Why Twitter Forms Bonds 100x As Strong As Facebook…

What is social media all about?

No really… what is social media all about at it’s core?

That’s right… it’s to help people like you and me connect with each other, catch up with each other, communicate in 2 way conversations, find like-minded people… and build a community around ourselves (online and OFFLINE) of people we want to associate with.

Simple as that.

Facebook as a Way to Build Bonds with People

Facebook is an awesome platform… way better than Myspace (in my opinion) at really building bonds with people that are more than just voyeuristic attempts to see peoples profile pictures and sell music (you know that’s a huge part of what the myspace crowd is about… don’t kid yourself).

The whole Facebook idea is modeled to “connect people with friends and others who work, study and live around them.”. That idea inherently is a better model to build strong bonds than the Myspace model of, “MySpace is an online community that lets you meet your friends’ friends.“.

So, Myspace is like the cool nightclub where you go with a few of your friends. It’s cool… a bit edgy… is as much about impressing other people as it is about being real w/ who you are… and is the hang out for people looking to just have some fun.

To me, Facebook is quite a bit different (hold on… I’ll get to the Twitter thing in a bit). Facebook is more like the networking event, conference, or fun gathering with friends that you go to so you can catch up with old friends… be introduced to new like-minded people… and be the real you.

Myspace is kinda like the immature and less serious version of Facebook (don’t get me wrong… there are huge marketing opportunities on Myspace… just stay with me here)… and Facebook is a place that you can come hang out and find like-minded people and share your world with them.

Facebook is more centered to your current networks, interests, and those of your friends. More targeted you might say.

With this environment… better bonds with your Facebook friends are more inherent and you are reminded every time you sign in about what your friends recently did on Facebook through the updates section. Cool stuff.

Where Facebook Misses The Boat…

Like I mentioned, Facebook is an awesome application and is a great way to build a network of LIKE-MINDED people and easily keep up on what people have been doing on Facebook.

But… just like the evolution of every other type of media… 2 way communication in a time delayed format isn’t as powerful and “sticky” as 2 way communication in a REAL TIME format.

I don’t know about you… but I live in real time.

1. When I go to the grocery store I talk to the person standing in front of me in line in real time.
2. When I go to the gym and chat with some workout buddies… talking in real time.
3. When I go to a networking event (like Young Professionals of Portland… great networking … once again… talking in real time.

If human beings really enjoyed time delayed communication more than real time communication wouldn’t we all just pass notes to each other all day… and spend our lives on email?

Hmmmm…

Picking Up Where Facebook Leaves Off… Forming Huge Bonds w/ Twitter

Okay, imagine this. Bear with me because this can either be cool or way corny.

You are in a bar… and you have two groups of friends.

One group is sitting in a booth with name badges, they have some pictures of things they just did on the table, a cool white board that you can write messages on to them, some fun little games that they ask you to play with them… and a pile of paper airplanes that you both write private messages on and fly back to one and other. This group of friends can’t talk and they don’t have fancy dancy phones that have internet.

All of the stuff you need to keep in touch with your friends and keep that bond there… right?

Okay… in another booth you have another group of friends who are in a normal and natural conversation. They’re talking back and forth (no paper airplanes or white boards) telling each other what they’ve been up to… showing you funny videos on their Iphone right there in front of you… you bring out your Iphone and show them a great article you just found… basically you guys are having a natural conversation about everyday stuff.

You stay in that bar for a couple hours and bounce back and forth between the two groups of friends. After a while you have 45 paper airplanes sitting in front of you that you need to open… and you’ve already spent like 15 minutes writing messages on paper airplanes and flying them back to your FB friends… not to mention all of the messages on the white boards that you need to answer back.

Building quite the bond huh?

Delayed time communication coupled with multiple ways to communicate back and forth with your friends

So… you get fed up… leave the 45 paper airplanes there and tell your friends to join the other table… the one that is just sitting there talking naturally in real time. They do… and you have a real conversation with them (in real time) and actually get to build a great bond with your friends because now communication is so easy that your friends are telling you little stuff that they wouldn’t have told you before…

Fancy Dancy Formula Time…

Easy Real Time 2 Way Communication = More Long-Tail Communications = Greater Bond

 

Easy Real Time Communication Is Where It’s At…

Just like the little formula I whipped up says… the easier you can communicate… and the more like a natural conversation your communication is… the stronger the bond you are able to grow with someone.

Ya… instant messaging has been around for a while and is a great form of instant two way communication.

But…

That’s 1 to 1 communication… and it would take up way too much of your time to shoot off a message to all of your 432 friends to see what the heck they are up to… so you can keep building that bond with them.

Right now, Twitter is the next evolution in easy two way real time communication… 1 to many.

You can see what people are doing right now… and let other people know what you’re doing right now. The simple fact that you get to learn what your friends are doing “between the conversations” gives you an inside look into their lives… and you mind says, “well, if I’m important enough to know that he just got a hair cut… or is walking through LAX right now and wants to have a beer w/ me… I must be cool!”.

Also, don’t forget the fact that inherent in real time communication is the fact that there are more messages being sent between the people talking… than there is with delayed communication.

More Messages = More Top of Mind Placement of YOU = Better Bond

Not to mention the subliminal message that comes across when you click the button to “Follow” someone on Twitter… versus simply “Add as a Friend” in Facebook. I mean… the definition of “follow” is… “To go in the direction of; be guided by”… what kind of message are you sending your subconscious when you choose that you want to FOLLOW someone… pretty powerful as far as creating and building a bond.

So… Follow Me On Twitter…

… and let’s figure out the best ways to DO GOOD on the internet… build better bonds… and help more people.

A last note… Twitter is only a stepping stone to something better… and Facebook will surely build something Twitterish onto their platform. Humans are social beings by nature… and the closer we can get to being able to intimately interact with people (both 1 to 1 and 1 to many) in a “real world-like” setting so we can build stronger bonds with more people… the more the entire social media and internet marketing game is going to change.

Just be sure you evolve along with it… and don’t get stuck in the delayed communication mind-set in your marketing, brand building, and LIVING.

Oh ya… really… one last note. Follow Me On Twitter