drew: "Authority" and Why Twitter is the Next Google
Scandalous
· 1 year ago
Number of followers is BS quite a bit of the time. i say this bc i know plenty of marketing people who just use scripts to autofollow people and follow back.. they may not be bots, but they're still "cheating" imho.
and as far as the news posts.. have to agree with you wholeheartedly there. 99% of the time i find out relevant news via twitter. weather it's about an earthquake, someone needing supplies bc theyre stuck via a natural disaster, or even parties/my friends getting together.
And horray i sound like another twitter evangelist but it's pretty damn accurate.
drewolanoff
· 1 year ago
Robert, Justine and Kevin are very influential people. Regardless of what they're on. They tweet, people click and reply and interact.
That's influence. Bottom line.
Shawn Farner
· 1 year ago
So you're saying Kevin Rose is an authority on tea?
Yes, people are interested in Kevin and what he does, but by no means does that equal authority on Twitter for many things. When Kevin talks about working at a successful startup or talks about technology, sure. I trust him on those. But to say that the number of times a picture of tea is viewed somehow translates into authority is way, way off. That is simply popularity at work, and that's the kind of "authority" countless people have already written off as being totally bogus.
drewolanoff
· 1 year ago
You're taking my example way too literally.
We're talking about search results here on Twitter. If someone searched on Tea, and a link Kevin tweeted got clicked on more than most other people regarding the word tea, then yes, he holds more authority on that subject.
Popularity is authority Shawn, don't be naive. Tom Cruise or Will Smith makes a movie and it makes money and gets attention, mostly because they are popular or influential. Their mark of success is the money the movie makes. Action + Reaction.
dobes_vandermeer
· 1 year ago
I was saying the same thing the other day on twitter - the new "search" is asking on twitter. Seems to be an interesting phenomenon - information travels through the people network rather than by search. It's vintage in a way - this is how information used to travel before we had broadcast media like TV and newspapers.
drewolanoff
· 1 year ago
Exactly. And people want simplicity. When folks go to Macy's and want to find something...they ask someone who works there. They don't wander around taking up time and getting frustrated. I see simple tools like Twitter similar to that. The people I follow on Twitter, Strands, and my friends on Facebook find THE coolest and most relevant stuff. That's what I care about, not 23423423423 results on a Google page juiced with SEO.
thomaspower
· 1 year ago
Brilliant.
litmanlive
· 12 months ago
Drew,
Interesting article. It's a fascinating area for research, authority is a hugely subjective matter. One person's authority is another's minority.
I'd be interested to get your thoughts on the following blog post - and your readers too! All the best. M
All Comments
i say this bc i know plenty of marketing people who just use scripts to autofollow people and follow back.. they may not be bots, but they're still "cheating" imho.
and as far as the news posts.. have to agree with you wholeheartedly there. 99% of the time i find out relevant news via twitter. weather it's about an earthquake, someone needing supplies bc theyre stuck via a natural disaster, or even parties/my friends getting together.
And horray i sound like another twitter evangelist but it's pretty damn accurate.
That's influence. Bottom line.
Yes, people are interested in Kevin and what he does, but by no means does that equal authority on Twitter for many things. When Kevin talks about working at a successful startup or talks about technology, sure. I trust him on those. But to say that the number of times a picture of tea is viewed somehow translates into authority is way, way off. That is simply popularity at work, and that's the kind of "authority" countless people have already written off as being totally bogus.
We're talking about search results here on Twitter. If someone searched on Tea, and a link Kevin tweeted got clicked on more than most other people regarding the word tea, then yes, he holds more authority on that subject.
Popularity is authority Shawn, don't be naive. Tom Cruise or Will Smith makes a movie and it makes money and gets attention, mostly because they are popular or influential. Their mark of success is the money the movie makes. Action + Reaction.
Interesting article. It's a fascinating area for research, authority is a hugely subjective matter. One person's authority is another's minority.
I'd be interested to get your thoughts on the following blog post - and your readers too! All the best. M
http://tinyurl.com/7akqlc