The Demise of Twitter has been a storyline for a few years now. It's fallen from its perch as one of the largest social media outlets, and instead cranes its neck to look up at its Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat overlords. But it's still relevant. It's still a thing. And it still serves a valuable purpose for its every-day audience and the casual tweet-stalker.
But Twitter, the business, isn't OK with that. Twitter, the business, needs to grow to stay competitive and stave off obsolescence for as long as possible. Not unlike music stores or Jason Biggs, Twitter needs to do something every now and then to shake things up and regain the spotlight.
Enter, the Great 280 Character Limit Experiment.
In what could be Twitter's 'Jump-the-Shark' moment, the social media pioneer is debuting a new 280-character limit that has people everywhere wondering why. In a space that heralded brevity, users (like us) are coming to terms with a new kind of character-counter anxiety.
We asked team members at @DixonSchwabl — from interns to our president, Mike Schwabl — to share their POV on 280 and close with either #VoteYesOn280 or #VoteNoOn280. Here's how things are trending and, not surprisingly for Twitter, it's mostly negative.
Love it or hate it, you don't have to use it. And that goes double for brands. If your brand's goals determine that Twitter is a viable outlet for you, don't worry yourself with the character count. Focus on creating the best content you can and use what Twitter (or any platform) gives you to fit your audience.
If 280 becomes the new 140, use it because it's smart, not because you can.
@PaulGangarossa is a PR Executive/Brand Journalist at DixonSchwabl with experience helping brands with social media and content marketing. He can also jump over you.