Study: Twitter Users = Information Junkies

Rather than ego fulfillment or networking, what appears to truly motivate Twitter users is learning new things and getting information in a timely manner, according to new data from research firm MarketingProfs.

The study of some 425 Twitter users, conducted in early and mid-April, found that nearly 100% respondents agreed with the statements “I value getting information in a timely manner,” and “I find it exciting to learn new things from people,” while about 80% “like to be connected to lots of people.”

Still, about 70% of respondents did agree with the statements “I find it gratifying to have people follow me,” and “I want to generate new business.”

How greatly do members of the Twitter community value large numbers of followers? Respondents appeared to be evenly divided on the matter, as about 50% agreed with the statement “People who have a large number of followers are more respected than those who don’t.”

Nearly 40% of the survey sample, meanwhile, agreed with the statement — most of them “mildly agree” — 34%. The remaining 60% were roughly equally divided among “neither agree nor disagree,” “mildly disagree,” and “strongly disagree.”

All respondents, however, strongly disagreed with the statement “People who have a large number of followers are smarter than those who don’t.”

Also of note, Twitter users do not appear to need instant gratification by way of responses from the rest of the community. When the survey asked how strongly Twitter users agreed with the statement “I feel bad when I tweet something and nobody responds,” about 50% implied they aren’t too troubled by a lack of response.

Less than 2% said they strongly agreed with the statement, whereas those who strongly disagreed constituted a plurality — nearly 32%. The remaining two-thirds were roughly equally divided among “mildly disagree,” “neither agree nor disagree,” and “mildly agree.”