Twitter announced Thursday that beginning in July (no
specific date has yet been given), they will be lifting the 140-character limit
on direct messages, giving users 10,000 characters with which to express
themselves and mimicking more of an instant messenger feel.
In many of the chats I participate in, the common theme of “do
online conversations fuel offline conversations” often comes up. Is this an
effort on the part of Twitter to attempt to curtail this? Keeping you on their
site longer, as opposed to taking conversations from DMs to email, so you can
write more, talk longer?
New messaging apps are launched every day, competing for our
share of mobile minutes and attention. I find this to be a smart move by
Twitter, and one that I welcome. I am already on Twitter, and now I can get
more out of it without the frustration of trying to follow along with a DM
stream that I often picture as a trail – and if laid out could circle the globe
5 times over.
The Pros
I think it will help when it comes to customer service. I
find that most people (myself included) are much more likely to reach out to a
company on Twitter for a quick response if I have a complaint or need help,
then I am to email them. Brands will now be able to respond to customers right
then and there, rather than having to say “email me.”
When I use DMs, I use them to for longer info, engagements
and conversations that I can take part in a quick tweet. Having to constantly
send these DMs mid-sentence has been a bit of an annoyance, breaking up
thoughts and the natural flow of conversation. To avoid this, I will generally
take these conversations to Facebook or another messaging app. As Twitter is my
favorite social networking platform, this is a great move to compete with other
messaging apps, keeping me on Twitter, rather than sending me to another platform.
If this allows me to use Twitter the same way I would use a
text message, I could cut down on any additional fees I may incur on my mobile
bill, if I go over my text message allotments, or whatever package I’m
subscribed to, which keeps me within a certain (much too small) range of what I
can send to friends. I also will save memory on my cell phone, not having to
download another app that will allow me to converse in long form with friends.
Facebook recognized the need for ease of messaging long ago – through their
messaging platform as well as their acquisition of WhatsApp.
The Cons
At first glance, the only con I saw was that since
removing the “only people you follow can send you DMs” anyone could send me an extra-long
DM, selling to me without me looking to them for information on their product
or services. However, you can uncheck the “Receive Direct Messages from anyone”
box in the security and privacy section in Twitter’s settings to stop this from
happening. Twitter is allowing you to stop people you do not follow from
sending you these new, longer DMs.
I’m interested in your thoughts on this new
development. For now, I find it will allow conversations to be more fluid and
natural, and I’m looking forward to it.
Probably checking Twitter...
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