Microblogging service Twitter isn’t just a fad, it’s something constantly growing in popularity, although it has its ups and downs. For instance, take a look at this Google Trends comparison (for 2008 so far) with Jaiku and Pownce, there’s no doubt that Twitter is holding out strong. Surely the slump it is in now is due to the fact that it is Summer, and the good weather always has an impact on things online.

Actually, the most interesting thing in this graph, is that Jaiku and Pownce are more or less on the same page, while Twitter is massive in comparison.

As you probably know by now, I’m a dedicated Twitter user. I’m on Jaiku and Pownce too, but my activities there are more sporadic, although I participate in discussions and although I syndicate content across these services, I make sure to add some original value as well. Twhirl is a saviour, surely.

Twitter is my favorite, despite the downtime and technical issues. I used to swear by Jaiku, but internationally it is pretty small (Jaiku is bigger than Twitter in Sweden though). I used to think that Jaiku was a lot better, but then they started having issues as well, and while I have a lot of patience with Twitter since it is packed with people, the relative silence of Jaiku made me if not leave it, so not prioritize it.

Pownce is another favorite, or used to be. During the beta, the community was nice, more like an open forum than a microblogging tool. Now it is slow and full of cross-posted content, like I’m doing. Problem is, while I follow up on all answers to my pownces, some people won’t do that. Also, Pownce is often ridiculously slow, which is almost as bad as Twitter’s constant issues.

So I’m twittering away on a daily basis, or at least during work hours. Why?

Navel Gazing, and I’m Proud of It

My Twitter followers know that while I do syndicate some content to Twitter, like posts from this very blog, I’m not really utilizing the service to pimp my online work. That’s right, Twitter isn’t a marketing channel first and foremost for me.

I’m on Twitter for four main reasons:

1. To sniff out news stories. Lots of news break on Twitter, so why not be there?
2. To build my personal brand.
3. To connect with new people. This has already resulted in freelancers, interviews on BloggerTalks, and so on.
4. To be a little more personal when I feel like it. By that I’m keeping that stuff from my blog.

The personal stuff could be me whining about it being hot in the office, talking about coffee, pushing out cool links, talking a bit about games… You get the point, really miscellaneous stuff that I don’t want littering my blog.

Twitter for me is truly navel gazing, with a touch of spin-off gains. It’s chitchatting with more or less like-minded people. I’m not taking it particularly seriously, it’s more a distraction with benefits.

With that said, I do realize the value of Twitter, what could be done with it, and understand that I’m not utilizing it. That’s OK, everything I do doesn’t need to be a brilliant ploy, taking me one step closer to ruling the universe.

You can follow me on Twitter if you’d like.