Introduction
The growth of the internet has led to a surge in the development of online applications. Twitter and instagram are examples of social media applications that are widely used by internet enthusiasts. Both applications are great tools that have eased communication between people in different parts of the world.
They have created a phenomenon that marks a critical period in the evolution of technology. Social networking sites offer opportunities for people to interact and conduct business from different geographical locations in the world. Businesses have taken advantage of both applications to improve their business processes and operations.
For instance, they use the applications to advertise their goods and services as well as create strong relationships with customers. Twitter and instagram have attracted many users because they are free to join, easy to use, and very efficient in communication.
Advantages and disadvantages of twitter
Twitter is a social networking tool that has a large online community that comprises millions of users and visitors. It has advantages and disadvantages that affect its embracement and use among internet enthusiasts. One of the major advantages of twitter is that it is free to join (Fitton 44). This means that an individual is not required to pay a subscription or registration fee (Lipshcultz 34). After joining, it is easy to connect with millions of people in different parts of the globe.
The process of registration takes a few minutes because it has few requirements and restrictions. Unlike other social networking websites, twitter’s registration process does not require users to give detailed personal information (Lipshcultz 35). The site is free from advertisements that are usually a common source of distraction. The website’s interface is easy to use and navigate. Therefore, it makes communication easy and enjoyable.
For instance, celebrities connect with their fans by posting messages and photographs. A large online community is beneficial to businesses because they can use the application to inform their customers about new products and services, changes in business operations, and upcoming promotions (Lipshcultz 37).
This enables businesses to attract new customers and improve their sales. In addition, businesses can also use the platform to conduct market research in order to obtain information that is vital in determining prevailing market forces, demands, and emerging trends (O’Guinn et al. 29).
Many people join twitter to socialize with other users. A new user needs only to follow individuals that they are interested in befriending (Fitton 44). Unlike other social networking websites, there is no need for confirmation after following another user. Finally, twitter provides high- level security features for its users that make it difficult for online hackers to steal their personal information for other uses.
Twitter has several disadvantages too. One of the challenges that users face is spamming. Many people use twitter to promote their products, services, blogs, and other online endeavors (Fitton 46). They send spam tweets to their followers in efforts to increase online traffic to their websites and blogs (O’Guinn et al. 31). Due to the high number of daily users, the website experiences overloading problems that sometimes crash it.
This interferes with its effectiveness in communication and online networking. Another disadvantage is the propensity to become addicted to twitter from constant use. As the number of users increase, the frequency of visiting the site also increases (Fitton 47). For instance, users who follow celebrities easily get addicted because they develop the urge to always read and send replies to their posts. Twitter addiction leads to waste of precious time that can be used for more important endeavors (Lipshcultz 47).
In the case of young people, they lose time that they could use to improve their academic performance. Twitter messages are limited to 140 characters only. Therefore, it is sometimes difficult to communicate effectively. In order to succeed in using twitter as an advertising application, it is important to have a large number of followers. It is difficult to attract followers especially if one is not famous. In order to overcome this challenge, many users purchase third party software that help them to obtain followers.
Users who use software to obtain followers are banned from using the service because of spamming. Finally, twitter performs poorly with regard to viewing videos and photos when compared to other social networking services (Fitton 56). In addition, it is limited in the scope of fun activities it offers users to pursue. It is limited to tweeting, posting pictures, and uploading videos. Therefore, it offers inadequate opportunities for users to have fun.
Advantages and disadvantages of instagram
Instagram was developed several years after twitter was launched and has grown significantly. Many people have abandoned twitter in favor of instagram because it offers more exciting opportunities for fun experiences. Like twitter, it is an effective tool for communication and socialization among people in different geographical locations across the world. Instagram has advantages and disadvantages that determine its popularity and use.
An important advantage of instagram is its feature that allows users to share photographs (Abbott 2). This feature is common among students who share photographs of assignments. Instagram offers users an opportunity to alter pictures in order to create different visual effects. Business owners use the application to promote their businesses because it is easy and free to use (Lipshcultz 51). In communication, pictures are more effective than words.
Therefore, businesses can influence the purchasing patterns of customers by posting nice pictures of their products (O’Guinn et al. 37). The pictures can also be accompanied by brief descriptions that improve their effectiveness in communicating specific messages. Instagram offers effective privacy features that enable users to restrict the number of people that can access their profiles (Lipshcultz 52). In addition, it protects the integrity of users because it has a feature that blocks followers who post bad comments.
Instagram has several disadvantages that users need to consider before registering. The application does not allow individuals to post links to other websites. This is disadvantageous especially to businesses because they cannot link their accounts with their websites and blogs (O’Guinn et al. 38).
Such linking would increase online traffic to their websites. Many of the pictures uploaded by users are usually altered in order to create desired visual effects (Abbott 3). It is sometimes difficult to determine whether a photo is original or not. Another downside of the application is the propensity of individuals to copy pictures posted by other users for personal use in other websites. It is common for rogue internet users to copy the photos of celebrities and use them in ways that affect their reputation.
Instagram is limited in its application because it is impossible to upload photographs from a personal computer. The application only runs on mobile phones. Even though the application’s developers offer privacy settings that restrict the number of people than can access a user’s profile, third party applications have been developed to circumvent certain privacy settings.
Finally, using instagram is a time-intensive activity. A lot of time is spent in approving new followers, reading comments, sending replies, and taking pictures to upload. These activities consume time that could be used for more beneficial activities.
Rating
Based on their features, effectiveness, and user experiences, the two applications have different ratings. I would award twitter a rating of 4 stars and instagram a rating of 3 stars. Twitter allows users to post links, upload long videos, and use privacy settings to avoid spamming. In addition, it is easy to use.
On the other hand, instagram has a lower rating because it blocks users from posting links, limits the size of videos that can be uploaded, and alters the appearance of pictures.
Many users post edited pictures that are used fake to their physical appearance. Businesses can benefit more from using twitter than they can from using instagram. Instagram has many features that limit user experiences. Even though instagram offers better user privacy settings than twitter, third party applications have been developed to circumvent those settings.
Conclusion
Twitter and instagram are two of the most used social networking applications. They each have millions of users that post messages, pictures, and videos daily. Each of the application has a different class of followers because they offer different features and user experiences.
Advantages of twitter and instagram include fast, cheap and effective communication, effective platforms for socialization, and availability of business opportunities. Their disadvantages include a propensity for addiction and time wastage. Twitter limits the size of messages to 140 characters thus affecting the effectiveness of communication. Instagram does not limit the size of messages that users can post. However, it does not allow users to post links to other websites.
This makes it less useful as a business tool for advertisement. Instagram includes filters that alter the appearance of images. An advantage of twitter is that it does not have a limit to the size of video files that can be uploaded. Instagram has a limit to the size of video files that can be uploaded thus affecting user experience. I would give twitter a rating of 4 stars and instagram a rating of 3 stars.
Works Cited
Abbott, Wendy, Donaghey Jessie, Hare Joanna, and Hopkins Peta. The Perfect Storm: the Convergence of Social, Mobile, and Photo Technologies in Libraries. 2014.
Fitton, Laura. Twitter for Dummies. New York: John Wiley & sons, 2012. Print.
Lipshcultz, Jeremy. Social Media Communication: Concepts, Practices, Data, Law, and Ethics. New York: Routledge.
O’Guinn, Thomas, Allen Chris, Semenik Richard, and Scheinbaum, Angeline. Advertising and Integrated Brand Promotion. New York: Cengage Learning, 2014. Print.