What's #NewTwitter?

Plenty.<br /> <br /> Twitter just launched a fresh new interface. I'm still getting used to it, but my initial reaction is that it's a strong improvement for users of the Twitter.com interface (which is about 70% of the users currently).<br /> <br /> Take a look at the video from Twitter:<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <center><object height="300" width="500"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rIpD7hfffQo?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rIpD7hfffQo?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="500" height="300"></embed></object></center><br /> <br /> Here's <a href="http://blogs.forbes.com/oliverchiang/2010/09/16/the-story-behind-twitters-first-video-ad-1-million-views-in-one-day/">the inside scoop on the background and making of the video from Forbes</a>.<br /> <br /> What's different:<br /> <br /> <ul><li>The first thing you'll notice is that there is now a header bar that contains a streamlined dashboard: a search box, a link Home, a link to your Profile, and Messages (DMs). This is already different, in that messages have been separated from @ replies.</li> <li>Then, the "what's happening" (not "what are you doing?") section is footed with tabbed browsing options: Tweets, @Mentions (not Replies), Retweets, Searches and Lists. Note that the last three have dropdown menus that give the user options. </li> <li>For Retweets, it's Retweets by others, Retweets by you, and Your Tweets, retweeted. This is a handy way of discerning these various levels of retweets, making it easier to find what's meaningful.</li> <li>The Searches that used to inhabit the sidebar are now available in the dropdown.</li> <li>Similarly, Lists offer you a chance to see the aggregated lists you've created. My complaint is that it only allows you to see about 8 or 9 lists; for power users like me that have 20 lists, you have to click through to the list page, which is in the old interface.</li> </ul><br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Wgi7DTsDt2g/TJAwEQPGEEI/AAAAAAAACBM/8Awdrfclz7E/s1600/newtwitter.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="245" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Wgi7DTsDt2g/TJAwEQPGEEI/AAAAAAAACBM/8Awdrfclz7E/s400/newtwitter.PNG" width="400" /></a></div><br /> Probably the coolest part though, is the ability to preview content directly from the link, without having to leave your page. You can view photos, videos and more by clicking on the little arrow in the tweet box:<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Wgi7DTsDt2g/TJAzAQQHTwI/AAAAAAAACBU/O1S5e0HnLY0/s1600/newtwitter2.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Wgi7DTsDt2g/TJAzAQQHTwI/AAAAAAAACBU/O1S5e0HnLY0/s400/newtwitter2.PNG" width="400" /></a></div><br /> In addition, you can see mini-previews of profiles - number of followers, tweets, bio, etc. - directly from this page by hovering over any user.<br /> <br /> The full details are <a href="http://twitter.com/newtwitter"><b>available directly from Twitter</b></a>. Overall, this is vast improvement that puts Twitter.com on a more level playing field with some of the more sophisticated desktop and mobile apps.<br /> <br /> What do you think?<br /> <br /> UPDATE: Here's <a href="http://mashable.com/2010/10/06/new-twitter-background-customize/">a handy guide on how to customize your background</a> in the New Twitter

What's #NewTwitter?

Plenty. Twitter just launched a fresh new interface. I'm still getting used to it, but my initial reaction is that it's a strong i...

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This Just In

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sarahdeer/4183605430/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="duh by SarahDeer, on Flickr"><img alt="duh" height="240" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2569/4183605430_fc60cc2780_m.jpg" width="204" /></a>From the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/6301928202?ie=UTF8&tag=thebakerstree-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=6301928202">Not Necessarily the News</a> department: "<a href="http://www.marketingcharts.com/direct/teens-text-5x-more-than-adults-14093/"><b>Teens text more than adults</b></a>" - or so went a headline from an e-newsletter from MarketingCharts that hit my inbox recently.<br /> <br /> Okayyyyy....<br /> <br /> The actual article stated that overall, teens text five times more than adults according to the <b><a href="http://www.pewinternet.org/">Pew Internet & American Life Project</a></b>. Again, not all that surprising, but at least we're getting somewhere. It seems that most adults text between 1-10 times a day, both groups are pretty similar in the 11-20 times a day and 21-50 times a day categories. But teens are twice as likely to text 51-100 times a day and more than three times as likely to text over 100 times a day.<br /> <br /> Check out the graph of the number of texts per day, adults vs. teens:<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Wgi7DTsDt2g/TIhau7yiQyI/AAAAAAAACA0/8Ci0HSgJ7dU/s1600/pew-cell-phones-adults-teens-sept-2010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="288" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Wgi7DTsDt2g/TIhau7yiQyI/AAAAAAAACA0/8Ci0HSgJ7dU/s400/pew-cell-phones-adults-teens-sept-2010.JPG" width="400" /></a></div> <br /> One other bit of information about texting: 57% noted that they received unwanted or spammy text messages.<br /> <br /> <i>What conclusions can marketers draw from this for the future?</i><br /> First, this is the next generation of consumers, so we need to be prepared for them. While email may become more important to them in the workforce, they're still going to be tied to texting. The challenge is that texting is necessarily a one-to-one (or in some cases one-to-few) experience. There's very little room for interruptive ads.<br /> <br /> Second, as you can see from that 57% figure, opting in is going to be extremely important; but even so, I believe that if we're taking up their valuable texting time by shooting them an SMS message, then it should be something that is worth their attention. Some categories or ideas to consider:<br /> <ul> <li>Funny</li> <li>Entertaining</li> <li>Breaking news about your brand or company</li> <li>Exclusive content</li> <li>Discounts or coupons</li> <li>Contest or sweeps</li> <li>For local businesses: a digital version of "leave your business card"</li> <li>Get them off mobile-only interaction - cross-pollinate to your other properties</li> </ul> Probably one of my most favorite examples of this last category is the <a href="http://www.blueskyfactory.com/fbsign//"><b>Facebook Sign Maker</b></a> (and <a href="http://www.blueskyfactory.com/twsign/">its Twitter counterpart</a>) from the good folks at Blue Sky Factory. Text a simple phrase to a number and - voila! - you're a fan of a Facebook page.<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/ford"><img border="0" height="226" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Wgi7DTsDt2g/TIhgfRfbPWI/AAAAAAAACA8/yjIAvbJEN-8/s320/fordlikedecal.php.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> <br /> They've brought users from text messaging to Facebook fans via an outdoor/experiential sign. Remarkably effective and stunningly simple. Companies that begin to adopt this thinking understand how different marketing practices can leverage each other and that this is how life works - it's not about how we interact with the world around us, not how we simply focus on a single channel.<br /> <br /> Here's one final nugget found in the Pew report: breaking some long-held stereotypes, men actually use the phone slightly more than women. Of the women surveyed, 53% make or receive five or fewer calls a day, while only 43% of men could say the same.<br /> <br /> Maybe there are still a few surprises around after all.<br /> <br /> <i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Image credit: </span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/40393390@N00/4183605430/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">SarahDeer (Flickr)</span></a></i><br /> <i><br /> </i>

This Just In

From the Not Necessarily the News  department: " Teens text more than adults " - or so went a headline from an e-newsletter from M...

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