An Inside Scoop on Twitter

We all know the story behind Facebook,  whether you watched the movie, The Social Network or you were just interested enough to look it up on Google.  Basically, Mark Zuckerberg has made himself a household name and this got me to thinking, who the heck started Twitter and where did the idea come from?!

Twitter Icon -- mediabistro.com

It honestly amazes me that I wasn't aware of this information, and quite frankly, I'm ashamed of myself.  But, I guess it's better late than never, right?  Soooo, I did some digging, well not really digging, more just a quick Google search and got to the bottom of this mystery.

I found a great article from The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that I would like to share because it covers all the angles I was looking to find.  Below you will find a guest post written by Yoree Koh and Shira Ovide, both reporters for WSJ.

Twitter’s Founders: Where Are They Now? 

By: Yoree Koh and Shira Ovide

Before Twitter became a social media phenomenon, it was just an idea. Here’s brief look at Twitter’s quartet of founders:

 

Evan Williams / @Ev: The laid back founder

Evan Williams -- Associated Press

His Role in Twitter’s Origin Story: Williams will always be the guy whose failed startup idea brought Twitter to life. He was slaving away on a company he created called Odeo, which helped people find and make audio podcasts, and then iTunes came along and crushed his company. With leftover investor money, Williams gave Odeo employees a chance to noodle around with new ideas, and Dorsey suggested a short-message service that became Twitter.

What Is He Doing Now? Williams was pushed out as CEO and replaced with Dick Costolo in 2010. With Biz Stone (see below), Williams created Medium, a Web-publishing platform that has grown popular with the digerati.

Fun Fact: Williams has said he grew up on a Nebraska farm, “90 miles and an eternity” from Lincoln.

Biz Stone / @Biz: The creative founder

Biz Stone -- Associated Press

His Role in Twitter’s Origin Story: Stone, an ex-Google employee, was part of the Odeo brainstorm team that eventually sculpted Dorsey’s idea into Twitter. He has served as the company’s creative director, but stepped away from participating in Twitter’s day-to-day operations in 2011, at the same time as Williams.

What is He Doing Now: In 2012, he teamed up with his old pal Williams to co-found Medium, a publishing platform. He has also been an active investor, putting money into various startups including Dorsey’s Square.

Fun fact: He has been known to hit up the conference circuit, charging an average $75,000 per speaking engagement.

Jack Dorsey / @Jack: The superstar founder

Jack Dorsey -- AFP / Getty

His Role in Twitter’s Origin Story: Twitter hatched from the St. Louis native’s lifelong obsession with services that dispatch emergency vehicles or taxicabs, and the way drivers quickly and frequently conveyed their locations over the radio.

Dorsey in 2000 was working at LiveJournal, an early collection of blogs, and had an idea to let regular people do quick status updates as cab drivers and dispatches did. He refined the concept for years and finally got a chance to put the idea to the test when he worked for Odeo.

Dorsey’s claim to fame is he sent the world’s first tweet: “just setting up my twttr,” he posted on March 21, 2006. (The company was originally called “twttr” — in part because the Web address Twitter.com was already taken, co-founder Biz Stone told The Wall Street Journal recently.)

What Is He Doing Now: Dorsey is the chairman of Twitter’s board, and he founded and runs hot mobile-payments startup Square. He also remains very active with Twitter. Last year, he found a digital-video startup called Vine and convinced Twitter to buy it. At one point, Dorsey said he was spending eight hours a day working on Square, and eight hours on Twitter. Yes, that is a 16-hour workday.

Fun Facts: Dorsey is the coolest dresser in Silicon Valley — no contest. He’s so cool that he has become known for a signature reverse collar shirt. Esquire has a “Jack Dorsey Style Scale” to rate tech moguls’ sartorial style compared to Dorsey’s. He also may be the world’s biggest proponent of “selfies” — photos or videos of yourself, shot on a smartphone.

Noah Glass / @Noah: The founder of mystery 

Noah Glass -- Twitter Profile

His Role in Twitter’s Origin Story: Glass worked in the coding trenches with Dorsey to turn his idea into a real service. But Glass, who co-founded Odeo with Williams, will be most remembered for being the one who came up with the name Twitter.

The problem is, most people don’t remember him. That’s mostly due to the fact he was pushed out of the company before it exploded into the social sharing beast that it is today, then largely left out of the company’s historical narrative.

“I felt betrayed by my friends, by my company, by these people around me I trusted and that I had worked hard to create something with,” said Glass in an interview with Business Insider.

He left in 2006, following disagreements with Williams over the direction of the company, including who should lead it. (Glass reportedly wanted to be CEO, but the honor went to Williams.)
Dorsey gave Glass proper credit for the company’s name in 2011–fittingly, in a series of tweets.

What is He Doing Now: We’ll let you know when he resurfaces. Unlike the other three founders, who have all been extensively profiled in the media, little is known about what Glass is up to these days.
According to the Business Insider interview, after his unceremonious exit from Twitter he dabbled in games before moving to Los Angeles to work on an “alternative energy system.” He later moved to San Francisco.
But he’s largely fallen off the digital map since 2011. He only tweeted three times in 2013 and before that was silent since 2011. His blog hasn’t been updated since May 2009.

