“The biggest problem with Twitter is that people log onto it and say, ‘What the heck is this?’ It’s not a user-friendly tool like Facebook, but it’s a tool.”
Housley has cashed in on the Twitter-mania with a network of sites that aggregate adult industry twitter activity and operate under the corporation NaughtyTweet.com. He's the CEO. In all, Housley told XBIZ that his sites track the daily goings-on of almost 600 performers, executives and other industry members.
And despite the seeming unfriendliness that Housley described, Twitter has been mushrooming in popularity over the last few months, most notably in April, which saw media titan Oprah Winfrey plug the microblogging site, as well as a feud between CNN and Ashton Kutcher to see who could amass 1 million followers first.
For perspective, after Winfrey’s endorsement, approximately 1 million new people signed up at the site. According to traffic-tracking service Compete.com, Twitter had about 30 million unique visitors in April.
For the uninitiated, Twitter lets users write small alerts of up to 140 characters long. Ostensibly, the site is supposed to let people tell everyone else what they're currently doing, but in actual use, Twitter has evolved into a flexible platform for sharing links, ruminations, photos and more. These miniature blog entries are called "tweets."
So far, Twitter seems to be working. On the business side, Housley said that industry professionals who are industrious enough to brave Twitter's strange shorthand and emphasis on the now can attract major traffic to their sites — but only if they're willing to take it personally.
"Here's the mistake that people make," Housley said. "They go and make a Twitter profile and post some links to some porn gallery, when what people really want is the back and forth. People pay attention when you're communicating with them."
Performer Angelina Armani agreed. The Digital Playground contract star told XBIZ that she uses Twitter to stay in touch with her fans and on top of her life.
"I would have missed a few parties if I didn't have Twitter," she said. "Sometimes I don't check my email because emails are dragged out. With Twitter, you just get the basic details."
Armani added that Twitter's brevity also lets her give her fans a more personal experience while maintaining her own boundaries. For example, she often will tweet "Good morning" when she starts her day, and that quick message will draw more than 300 responses from her fans.
Armani also praised Twitter's transparency. Even though there are ways for users to send private messages and hide their activity, most users keep everything out in the open, and that includes what they say to porn stars.
"People don't ask questions that are too personal," she said.
As for tangible benefits, Armani said that the interaction between her Twitter and MySpace profiles has expanded her fan base appreciably.
For his part, Housley added that Twitter's open, casual atmosphere makes it easier to approach new contacts in the industry. After all, it only takes one tweet to say hello.
But will the site last? Twitter executives are looking at a dismal one-month retention rate. That measures how many people keep using one month after they sign up for it. According to ComputerWorld.com, only about 40 percent of Twitter users continue to use the service a month later.
For perspective, Facebook and MySpace both had one-month retention rates that doubled Twitter's in their early days. The companies now enjoy retention rates of approximately 70 percent.
Booble.com founder "Booble" Bob Smith told XBIZ he also doubted the site's long-term prospects.
"It'll get tiresome, get bought by Facebook and rolled into status updates," he said, referring to Facebook's Twitter-like status-update feature. "But it's huge now. I've have been meaning to set up an account myself. I'm not sure what they'll think of the boobs."
Housley conceded that Twiter will most likely get bought by another site, but he added that ComputerWorld's numbers may be inaccurate because so many people use Twitter without actually going to the domain Twitter.com, instead going through third-party services like TweetTree.com, Splitweet.com, Seesmic.com or TweetDeck.com.
The site has spawned any number of URL-shortening services like tinyURL.com or Bit.ly, the latter of which lets users miniaturize unwieldy URLs and post to their Twitter profiles with a few clicks.
One watershed event for Twitter happened back in January when Airline pilot Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger III safely landed a plane in New York's Hudson River. A passer-by took a photo of the event and posted it to his Twitter profile. The media took notice.
Newcomers to Twitter will indeed encounter loads of shorthand, code and lightning-fast net-speak when they first log on. Even Facebook users have encountered Twitter-speak in the form of curious alerts that begin with the symbols @, # or the shorthand "RT."
Briefly, the @ symbol is used to specify a user's Twitter page. So @xbiz would refer to the XBIZ Twitter page. The # symbol is used to mark off keywords, or "hashtags" in Twitter parlance. "RT" stands for "re-tweet," which is when a user sends out an interesting tweet they've seen.
Housley's future plans include the launch of Twitter-trackers that follow BBW models, as well as a tracker for gay adult stars. He also has an adult movie in the works that will spoof the Twitter world. The title will star Nikki Benz, Britney Stevens, Lexi Belle, Natasha Nice, Tiffany Tyler, Tara Lynn Foxx, Eric John and Wolf Hudson. Jim Powers will direct.