted to review their policies, and the more popular predictions (especially my own) about how they will make a lot of money way before the cash runs out, but in my opinion.. the real issue is how reporters love to give advice to entrepreneurs and how silly it would be if we added to that
Great discussion. I just wanted to introduce my company http://www.twittad.com. I built Twittad for a few reasons, most importantly was the idea that Twitter is no different than a individual owning their own blog. On your blogs you are able to insert ads (google adsense, sell them on your own, etc).
With Twittad a Twitter user has the option to place their background up for sale for a advertiser to purchase or “sponsor” your Twitter page. We give advertisers a way to find you by location, demographic and through a search engine on Twittad.
I personally feel that allowing users on Twitter to participate in a revenue share program like what we have built will be the future of Twitter. Ads “in-tweets” will be come SPAM and hurt the Twitter community which everyone values.
These are just my opinions, but thought I would introduce you to who we are.
Regards,
James Eliason
President/CEO Twittad
This is a case of “Why did I think that at 6 AM?” I do want Twitter developers to be paid for all their work because that’s only fair. What I meant was that it’s all up to them to decide on the way and when and I don’t care how. I wouldn’t want them to tell me how do do my business–well maybe I would at that.
Go Twitter!
@Jeanette That exactly it.
FYI, the developers are paid, the servers are paid for.. As far as I know, there is no one hurting in the current situation.
Twitter is not pulling in revenues.. yet. But a sale, or a new model could blow away any banner ad income that they could take now.. and in the math of Silicon Valley, they likely valued more without income than having to state numbers that look like they are struggling to make a profit.
Very smart move in the long term IMHO
Asking the right question makes a big difference. You ask the right one when you state “I think what “everybody wants to know” would more like be How Can I Build My Own Revenues With Twitter and Social Media?”
The last part is what really sticks out [How Can I Build My Own Revenues With Twitter and Social Media?].
How does anybody know they are not making money or that they do not have some thinkovative plans to quickly ramp up a way to do so?
@Admore
Warren & Deb,
Twitter will have to make money and we all should care about that aspect of their business. It goes to the long term viability of the entity that we have all come to love called twitter.
The VC’s that recently invest 10+ million have a vested interest in monetization. That is why they invest; they see a viable business model and revenue plan. We just have not seen that revenue model show it’s face just yet. It will come.
Cheers!
Because nobody wants Twitter to become the next Netscape, we, the Users, should care about Twitter’s business model, I agree with Rodney. The money they raised (from investors seeking good ROI) and they way they spend it is not more important than how they plan on making money.
It is actually the blood of every single company.
@fredkzk
I too am curious about how Twitter plans to make money. I definitely don’t want to see them disappear. As far as Twitter Success Stories go: I got to meet some excellent people at a certain meetup that I would not have found out about if I wasn’t on Twitter. I got to do an interview with a cool entrepreneur that I wouldn’t have found out about if it weren’t for twitter. I also picked up a couple of clients as a result of twitter.
I don’t know how Twitter plans to monetize themselves, but they’ve got my support!
@deannatroupe
Hi Deb and Warren…
Twitter has been a fantastic marketing tool for many people… it’s fun, serious, informative and at times even trite! But doesn’t that reflect the real world in general? For me it offers a great mix of professional and personal contact. And like a couple of the comments above, I love being able to construct my message spot on 140 characters. It just helps my writing discipline!
Yeah I do care that Twitter makes money… I’d hate it to fall by the wayside because it couldn’t support itself.
Jeanne
If we didn’t have twitter, we wouldn’t have input into this issue.
Darren, You threw out some good discussion bait with your question on. My short answer is NO…each time I make a post, in that instant, the only person I am thinking about generally is me and my post.
The obvious application for business bloggers (as Deb mentions) is that it gives you a lever to get people onto your own terrain/blog/site/watever where you can then engage them in other conversations. (Like here for instance). This survey not dount has accounted for some sales of that book top right and maybe even a couple of sign-ups to the i360 system.
The implied message I got from your question was that as a community we *should* care. Without the community, twitter is just another script on a server. In this sense Twitter belongs to its subscribers….not to the VC’s.
The interesting part about twitter I guess is that they do have space around the input panel and have chosen not to place ads there.
I have not familiar with their long term plans, but it seems there there is massive value within just mining the data. Any company who sought to follow Rich Schefren’s latest treatise where he speaks about the need to create a responsive business able to turn on a dime at short notice, needs to have market intelligence.
Surely this is the biggest long term value that twitter could offer to a big money making corporation…an ear to the twitterverse with the right algorythmn to slice and dice the words would be like having the power to run an instant super-survey.
Then again…maybe not. Without trying it, who knows if it would be relevant actionable data.
Craig
I want Twitter to stay around so I do want them to make money. That’s the only way it’s going to happen. I love the ongoing conversation style that makes everyone feel immediately connected. It takes the loneliness away from my home office.
