BIRDSTRIKE
For better or worse, I’m still on Twitter. Sorry, ‘X, formerly known as Twitter.’ At this point, even I am forced to admit that it’s probably for the worse. It’s probably the most toxic relationship in my life and I know I desperately need to leave it for good. But then something happens - like the second series of The Traitors - and I find myself pulled back in. It’s not the same Twitter though. The rise of Elon has stripped it of its old charm, which only reappears when there’s a big news story or pop culture moment. The whole edifice appears to be crumbling, replaced by bots, crypto spam, racists and the worst ads you’ve ever seen.
If, like me, you are old and have worked in this industry for way too long, you’ll remember the heady days of 2013 and the infamous Oreo Superbowl ‘Dunk in the Dark’ tweet. It is no exaggeration to say that this changed Twitter for brands, turning it from a ‘nice to have’ into a major player in the digital space.
Back then, Twitter reps would come into agencies like the one I worked at and do lunchtime sessions where they’d hand out free pizza, branded notebooks and a fistful of bird stickers to plaster over our laptops. They’d show us previous high-profile brand activations and we would be seduced with eye-wateringly high paid engagement rates, return on investment graphs and promises of smashed KPIs. If we could sweet-talk brand managers into spending loads of money with them, the spoils would be immense. Our brands would be the names on everyone’s lips. We would win awards. Twitter would even throw us a party in their fancy Soho office. It was a pretty sweet time.
Compare that to nowadays. When I log onto Twitter now, I’m confronted with the worst ads I’ve seen in my life. Lots of them. Fake dropshipping websites. Crypto scams. Diets promising to help you lose five stone in a day. You could write a whole newsletter on the community notes alone (arguably the best thing about the platform these days).
I can’t think of a single reputable brand with a paid media strategy for Twitter now. A combination of content moderation issues, lack of trust and safety, activist pressure and controversial leadership decisions has led many advertisers to spend their budgets elsewhere. After all, it’s not a good look when your family-friendly brand is displayed next to Nazi propaganda. For all that we talk about social media being a place where brands can take risks, most are incredibly cautious, especially when it comes to money. Why would they go to Twitter - a platform whose owner told advertisers to ‘go fuck themselves’ last year - when they could invest it somewhere like TikTok?
Of course, this isn’t to say that Meta, TikTok and YouTube are great places to advertise either. Currently, Meta seems to be awash in porn bots, who are very keen on my Instagram Stories (perhaps they all want to get into powerlifting?) TikTok has its own moderation and content issues, yet none of them seem to affect it as much as they affect Twitter. If I had to say why, it’s because advertisers know they’ll get more bang for their buck there. Yes, they might be placed next to some of the weirdest content you’ve seen in your life - like a man trying to consume an entire family-sized trifle in under 60 seconds - but you’ll definitely get more eyeballs there than you will anywhere else right now.
I don’t think Twitter will ever die; I think Musk has too much of an ego to just shut it down. But it’s not Twitter anymore - at least, not as we know it. You can see the evolution now. Paid-for blue ticks saying the wildest shit just to get ad dollars. Paid-for blue ticks spouting nonsense underneath people’s conversations just to get ad dollars. Paid-for blue ticks just generally. Non-existent moderation. Features that don’t work anymore. I could go on, but what’s the point?
There are times in life where you know you need to get out of a relationship before it swallows you whole. So, Twitter, it’s not me - it’s you. Thanks for the good times, the memes, the laughs, #piggate, the husband and the career. But I think it’s time I jumped off this sinking ship.
If you like Social Lives, it would be great if you could pass it onto someone and encourage them to subscribe! If you *really* like my work, you can also buy me a coffee. For the price of just one Cappuccino, you can help this freelancer continue to be caffeinated!
JOBS BOARD
Freelance: Human After All are looking for a freelance Social Media Community Manager
Freelance: Roka Content need a freelance Social Media Manager
FTC: Manchester-based Beauty Bay are recruiting a Social Media Manager on a 12 month FTC
Full Time: Parkinson’s UK are advertising for a Social Media Officer
Full Time: We Are Social want to hear from Content Creators
INTERESTING THING OF THE WEEK: RNIB’S ALT TEXT REMINDERS
Confession time - I am not as good at using Alt. text as I should be. One of my 2024 resolutions is to remember to use it when I’m posting on social, not least because I don’t want to be called out by the RNIB (Royal National Institute of Blind People). Their (excellent) social media team are very adept at finding big brands and personalities who haven’t used it on their posts and gently reminding them that it’s an important accessibility too. They’re funny, they’re attention grabbing and they’re good reminders to all of us.
IN THE NEWS
A new study has revealed that children spent 60% more time on TikTok than YouTube last year, averaging 112 minutes daily on the platform (TechCrunch)
Meta has launched new teen safety measures (Social Media Today)
Meta has announced extra controls for EU users, giving them the option to manage their Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger accounts separately (Meta)
Threads is working on draft-saving for posts (The Verge)
TikTok is testing 30 minute uploads (Social Media Today)
THINGS I LIKE
Is LinkedIn the internet’s hottest new dating website? I really hope not. (Business Insider)
I am obsessed with this recipe for Sweet Potatoes with Tahini Butter Chickpeas (Mob Kitchen)
Everyone needs a bit of Normal Gossip in their lives. I particularly loved this episode featuring Bobby Finger and Lindsey Weber of Who Weekly discussing the ‘Short King of East Texas’ (Normal Gossip)
A GOOD TIKTOK
The National Trust are incredibly good at TikTok
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