The two biggest names in social networking are undoubtedly Twitter and Facebook. Both companies offer similar services, but they do differ on many levels. For example, while Facebook allows users to create profiles with their own photos, Twitter does not allow this feature. Also, while Facebook has been around since 2004, Twitter only came into existence in 2006. This means that there was no one else to compete against when Twitter started its journey. In fact, even though Facebook had existed before Twitter, it wasn’t until 2007 that Mark Zuckerberg decided to start his company. And what’s the difference between Twitter and Facebook? So, if you want to know more about the history behind each platform, then read on!
Why Use Facebook?
When we think of Facebook, we tend to imagine friends sharing pictures or playing games together. While this may be true, Facebook actually began as a way for Harvard students to keep up with classmates who were studying abroad. Today, Facebook continues to grow by leaps and bounds. According to Statista, over 1 billion active monthly users visit Facebook every day. And according to Forbes, Facebook makes $12 billion dollars per year from advertising alone. With such incredible numbers, it should come as no surprise that Facebook owns Instagram too. Not only did Facebook buy Instagram back in 2012, but now it seems like everyone uses both sites.
In addition to being used for business purposes, Facebook is also great for personal reasons. You can share information about yourself, post links to articles you find interesting, play games, watch videos, and much more. There are so many ways to connect with others through Facebook that it would take hours upon hours to list them all here.
Twitter: What’s All the Hype Around?
Now let’s talk about Twitter. When it comes to Twitter, things aren’t quite as clear-cut. Although Twitter was created in 2006, it didn’t become popular until 2009. At that point, Twitter became very successful because it allowed anyone to broadcast short messages called Tweets. These tweets could include anything from news updates to funny memes to inspirational quotes. As long as someone wanted to send a message, he or she could tweet away. Nowadays, almost everything revolves around Twitter. From celebrities to politicians, everyone wants to get involved. Even President Obama joined Twitter in 2013. He doesn’t tweet often, but whenever he does, millions of followers tune in.
While Twitter is known mostly for broadcasting quick thoughts, it offers other features as well. Users can follow certain accounts and also search for topics related to whatever interests them. Plus, Twitter gives users access to hashtags which makes finding content easier than ever. Hashtags are basically keywords that help categorize the content. People can add hashtag searches to their queries to see results based on that keyword.
Conclusion
So, why would you need to join both networks? Well, for starters, you’ll gain insight into what works best for your brand. Each network has its pros and cons. On Facebook, you can interact directly with customers, whereas on Twitter, you can communicate via direct messaging. Depending on what type of product or service you sell, either option might work better for you. Another reason to try both is that you never know where your next customer is going to turn up. By having a presence on both networks, you increase your chances of reaching potential clients.