Marketing CLARITY Podcast
Marketing CLARITY Podcast
Elon's Twitter Is A Dumpster Fire
Twitter is a platform that’s far from perfect.
But ever since Elon Musk took over it’s never been further from perfect. In fact, it’s much closer to a dumpster fire.
In the 30 days since Musk’s purchase was approved, practically all the senior leadership team was fired, 50% of the workforce was let go, advertisers and brands are leaving the platform in droves, and there are disastrous new features that are haphazardly rolled out and then quickly removed.
Today, on the Marketing CLARITY Podcast, I’m joined by brand guru and tweeter extraordinaire Kayla Naab (follow her @kaylanaab) as we discuss the state of Twitter, the arrogance of Musk, and the future of social media as we know it.
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Welcome to the marketing clarity podcast, the show that has no content moderation panel. I am Ross Herosian. And today on this episode we say week because I'm joined by my friend Kayla are talking about Elon Musk's Twitter, Kayla knob. She is a brand guru and a content creator and one hell of a tweeter. So if you don't follow her, you're not living a full life. That's how strong a statement. I stand by it. You can follow through. Is this true? You can follow her at Kayla knob. It's Kayla and WABN. A B is that right? That's right. That's your handle. Right? Yeah. Elena killin up. So okay, let's, let's do a quick allow me to set the scene of this dumpster fire on Twitter for the last month. So I'm kicking and screaming Elon Musk was forced finally to put literally his money where his mouth was. And by Twitter, okay, for it was literally like he was gonna go into like timeout, if he didn't buy like he was gonna get in trouble. Like there was so it's like, yeah, he didn't. It's almost he didn't do it willingly. And immediately. He I don't know, I'm sure you saw the video he showed up at one of the first things he showed up at Twitter headquarters with a toilet, which is classy. That's a classy move. And he fired the CEO, the CFO, the general counsel and the head of legal policy, trust and safety. I want to say if not the first day, it was like the first week that was pretty quick, frequent. Yeah. Then he said he would form a policy advisory body to oversee content moderation decisions. Which here's the thing he didn't even Twitter already has a Trust and Safety Council consisting of over 40 organizations and experts but he's gonna exist gonna make his own right. So thank you, brother, I'm breaking decision there. He fired half of the workforce, including the entire ethical AI team. He suggested that making the algorithm rank tweets or making the algorithm that ranks the tweets making that open source so that could quash fears of advantage or anything like that. He then this one, clearly, I know this is your favorite to charge 799 for your verification, checkmark, only to then have to literally, I think within 48 hours undo that, because of so much issues related to profile impersonations, including that one of them being a pharmaceutical company that someone bought the blue check for and then put out a tweet saying what was what was the tweet that it was
Kayla Naab:insulin is now like free and going is
Ross Herosian:now free. And they're the actual company's market cap then just took a nosedive literal consequences of this stupid $8 verification thing. And finally, and even as we sit here recording, I haven't been on the internet for the last 20 minutes. Who knows. But this is the last of the recap. The company then mentioned, plans to cut half the ads, and then make the remaining ones much better. But what's happened is, is a lot of advertisers have pulled out which now has meant that Elon has tried to flood the market Twitter with SpaceX and Tesla ads, which presents a conflict of interest which is being investigated. So yes. In a nutshell, it's going
Kayla Naab:great. Yes. And I laugh but the reality is this affects people's livelihoods. This affects brand trust and this affects journalism. Twitter really was and it is our town square. Facebook think it's thinks it's them. It's not and and
Ross Herosian:open my mouth a little bit.
Kayla Naab:We all did. And we could be in the metaverse right now, but you know. But no, I mean, I think here's my, here's my theory. I think Elon came in and he thought, I charge everybody eight bucks. Everybody wants the blue check so bad. They'll pay it and we'll be in the red, you know, we'll be in the black again, it'll be great. No, no, not only because people don't want to pay for verification, they don't want other people to be paid, verified, because that negates the entire verification process. But also, yeah, that's not verification. Whoa, plus, people don't want to pay for Twitter, they're not going to do it, just let it go. Just just charge the advertisers. And so what he did was cannibalized the advertising market by letting all of these people buy blue checks for crazy brands they don't own. It's almost like any of us. Anyone who's ever spent five minutes on Twitter could have predicted that.
