Not Really Stealthmode

Not Really Stealthmode

Francine Hardaway  //  Geek-to-human translator, serial entrepreneur, angel investor, mentor, coach, yogini, mom and now granddogma. http://about.me/hardaway for more

Oct 21 / 1:51pm

Has Twitter Become Overrun with Marketers? No, But Facebook Has

"Has Twitter become overrun with marketers?"
I ask myself this question every so often, when my stream looks like it's full of people I don't know with brand logos instead of photos. I asked it again this morning, but this time I asked Twitter, too, and not just myself. The response was quite interesting; my small group of responders felt Twitter was doing a pretty good job of saving itself from being purely a marketing tool, in fact better, one person said, than LinkedIn. This informal survey is a mirror of how I feel, because I refer to Twitter as the "givers" and LinkedIn as the "takers" network.

   .  conrey Twitter isn't nearly as hijacked as linked in but that is primarily because it is an opt-in. You can just unfollow the marketers
   * espressojunky @hardaway @rbstang1966 It may be extensibilty and filtering tools which keep twitter relevant. Or, I'm really good at ignoring marketers!
   * teleken @hardaway "Hijacked" may be a strong term, but I'd say Twitter is oversaturated with marketers too lazy to engage.
   * espressojunky @hardaway Sig to noise ratio has changed but its still possible to tease out the disruptive voices. Early adopters have usually leapt by now
   * iCIMS I say no, not completely
   * WhiskeyChick @hardaway Which in internet time renders the tool outdated and "archaic" in it's usefulness, leaving the savvy users searching for the next.
   * paulwiggins @hardaway in summary, has not been hijacked by marketeers because veterans, a relative term, have estabished consensus. #Twitter
   * iCIMS @hardaway I dont think so.Som of the best people I follow on here r not marketers @ all, but rather thoughtleaders w yrs of (non mkt) exp
   * WhiskeyChick @hardaway ...so by the time the pitchmen start to overrun, it's also a signal that mom, your boss, and great aunt Millie are trying the tool
   * WhiskeyChick @hardaway Savvy users already have "pitchman blindness" but these online pitchmen aren't targeting savvy users... (cont)2
   * jane_fell @hardaway As with any effective comm tool, opportunists come along and try to take advantage of it, ironically

However, neither Twitter nor LinkedIn can hold a marketing candle to Facebook.  The bigger it gets, the worse it becomes. And yes, I know the privacy rules. But I also know many people all over the world that I'd like to keep in moderate touch with.

But every day I get a dozen or more event invitations to events that take place in cities I don't live in, followed bu a plethora of friend requests, friend suggestions,  and announcements that  So-and-So has become a fan of (Company Name Here) and would like me to become one, too. I realize I don't HAVE to do these things, and I ignore things with great regularity, but often I have personal friends whose professional affiliations have nothing to do with our friendship. And I don't want to be a fan of their gift shop. Nor do I want to join yet another cause. All these inbound contacts make Facebook a chore for me.

So I'm thrilled that my instinct was right about Twitter. It's the best place for me right now.