Why Do People Use Twitter?
By Anna Johnson on August 4th, 2009Research by TNS and The Conference Board indicates that the main reason people use Twitter is to keep in touch with friends.
According to the ‘Consumer Internet Barometer’ report, 41.6 percent of Internet users who use Twitter do so to keep in touch with their friends.
The researchers found that 29.1 percent of Twitter users use the micro-blogging service to update their status, 25.8 percent to find news and stay updated, 21.7 percent for work purposes, and 9.4 percent for research.
There isn’t much difference between how men and women use Twitter – both use it primarily to keep in touch with friends. Men are, however, more interested in using Twitter to find news, while women are more interested in using it to update their status.
Meanwhile, users under age 35 tend to be more interested in broadcasting their status, while those aged 35 and above are more likely to Tweet for work-related purposes.
How do people get onto Twitter in the first place?
While you could be forgiven for thinking that most people jumped onto Twitter after Oprah’s famous first Tweet earlier in the year, the TNS and The Conference Board research indicates that one-half of Twitter users were introduced to the service by a friend or family member, while 33 percent were introduced by a co-worker.
Source: eMarketer, “Why People Use Twitter,” eMarketer, July 28, 2009