Ross Herosian:I think the other thing that's really interesting, you know, the big Kurt one of the kerfuffles around why he didn't wasn't gonna buy Twitter, which probably because he just, you know, just was shooting from the hip and then go shit, now I'm in it was this bots controversy about like, how Twitter wouldn't give him like the report that he required about how many bots there are on Twitter, and that was a deal breaker for him. I'm gonna tell you something. I would like to think that this was the brilliant reason behind that. Bear with me here. This is where we're going to put on our aluminum foil hats. Every one of you at home, put on your foil hats. We're going into conspiracy theory land. My theory was or my theory is he he wanted that. Because I think he knew he was going to come in and start charging people, and that conceivably they would see user churn. And he could then attribute it to, oh, I'm cleaning up the bots. Yeah, you're seeing a churn of bots, not a churn of real people. Right. And either way, the Twitter had rolled out something called Twitter blue, for those of you that don't know, and that was a paid. You got some extra features for some money. And I want to say, Caleb, it was like five bucks a month or something maybe under 10. For sure. What Yeah, but it was it was a lot of kind of little things, but it was not the checkmark, it was not verification, you didn't no verification for Twitter, blue.
Kayla Naab:No, it gives you other access to different analytics and some other special things. But no, original Twitter would have never had us paying for a verification badge because they develop the verification badge that was for our public understanding. Right. So yeah, and,
Ross Herosian:and because Twitter, very, I think early on, recognized that we want to be that trusted platform that you can't have 20 President Obama's the you know, or heaven forbid, 20 Trump's. Anyways, that's a whole different thing. Anyways. That's true. That is true. You're right. Let me just hold on. Breathe, count. Okay, I'm good. Okay, so you can't, you need to have a trusted process so that, you know, you're this message is from the actual person, despite let's also just be real here. Despite all the celebrities who whenever they tweet out something super shitty, or like, my account was hacked to get the get outta here. Everyone, every politician and celebrity who said dumb stuff, and has lived to regret it has tragically had their Twitter account hacked. I mean, it's, if anything, I mean, we should really be looking into the security I guess, because it's really bad. Because just two people who say dumb things, you know, it's amazing how that happens. And when I look at the last 30 days, I think a lot of what's happening can be can be kind of broken into two parts, right? You have the business of Twitter, and then you have the platform. Yeah, let's let's talk a little bit about the business of Twitter. So the rampid firings? Yes, I mean, more than like I said, more than 50% of the staff just
Kayla Naab:and it was really harrowing manner. He was got wrote about it.
Ross Herosian:It's terrible. And also the, the now we're both remote work people. I how I listen, I understand. I I'm an extrovert, right? We talked about this on previous podcasts, I don't mind so much. And I can see value from in person. However, I am not dumb enough to believe that remote and hybrid work cannot work. That's the problem with a lot of people who they just they just lock into one or the other. And it's like, listen, like, both can work. Well, Elon announced for what's left of the staff, like no more work from home, you gotta like come in tomorrow or you're fired? Yeah, you know, it was like that extreme? Yeah. You know, while they're serious, but this is the guy who brought the toilet in to the headquarters on the day one,
Kayla Naab:that he that's the reason he wants everybody to be present to watch his demise. I think he likes the the audience.
Ross Herosian:Yeah, I think you're right. I think there is absolutely a very real ego maniacal aspect of this acquisition, and certainly of the last 30 days of behavior, with his quote unquote, leadership, where he's rolling out a policy and then on men walking it back, and then leave the
Kayla Naab:CEO, he needs a CEO, that's not him, or anyone remotely like him that has any respect for the company. That's what he needs, you know, and all of that morale that's got to be just tanked in the company does translate to the platform, as users. You know, we've been building businesses, we've been building friendships, people have fallen in love on Twitter. It's, on the one hand, not a big deal if we lose a social platform. And on the other hand, it is a big deal. Because it means that we're losing another area for democracy to thrive, for people to tell their stories in an uncensored way. I mean, that's fascism.
Ross Herosian:I mean, I gotta tell you, and this isn't, this is a subject for another podcast, but seeing the direction that this is going I think we're at the sunsetting of social media, as we have known it, as I would say, my generation, okay, so I'm 40 years old, not ashamed to say, I'm looking okay, for 40 Oh, my back. But I am of a generation. I grew up without social I grew up when all of the social platforms we know today have, like when they first launched, Facebook, Twitter, even like YouTube, you know, like I was around when the all of the all of these things have launched
Kayla Naab:that makes us sound old. But yeah,
Ross Herosian:yeah. I have to dig a nap. Okay. But um, but But throughout this time period, but I've seen my own use, grow and shrink, grow and shrink. And Wayne, you know, like, I used to, it was very important to me before to be on all of them, that barely on any of them. Now, we know you know, and I don't say that unabashedly. As a digital marketer, it does not like I am on there enough to understand how they work, but but from a marketing perspective, and this may be hard for you for the small business marketer to hear social media as a marketing channel is becoming dramatically upended. Yes. Dramatically
Kayla Naab:paid and organic. Both Oh, yes. Are sent there in a completely different place.
Ross Herosian:I mean, totally organic. Yeah. 100% organic, yes. But paid also.
