Twitter Provides 2,500-Phrase ‘Notes’ Function However Solely For A Choose Few

Micro-blogging, say howdy to actual running a blog.

During the last week, Twitter rolled out a brand new characteristic known as a Notes. For a choose group of writers, it’s now potential to create longer posts, capped at 2,500 phrases.

The characteristic reveals up as an choice within the app and within the browser the place these customers can choose a brand new Write choice, kind in a headline, add a picture, and craft a weblog with pictures, tweets, and hyperlinks.

When the Notice is revealed, it reveals up of their feed as a standard tweet with a hyperlink, which is complicated as a result of the longer posts don’t truly present up within the app. They look like browser-based solely. Right here’s a tweet that explains the way it all works:

I’m unsure what the plan is right here.

I’ve at all times seen Twitter as a connective tissue, a approach to talk about concepts, share pithy feedback, and publish hyperlinks to content material. Twitter’s largest differentiator has at all times been that it’s a microblogging service, one which caters to individuals who don’t wish to do a deep dive. You may scan by means of posts rapidly and transfer on.

The Notes characteristic looks like an add-on that would have labored a few years in the past, however even then it might have led to extra confusion.

If Twitter intends to be a running a blog platform, it can have some critical competitors. Medium.com, the favored running a blog platform, was initially an incarnation from Ev Williams, who was additionally a Twitter co-founder. Again then, it appeared like Medium was a response to the shortage of true running a blog functionality of Twitter.

As usually occurs, we maintain moving into expertise circles.

Will it attract new customers? That’s the objective, for the reason that platform has stayed comparatively stagnant for just a few years now. I’ve talked about this many instances, nevertheless it’s nonetheless my favourite social media app personally. I take advantage of it greater than the opposite platforms, and it has helped my journalism profession tremendously, at the least in how I can join with readers and share hyperlinks to articles. I’ll use Fb extra with family and friends, however when I’ve one thing to say to an even bigger viewers, it’s at all times on Twitter.

Now I’ve to resolve whether or not it is smart to weblog. (I requested entry to the Notes characteristic however haven’t heard again from Twitter reps; if I achieve hands-on entry, I’ll report again on the characteristic.) From what I can see, it’s rudimentary at greatest. When you add a headline and your textual content, plus just a few pictures, there doesn’t appear to be any choices for formatting (like you are able to do on Medium). Blogs don’t appear interconnected. It’s basically only a lengthy tweet with a daring headline.

Much more importantly, I’ve quite a lot of questions on why I’d use Twitter for running a blog within the first place. For my latest guide, I simply created my very own weblog utilizing GoDaddy instruments and WordPress. It took about 5 minutes.

The weblog runs by myself website, the place there’s details about my guide and a bunch of hyperlinks. Why would I weblog on Twitter as an alternative?

My sense is that Notes is only a vainness characteristic. Look, we added one thing new!

Perhaps I’ll heat as much as it will definitely, however for now, I’m sticking with the components of Twitter I like greatest.