As I battled my corner last weekend; myself and Twitter on one side, my Dad and his fuddy-duddyness on the other, I had to take a second, to laugh at the utter ridiculousness of the situation.
I, a tech PR, with minimal gadgets to my name (owing to an expensive London based degree) was set against my tech-fad father who, in the space of a week, has purchased an iPod, iPad, Mac and, a plethora of useless apps (not that these have any reflection on his iAbility).
Despite just two weeks ago claiming that he had absolutely no use for an iPad, let alone a Mac, suddenly he seems to think I’m the technophobe and he’s an honorary member of the genius bar. So what was the turning point? When did all the hype he’d heard finally sink in?
While my Dad would never admit to being sucked in by a PR machine (or being up-sold – yes that was three Apple products he bought), I’d argue that most of us succumb to a few key PR moments which make us realise that there’s some tech that we simply can’t live without. For me, it’s Twitter. It seems to me the perfect example of a company which got its product right and then created the buzz required to get everyone using it. Looking at the ‘46 phases of Twitter’, I have to confess that I’m guilty of making my own way through this list.
Having been forced to join Facebook when I left for university, I was slow to see the Twitter-light so resigned myself to being a listener rather than a tweeter which, at the time, was far cooler anyway.
As I became ingrained in work life though, Twitter became a constant feature. Whether it was office banter going public (who could forget the lilac shell suit confession) or watching the news unfold as it happens (the Murdoch enquiry being a case in point), I wanted in.
Although, I think it was the addictive news element that finally sold me, I wouldn’t have got to this point had the murmurings, the encouragement and the Twitter advocates not been there. Essentially, they made me believe in Twitter. Through everything that had been said and written, I was now a fully fledged tweeter, a PR success case, perhaps.
But before I completely admit I’m just as bad as my Dad, it was me who sparked our initial debate by singing the praises of the Twittersphere (who’d have thought it), while my Dad declared he had absolutely no need for Twitter.
So Dad, remind me again, what did you say about the iPad?
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