this is the sad truth.

Twitter is a perfect example of something that could have worked as a small company with moderate expectations and a tight budget. Instead they presumed that "eventually" the money would catch up to their Fortune 500 ambitions, if they could just get enough eyeballs.

Welcome to the new "real world" of the "Long Tail," Twitter. Turns out that being the #2 social network, just like being the #2 music streaming service, the #2 ride-sharing network, or the #2 search result means a big step down in importance, reach, and profit potential in the Long Tail world (and being #50 puts you in a completely different zip code altogether).

Twitter created expectations that it cannot meet.

Agree that Twitter could have been great with different expectations.

However, I don't even think they're number 2. Depending on how you count it, that's got to be WhatsApp, Instagram, SnapChat, or LinkedIn.

> Twitter created expectations that it cannot meet.

Yes but in reality they can massively scale down, layoff hundreds and be a very profitable company. How many employees do you believe it really takes to run Twitter? Maybe 100?

After they do this, someone can buy it and take it private and print money for 10 years.

The number 2 music streaming servicd has a rather healthier balance sheet if I recall correctly.

It's impossible to follow a twitter conversation if you don't understand how twitter works. It's a huge barrier to entry for new users and I don't think they'll start growing again until they fix this problem

Would you please suggest a good overview of this? I've been on Twitter for years and sometimes use 3rd party clients, and my UX still sucks. I can follow Twitter conversations but find it virtually impossible to initiate one. I limit the time I spend using it because it makes me feel autistic, whereas I find other social media liberating.