Facebook vs. Twitter – A Comparative Analysis

Social networking is still grappling for a place in the web. With so many social networks fighting it out for user attention, it still remains to be seen who will win the largest share of users. Even the most elite of social networks are in this race, and struggling against the ever-shifting web landscape. The failure to come up with effective monetization strategies in the face of an elusive web audience casts serious doubts on which network will survive, or will die a premature death.

Facebook and Twitter – Now, and How?

The differences between Facebook and Twitter are many and a comparison is not easy to make. Twitter is simple and direct, like Google, while Facebook has a portal-like interface like Yahoo.

Anyone who wants to reconnect with friends and family, or find new friends, will find Facebook more appealing. A mash of features like image and video sharing, instant messaging or chat, emailing, posting content, etc, makes Facebook a familiar ground for web users. In that sense, Twitter is not exactly user-friendly first round up.

Facebook’s concept is easy to grasp for anyone who has previously used Orkut or MySpace. As a social networking portal, Facebook beckons visitors to communicate and stick around the network. Twitter encourages a more touch-and-go practice; update and jump off to other places at any given moment.

Facebook – Why We Love it?

Facebook is addictive for anyone with an insatiable appetite to socialize and stay connected with friends and acquaintances. Facebook is like a Saturday night cocktail party that just got transported online – friends, gossip, pictures, videos, and much more!

With emailing, sharing and chatting, all in one place, users feel little need to log in and out of Yahoo Messenger, GTalk, AIM, YouTube, Flickr, Hotmail, etc. Instead, with Facebook, users have alternatives to every single one of these applications under one roof. This explains Facebook’s explosive growth and a vault of more than 600 million users!

Twitter – Why We Love it?

Caught somewhere between blogging, emailing and instant messaging, Twitter has a couple of benefits, although its usefulness is not readily apparent. However, once you get the hang of it, Twitter can be just as addictive as Facebook.

Twitter gets your posts more immediate responses, and allows you to link out just anywhere. It works similar to a search engine, making it easy for you to find people and content. Also, as a brand awareness tool, Twitter is exceptionally good. It has a loyal following among the online marketers, bloggers, technically adept people, and basically anyone with a product or service to promote on the web.

You don’t share on Twitter, you just make statements and leave it at that, which seems to suit Twitter addicts just fine.

How People Communicate on Facebook and Twitter?

Let’s take the Saturday night cocktail party example. A relaxed evening with friends over lots of good food and beverages is bound to set the conversation rolling. Facebook’s style of communication is similar…intimate and open, just as people were ‘in their element’. It’s all about sharing experiences and making connections. Take yourself out of this personal environment, into a larger social event where you don’t know most people, and you’ll know how to communicate on Twitter. Conversations are measured and out to create an impression, precisely why Twitter is something that people aren’t very comfortable using.

In fact, most first-time users mistake it for just another social tool to communicate with friends. They tend to post useless things like ‘feeling so tired’, when in truth, Twitter’s podium demands a more formal style to address an audience. Twitter is like a micro-blog that promotes but does not connect outside of it.

Facebook or Twitter – Who’s the Best?

Different users cite different advantages and disadvantages of Facebook and Twitter. It all boils down to what you are trying to achieve from both or either of these social mediums. Both are communication tools that are rapidly evolving with social networking trends. What remains to be seen in future is which of these two thrive as the most profitable and sustainable business.