Twitter, the social media giant, is reportedly contemplating an increase of the 140 character limit to 10,000.
Users have reacted to the news in the only way possible, by creating a #Twitter10k hashtag. Comments within the hashtag include ones ironically showing the extent of a 10,000 character tweet. Just to put the number into perspective, this whole post has well under 10,000 characters.
The 140 character limit had been adored by many, and to an extent the USP is what Twitter’s engaging success has been built on. The change has therefore brought scrutiny from around the world. People don’t like change, especially when it is imposed on them.
Regardless of this, for a company that had previously seemed short on ideas, the character limit increase has also received praise. We also believe that the move will also prove to be a good progression, and the following post will highlight our reasons why.
Marketers
For marketers, the increase will create new ways for them to reach their audience. If Twitter decide to keep a staging of 140 characters, marketers can use this to create punchier leads into a fuller piece, much like a blog title or subject line. This can be used to full effect as a new means of content creation.
More characters means more data which means deeper analytics to gain a greater insight about your audience, consumers and brand advocates. Thus generating the possibility of targeting your audience in a personalised way. Analytics will also be able to differentiate between those which have had simple impression on the “title”, and those which have clicked through to read it in full.
Users
The move will create many usability benefits for users.
Twitter is increasingly being used as a way for companies to provide customer service digitally. The character increase will give users the opportunity to expand on an issue rather than sending a thread of tweets. Thus making it easier to resolve queries or complaints.
The larger limit will also allow users the ability have a conversation over a topic with a number of people, rather than have their Twitter handles consumer much of the available character space.
The capability of search is one of Twitter’s strengths. The greater amount of potential text will make it even easier for users to find relevant information.
Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter, commented on the benefits for users “We’ve spent a lot of time observing what people are doing on Twitter, and we see them taking screenshots of text and tweeting it,” he said. “Instead, what if that text … was actually text? Text that could be searched. Text that could be highlighted. That’s more utility and power.”
Think about Twitter as a business. The 140-character limit has itself become the Twitter brand. Although, if the way the company has been received by investors is anything to go by, then Twitter’s brand is weakening.
Facebook, which exceeds Twitter in terms of scale, has recently been bringing in more content in-house. Media companies are now posting ‘instant articles’ on Facebook which keeps users on the social media account instead of sending them away. This is good news for Facebook advertisers, more time users spend on the site, a higher chance they will notice their advertisement. So what’s good for the advertisers is good for the Facebook business.
With this move, Twitter are coincidentally doing the very same thing. With no character limit, advertisers are given more flexibility with how they can use the platform.
The flexibility provides Twitter with the chance to be something different to what it already is.
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