Tips from Two Tweeps: How User Experience Pros Find Value on Twitter
Presented at: 2009 User Experience Conference, Boston
Summary
With exploding audience growth, and instant access to peers and mentors, Twitter is online social media that all user experience professionals should master. Yet in usability circles, the same questions come up. What is the point of Twitter? How can a text-only communications service convey unique value? Will thinking in 140 characters or less harm people's attention span? The presenters will share their successes and learning experiences in publishing a daily Twitter feed of user experience resources. We'll review tips for using Twitter desktop and mobile clients, explain mining the service's API for data metrics, and discuss employing Twitter Search for a snapshot of the zeitgeist.We'll also address concerns that too much "tweeting" can erode attention spans and negatively affect cognition. People continue to find new ways to use Twitter, so the audience's participation will be critical to presenting a comprehensive view. The presenters will deliver advice based on their experiences and study, but also build in several points to solicit and discuss other viewpoints.