New Kid on the Block - Should Twitter be Worried?

by Craig Friesen

To many readers the idea that anything could replace or compete with Twitter today is ludicrous. Millions upon millions of people are tweeting every day - what will ever change that fact? Realistically speaking the answer is not much could hamper let alone halt Twitter's momentum. But I suspect there were many people who quietly laughed at Jack Dorsey when he introduced his brainstorm of a short message service being used by individuals to share snippets of their lives with friends and family - even today people still wonder "who cares?" That is the miracle of social and technological innovation - a simple and sometimes crazy idea gains shape and forward, virtually uncontrollable motion until it cannot help but influence the very fabric of society. I wonder how many other "ludicrous" ideas have been voiced then squelched. I also ask myself whether I would have acted if presented with the opportunity to try out Twitter in its first weeks? Consequently I found it difficult to resist trying out Sokule when it was introduced to me in mid-August 2009 a month before its official release. The rest of this article is a review of my experience with Sokule, "the gentle giant."

Can You Make Money with Social Networking?

Sokule is described as "like Twitter but monetized." I found this to be true in several ways. First of all, while the lingo is different, with Sokule you can send short messages called "squeeks" out to your trackers but included are options to increase the length of postings. And whether your squeek is short or long it can be resized and re-squeeked to Twitter automatically. Secondly, while Sokule has a free membership like Twitter it also has paid subscription options to increase its power as a social marketing platform. Thirdly, Sokule's focus on creating a messaging service for marketers makes it possible to earn an affiliate commission from referred squeekers who upgrade.

Sokule is not just about monetizing your short messages. I discovered that the leverage being provided by Sokule is worth joining alone. When you post or squeek on Sokule you can choose to broadcast on Twitter, Blogger and LiveJournal among those currently available; and soon you will be able to post directly to other social networks such as Facebook, MySpace and Flickr. To be able to do this with just one squeek on Sokule is simply amazing and a great boon for anyone wanting to get a message out.

In addition to the SMS function of Sokule members have the option to add marketing links, graphics and videos to the side panels of their postit page. Some third party applications provide a similar service to Twitter users but it's nice to not have to join additional programs to get some of the same marketing advantages Sokule provides.

So Should Twitter be Worried?


From a business perspective I think Sokule has some distinct advantages over Twitter which in all fairness was not really created with business marketing in mind (as far as I know). Even without the possibility of earning commissions from Sokule I see enough unique and useful features available or in production to make it worthwhile joining for free. A good portion of Twitter followers stop using the service after only a month yet the number of new users seems to grow exponentially so I am quite sure it will be a long time before Twitter need worry about any competition. Social networking platforms like Sokule and third party applications that make use of or enhance Twitter's platform will also continue to fuel its growth.

I wish I had jumped into Twitter much earlier than I did - as a newcomer to the social networking scene I feel like I am at a disadvantage to have not "seen the light" earlier. It may be too early to really evaluate Sokule's contribution to the social networking sub-culture but from what I have seen thus far I would rather be on board now at the beginning than wishing I had later.


Craig Friesen is a freelance writer and owner of TopAffiliateProgramsMakeMoney.com. He has written articles and marketed online for several years but confesses to being late in joining social networking as a good business marketing venue. You can see Sokule in action at http://www.sokule.com/postit/topaffiliatepro or visit Craig's business website.