By Nikki Baird, Managing Partner
Through a special arrangement, presented here for discussion is a summary of an article from Retail Paradox, Retail Systems Research's weekly analysis on emerging issues facing retailers.
I have struggled with social media. Am I not a social creature? I guess not. But like it or not, I have a social job.
I heard once that Twitter is about discovery and Facebook about connections. I think, sort of. Twitter is conversations too.
I like Twitter because the conversation is vibrant and it's easy to use.
I still can't figure out how to use Facebook, or where all the "stuff" is that makes FB fun.
I have a hard time separating business & personal on FB. The issue is not business - my friends just don't get my job.
It is easy to separate business & personal on Twitter. Hello, two accounts. Thank you lists!
I don't like just reporting what other people say, unless I find it really pithy, or I have a take to add.
I prefer quality, rather than quantity, tweets - which is why there is often a long lag between my tweets. Sort of, Nikki's Deep Thoughts.
I hate status updates like "I am at the airport now." Tell me something interesting, actionable.
I have found more good content coming through Twitter in the last week than I have seen from email newsletters in the last year. That's scary.
Twitter combines the power of curated content by people you trust or like, with an opportunity to skim whatever you want.
Tweeting is a great way to add life to events - make it interactive. As long as there are enough people there to interact.
Twitter provides a back-channel to reality - real-time reactions, a virtual link to additional info about something you see live.
We used to joke at FORR (Forrester Research) that that phone meetings were better than F2F (face-to-face) because you could IM back-channel running commentary.
Twitter has taken the place of IM tools in my portfolio for productivity.
If someone is txting (texting) on their phone while you're talking, they may be tweeting their reactions to what you say. Also scary.
I'm not comfortable tweeting about meetings, even vendor briefings. Some conversations need to remain off the grid.
Every time I tweet something that someone says at a conference, I worry that presos (presentations) will become even blander as people fear the real time.
My Twitter challenge: how do conversations change when anyone could be listening? Or the other person is broadcasting their opinions real-time?
I don't know how to manage the real-time & reality consequences of a Twitter world. So far, it doesn't seem to be an issue.
But I suspect it will be. Soon.
Discussion Questions: What do you see as the benefits as well as the shortcomings of Twitter for retailers and related businesses?
[Author's commentary] The article was published via Twitter originally, which is why each thought is only 140 characters long.