Fun Fact: Another Noah Glass on Twitter makes clear in his profile he’s not THAT Noah Glass.

The Big Idea 

 

Twttr Sketch by Jack Dorsey -- Flickr

After reading that article, I wanted to expand on that even further and know who they came up with the idea.

I found another great article that from Los Angeles Times that talked about Twitter's "founding document" to read the full article click here: Twitter creater Jack Dorsey illuminates the site's founding document. Part I.

Basically, the big idea of Twitter started with just a simple sketch.  In the article, Jack Dorsey explains that Twitter has been his life's work in many senses because it started with his fascination in how cities work. There are all these vehicles with different purposes roaming about and it was his idea to bring that together, but with people.

As mentioned in the article above, Dorsey was able to make this sketch real life after working for the company, Odeo.

Originally, they didn't have a name for Twitter.  The name was "Status," but after searching through a dictionary, they came across the word Twitter and the meaning just, fit!  In the article, Dorsey mentioned the meaning is, "a short burst of inconsequential information, and chirps from birds."  It stuck and Twitter has become a place most of us know and love.

While on this Twitter kick, my next blog post will be about hashtags, so if Twitter is your thing, be ready! It's definitely my thing, if you haven't already,  follow me on Twitter.

 

 

Cut it out!: 10 words to cut from your writing

The Struggle is Real
I'm going to be honest, I'm not the greatest writer in the world, nor do I particularly enjoy it.  Most of the time, I am pulling my hair out trying to come up with the right words. It's a real struggle people.

However, it comes with the job, and I don't know, I suppose I'd rather be a self proclaimed bad ass who THINKS she can write, versus a complete idiot, which I can also be.

Anyways, what I'm trying to get at here is, there's always room for improvement, so even if you aren't digging this topic so far, bare with me.  The following information could separate you from the chumps and even quite possibly be life changing.

I came across a great article on PR DAILY , and wanted to share this classified knowledge with you folks.  I found it to be relevant for not only me, but anyone who writes for the public, especially in social media (or if you just want to improve your writing in general).

Sooo without further ado, here are the 10 words, that honestly, I am notorious for using everyday:

10 WORDS TO CUT FROM YOUR WRITING

By:  Shanna Mallon

1. Just

2. Really

3. Very

4. Perhaps/maybe

5. Quite

6. Amazing

7. Literally

8. Stuff

9. Things

10. Got

To view the full article, click here.  In the article, Shanna Mallon referred to the above list as "fillers" and "weak words," and as much as we love to use them, we must refrain ourselves!

Alright, now say it with me, "I vow to never (or rarely) use the 10 words listed above in my professional writing."  Have no fear my friends, there is an exception to this rule: sometimes people like to write the way they talk, for example, me in this blog.  I could have written it in a professional manner, however I chose to write in a more sarcastic sense, so please, pardon the fact that I say those words in past and future blogs.  But I promise you this, my assignments won't be seeing any of those "filler" words...except the occasional few, lets be real, I'm a college student.

Remember, if you haven't already, follow me on Twitter by clicking here.

Social Media: It's Here to Stay

Hello all! My name is Kayla Wolthoff.  I am a senior Public Relations major with minors in Marketing, Interactive Digital Studies, and Journalism at the University of Northern Iowa.  

We all have that one friend (or maybe multiple) that literally seems like they're online 24/7, constantly liking every photo and tweet their every move.  I like to think of my love for social media in that obsessive range, however I'm not as vocal or visible about it as much as your average social media addict.

  

I pretty much consider myself the ultimate creeper (I don’t mean that in a creepy way) but what I do mean is, I find myself investing a lot of my time on social media.  Before I know it, two hours have gone by and I’ve done absolutely nothing with my life besides finding out that my friend got her haircut recently and that my other friend is taking his dog for a walk.   

Anyways, I think you get my point, we’ve all been there, we're all kinda creepy.  And if you can't relate, then, well, this is awkward. Some of us use social media as a way to interact with friends and family.  Some of us use it to share pictures, and some of us, like me, use it to put off doing other things. 

Nonetheless, social media isn't just for personal use anymore. In fact, Social Media Marketing is on the rise.  Though traditional marketing will always be a major component, the internet has dominated the way we share information and businesses are taking full advantage of this.  

Many think, "Oh, it's just a trend, it will die out like flared jeans." But let me tell you, this whole interactive digital platform is here to stay.  

Lets think about this.  Why would it die out? It's a two-way communication channel...Talk about a great way to establish a relationship and build trust with your audience. Not only is it very inexpensive, but it's also measurable and it's only just begun with it's potential. 

In the coming weeks, I will be discussing why Social Media Marketing has become such a key role for businesses to acquire and learn and the best ways to use it.  I promise, I'll try and keep it interesting. 

I also think it is in your best interest to follow me on Twitter, sometimes I can be funny and awkward, just like the end of this post.

....See awkward pause....am I not right?!?!