@roseydow2
Hi Deb,
NO… I can’t imagine life without Twitter. I’ve always said though never have all your eggs in one basket and I truly believe you should always have a plan B just in case something happens.
My plan B should I ever need it… would be to use friend feed or another service like it. Don’t get me wrong I like friend feed too but twitter is my favorite.
As far as making money with twitter, I guess it’s all how you look at it. Yes twitter has made me money, but more importantly it has developed relationships. All the money in the world can buy friendships. (at least not REAL friendships)
I feel very blessed to have found twitter and I think many of my twitter friends feel the same way.
Cindy McAsey
Barefoot in the Garden
I think the SHOULD monitize twitter, and the simplest way to do it would be to sell advertising space. I know I would like another alternative to google adwords and some of the other places I put my ads. I can’t speak for everyone on twitter, but seeing ads there wouldn’t make me want to use it any less. Some might be turned off, but I would hate to see Twitter shut down because they couldn’t keep it going financially. After all, zillions of people still use myspace and facebook, and don’t they have ads on them? Of course they do!
definatly can Image a world beyond the micro-blogging stage we are in. I can also see twitter losing ground if they break away from the simple/easy/open state they are in now (and start injecting some business logic, ads, paid services…).
It seems like there is always something right around the corner.
I have to admit that although I have been marketing on the net for over ten years I was a late comer to the idea of social networking as far as twitter, facebook, etc. go. I have, however, always interacted with my subscribers, customers and peers more than used to be considered the norm. The idea of something so handy to use as twitter to keep up to date on the latest news, business ideas, fun and gossip is a real plus to me – and whether or not it ever goes to a paid service OR whether or not it ever makes ME money, I am enjoying it NOW and plan to keep on.
and, how else can I keep up to date on Coach Deb and Warren?
Jan Tallent
@jantallent
Hey given how long Craigslist went without ad revenue Twitter has plenty of time to decide what way will work best for them.
I like that you can make money with twitter but also really love all the new relationships that have spawned from it..
I wouldn’t care if they had ads on twitter and would love for them to make some revenue.
I would be very disappointed if there were no more micro blogging in my life… I’m totally addicted.
I find that it is important to remember history, to remember where you were and what happened with things in the past(not that I follow my own advice, I’ve screwed up plenty).
I used to have a free email account at one of those early hosts, when they sold out there was no warning, no “Hey if any of your contacts are important or any of the things you have stored here is important… you may want to transfer it over to (somebody that still values you). Many businesses, I feel, “forget who they brought to the dance” or vice-versa. Fortunately when that company sold out I didn’t have any “last emails from mom” or a huge database of contacts.
I am encouraged by big behemoths like google that buys things to help themselves be “the in place” for their followers. It also pmo that they can.
As much time as I have spent online I still consider myself a newbie, was it Tony R. quoting Yoda, “To know, but not do, is still to not know.” It seems there are so many ways they and us can make money if we put forth a little effort, stick our foot in the water. Maybe twitter is working under the premise of, “If you build he will come…” MVH mentioned some guy that had a resort and the people staying there barely covered the overhead, but the guy was raking it in on all the concessions.
@AZMike
P.S. If you had to pay for the privilege to continue on twitter, what would you pay?
I wouldn’t mind ads on Twitter as long as they are kept to a minimum, targeted (much like facebook) and wouldn’t affect the easy feel of the site.
I could not imagine life without microblogging, which Twitter has made easy for all of us. I’m not as disciplined as I stress my clients to be about blogging (do as I say, not as I do), so 140 characters or fewer is a great size for a crazy schedule. Further, the character limit provides a great exercise in editing. If you can’t get your point across in a sentence or two, it is likely too wordy for others’ consumption anyway!
My biggest challenge with Twitter is like some writers before me. I want to keep up with people I choose to follow and if I’m away for a few hours in the afternoon, I find myself scrolling back-back-back to catch up on information I don’t want to miss.
I’m a big fan and frequent user. Long live Twitter!
http://www.twitter.com/PUBLISIDE
@3amjosh I agree.. the relationship is the reason to be on Twitter
It is exhausting trying to shed Old School thoughts about how to make money. I get that question from many clients.
Personally, I have learned that if you make enough GOOD friends and acquaintances on Twitter and elsewhere the money will follow you. But you must put in the effort.
If you want or need instant results I recommend Google Adwords. That is not exactly the best way to develop relationships, though, is it?
Dude I can SO imagine a world without twitter – it is the most underwhelming load of fluff and noise I have ever come across.
Mind you, having said that, I still like it (not love, just like) and I actually can think of ways that I haven’t seen happening yet that it could be used to make money …
… but I could drop it in a second and never miss it at all.
[...] like everything else. Now there been alot of talk recently as to how they will do this, wired, twitterhandbook, ZDnet, e-consultancy and many [...]
I do hope they make money as its a pretty cool tool
hopefully they will develop it further to make any money out of it, i think they will be able to
ear tinnitus…
I found your entry interesting do I’ve added a Trackback to it on my weblog
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