It’s difficult to define Twitter as it’s not a tool that most can imagine a good use of their time. When I talk to people about Twitter the conclusion we generally come to is, “Who has time for that?” I ask myself this everyday. Just last night I was talking to a group about Twitter and the only way I could justify it was that I no longer watch TV, or I only watch shows from my DVR so that I can watch them simultaneously while on Twitter or on my own schedule.

For me, Twitter has been a great tool to connect with people I maybe would have not otherwise. However, I do know that every moment TweetDeck is open on my computer it takes away from my productivity. As I follow more and more people, I have more and more tweets to scan through. This makes it even more of a challenge for productivity.

Just as I asked awhile back on my blog, I wonder what the sustainability is of social media sites? I think platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, etc. have peaks and valleys for engagement from each user. While I may be in a period where Twitter is exciting and engaging at the current time, I may also just lose interest, not check it as frequently, or just decide not to participate as I am already saturated with TV, blogs, websites, radio, iPods, telephone calls, text messages, email, etc.

I actually don’t think Twitter will ever catch on with the mainstream. I believe it is a tool for the information hounds, the early adopters, and the evangelists. Facebook and Linkedin work because you don’t have to constantly use them. You can go away for a month or log off and on whenever you want. You won’t miss much and there is a benefit to having open accounts and those connections when you need them. However, if you don’t use Twitter on a regular basis it’s more challenging, if not impossible, to truly benefit from use of the tool. In the end, it’s just that, a tool. Just as some people still don’t have cell phones, PDAs, iPods, computers, etc., there are plenty of people that just don’t need to communicate in 140 characters or less. There are others that will think Twitter is one of the most powerful tools in their arsenal.

For now, it is “time” that holds Twitter back. Until the users of Twitter can have a conversation with non-users and express to them how Twitter has saved them time, the mainstream will not adopt it.

I would suggest that your description of Twitter not be over 140 characters.

Cheers

I think Lorraine has hit the key point: The tool needs to become part of what we already do. The cell phone has jumped the chasm, and the smart phone is nearly there. Perhaps when the smart phone has made the leap for the general public, Twitter will too.

However, she did discover, over time things the Microwave did extremely well. Today, at 79 years old, the microwave is the most used device in her very active kitchen.

She still bakes and roasts in the traditional oven, but she defrosts, boils water, parboils vegetables, reheats and steams in the microwave.

Lesson: Tools become mainstream, when we figure out how to use them as part of things we already do.

It’s the same with most Web 2.0 tools… because by its very definition these things are user-generated they can morph into pretty much anything the users’ imaginations can conceive.