Most Professional Communicators Don’t Trust Twitter

07/21/2009

A thought provoking poll by Ragan Communications shows that over 54 percent of professional communicators think that using Twitter for social media marketing is simply a short lived fad destined to eventually lose steam and die out. Currently there is quite a debate going on in the corporate communications field about whether or not investing in Twitter as a communications tool is good for long term goals or whether it is simply another novelty that will die out and be replaced with something new eventually.

Of those who responded to the poll, 28 percent said that they are already use microblogging sites such as Twitter as part of their ordinary social media marketing activities. They claim that doing so has helped their businesses in numerous ways such as employee engagement, customer service, company reputation, improving web site traffic, and a whole host of other benefits. However, 40 percent of those polled stated that at this time they do not have any plans to use Twitter or any other microblogging site. This may be because they are afraid to make the commitment not knowing for sure if it will benefit the company.

The communicators are a divided camp who can’t seem to come up with an agreement when it comes to the usefulness of Twitter and microblogging in general for social media marketing. Those who remain leery do not see how these short, mundane statements can actually attract customers away from traditional media and bring any value whatsoever to company brands. Reported by Marketing Vox, Bob Hirschfield, senior public officer of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory told Ragan Communications that Twitter was only a fad that everyone was doing now. He states that already popular media sources such as CNN has had luck with it, but only because the public is already interested in what they have to say. Average microbloggers simply do not have a constant supply of things the public is interested in.

Others polled did not feel quite as strongly as Bob Hirschfield. Instead, they claimed that Twitter was an effective tool for enhancing social media marketing, but only if it was used wisely, such as in the right situations for the right industries. One such person is Josh McColough, a communicator at Sherman Health, who when polled stated that he thought Twitter was an excellent way for businesses who are trying to attract new customers. He states that companies should keep an active back and forth conversation with its customers. Companies should evaluate their goals so they can better target these conversations.

Another study, this one by DMA and Headmix, found that roughly half of all marketers and executives are using microblogging for social media marketing. Ragan Communications cited a study by eMarketer which stated that there are already over 12.1 million Twitter users and that this number is expected to reach 18.1 million by the year 2010. One thing that is for certain is that the debate between those who are for Twitter and those against it is sure to continue.

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