I just read this article on Social Media Today and wanted to share it. I actually don’t think that Twitter or Facebook can be compared, apples to apples. They are obviously very different and lend themselves to different types of relationships and different promotional strategies.
I think the effectiveness of most services comes down to exactly where in the “buying cycle” a viewer is when they see your message. When they’re just finding out about your business, Twitter is great for short news blurbs. It can be an intimate platform… but is more often used for broadcasts than Facebook. The platform is very open and makes it easy to grow a topic-targeted following that’s ready to hear from you often (within reason).
It’s not so easy to grow a big following on Facebook….but when you get closer to the sale, Facebook can be a more intimate platform and allows for a longer message and more effective multimedia. It is also more likely that you will interact with your friends around a Facebook page (There are always exceptions to the rule… but I think, for most people, this is true). Video is also more popular on Facebook than on Twitter, so it’s great for in-depth demos.
The numbers (of the following linked study) state that US Internet users are more likely to purchase from a brand after becoming a Twitter follower than an email subscriber or a Facebook Fan. Interesting.
Check out the article for more in-depth coverage and see what you think:
Why Twitter Followers are Better Than Facebook Fans | Social Media Today
