Twitter Consumer or Producer, Which Are You?

When individuals and clients are first introduced to Twitter the first question I ask them is to determine if they are going to be a Twitter Consumer or Twitter Producer. Why that is important is at the core of what a person is going to get out of Twitter. Which then dictates how a person uses Twitter.

The Numbers

Twitter may claim to be a micro-blogging platform, but for most people Twitter’s main value is that of an automated search engine; a way of outsourcing to others the sorting through massive amounts of information that is out there. To be on Twitter doesn’t mean that you should be creating micro-blogs to get value from Twitter. This is very evident in Twitter stats.

Of the 1.3 Billion registered users only 13% tweet monthly and less than 3% tweet daily. These “Mavens” as Malcom Gladwell would call them in the “Tipping Point” are a small but vital reason why things go viral and why Twitter works. This is also why many people fail to understand how they “fit” into the world of twitter. “I don’t know what to tweet” is a familiar refrain. Not having to contribute something often feels strange or wrong. No one wants to be a freeloader but as the Oracle from the Matrix would say “Temet Nosce” or know thyself.

Not everyone is thrilled to spend hours sorting through the haystack to find a diamond and share it with the world. Getting a following of 100k or more takes a lot of time and work. Those Producers that are tweeting multiple times a day is a start but in order for you and others to determine what is of value, it requires likes and retweets to identify the diamonds in the rough. Liking is a small but vital piece that the Twitter Consumers provides.

So what are you suppose to do on twitter? Like away and let others do all the hard work.