Minneapolis Online Marketing Blog

Brad Wellman
Spyder Trap Online Marketing

The web has been buzzing as of late over the possible Twitter-killer called Plurk. Some people see Plurk as having the ability to pack the knock-out punch to Twitter, because it offers the ability to send short status updates to your friends, like Twitter, but without the bandwidth issues Twitter has been facing. However, there are people that don’t see Plurk as a Twitter-killer, or “the next Twitter,” because the two are ideal for different goals, and thus incomparable.

While both sites share the 140-character limit for micro-blogging, with Twitter, many users feel it has become more ideal as a broadcast tool; for sharing ideas and information in more of a general, open forum. This is largely because of Twitter’s inability to effectively thread replies, which makes it nearly impossible to follow a specific conversation. Plurk, it has been argued however, is more interactive, like a topic-divided chat room, and as such is better for following conversations because the interface threads replies to a topic. To many, Plurk seems a lot less formal and as such is more conducive for nonsense rambling, while their Twitter streams are better suited for sharing ideas and information on more of a professional level.

The bottom line is that although Plurk and Twitter are in essence micro-blogging sites, and at the most basic level they are comparable with offering short status updates, they are far from being one-in-the-same. I do not anticipate people choosing between Twitter and Plurk they way people choose between Mac and PC, where it’s either one-or-the-other. What it comes down to is the different interfaces that make them unique to one another, thus giving each one different personal and business applications.

Which one is best for you? In my opinion using both is better than choosing one.