Kayla Naab:It's all changing. I mean, think about advertising on Twitter today. I wouldn't. So, you know, I mean, and that's right. I mean, that's the thing, I think we're pushing ourselves to a new echelon of marketing that doesn't rely on big wide algorithmic control and will instead go into micro communities, and really controlling the conversation with the people you're speaking to. And I think that's a good thing, even if it has a lot of bad ramifications on the way.
Ross Herosian:And I think as we pivot and talk a little bit about the Twitter platform, you know, advertised how this is affecting advertising is a big thing, because historically that is how Twitter has made its money. Yeah, I mean, they've only launched Twitter blue in the last year and it's right by their own admission I don't think it's one of those things where it's like meant to set the world on fire MC Oh, all of a sudden is massive new revenue stream. It was I think it was to be honest with you, I almost feel like it was a playground for them to test out things features. Users kind of wanted and
Kayla Naab:you know, any company can add a loyalty stream to their existing user base and get that long term value up. Yeah. wasn't going to save their business. And to my knowledge, Twitter hasn't been profitable, much if at all. So, this was just to pay their payroll. And now they don't have that either.
Ross Herosian:Oh my God, that's I'm glad you brought that up. Because the, the the thing most recently that I missed was how now Elon has been yelling about, well, Twitter may go bankrupt, to make up and I'm like, you know, joke. Son of a bitch. Yeah. Like, oh, well, you know, like, I totally came in and threw six Molotov cocktails fired half the staff. You got rid of the advertisers? Hey, you know what, Twitter might go bankrupt. Good thing. I'm here. It's like, aren't you kidding me right now.
Kayla Naab:It's just the same thing that happens in politics where a new president might go over and they act like anything good happens with them. anything bad that happens was the previous guy, period, and they all do it. That's why I think Elon needs a CEO. I think he needs a decision maker that's not quite as by the seat of his pants, and one that has a little bit more respect and reverence for the the people that are working at Twitter. I really feel for them. And I feel for anybody that's looking for work at this point because of it.
Ross Herosian:It's I saw on the CEO front. Now, I don't know this. What am I gonna sit here and do research or some? Tesla doesn't? He is the CEO is he the founder and CEO of Tesla, I'm thinking, I gotta believe it. I can be
Kayla Naab:wrong. He's always so involved in his own stuff. And that's an ego.
Ross Herosian:Now, here's, here's here's. I mean, he's CEO that would take this job, he's got their work cut out for him. Trade, I will say,
Kayla Naab:I'll do it pay me enough.
Ross Herosian:Watch it. Can you imagine Watch out? Okay. Sandberg. I mean, she left Facebook. Right? I don't know. Now the problem is also everyone who late most of the people. I think a lot of the executives even leaving because Facebook's now going through cuts too. And they are there's like some some stank on them too, because of Facebook's demise. But Facebook's demise isn't. And, and megalomania is very different than this present.
Kayla Naab:But different. It's slower. And I think it's more methodical somehow. They're taking them apart piece by piece instead of all at once.
Ross Herosian:It feels more desperate. This feels more like intentional. You know, like that. So it just feels different. But I'm, I'm with you. I think that he needs to hand the baton to you. But I just don't know. I don't know or think that he can. So what do you think is the future? Short and long of Twitter? I don't even
Kayla Naab:it's total posturing? We have no idea, right? Because we're dealing with such a unpredictable person. In a lot of ways. There's no way to know, the last that I heard was that like two factor authorization on logging in is broken. So like if you log out and you use two factor you can't log back in right now. Yeah, I love that.
Ross Herosian:I use two factor that is great. So there's all those little
Kayla Naab:things that make me feel not great about the future of the platform, because they that feeds the future of the platform, these features that are breaking down because he's fired people or he's turned them off, will run people out. They've already run out the advertisers. And I think at this point, those of us that love Twitter will stay until it dies. But it could be on its way. I mean, we could be in Twitter hospice right now. It's hard to it's hard to know, I think the best way to save it would be an investment from somebody who's dumb. Because you have to be a little dumb right now to invest in Twitter, but somebody who's got a heart and wants to see it live. Somebody who doesn't expect to make their money back. And I don't know that there's a benefactor out there that can afford it, or that would bother but that's it's almost seemed like that's what we need at this point.
Ross Herosian:I did see there was an exchange back and forth on Twitter between Ilan and Mark Cuban. Yeah, and shockingly Cuban or Musk was a douche to him. And Mark he was like, alright, it's your platform bro. Like,
Kayla Naab:have fun with that if you want to do there are so many people that either have the money the strategy or both to help him get this back where it needs to be and I think there's enough people with love for it that they can do it. Well it happens. That depends on Musk unfortunately
Ross Herosian:Alright kids. Alright kids, it's the end of the end of the show. Everyone gather round, gather around. Max. Max, wash your hands. That is, what is. Just go wash your hands. So again, today, kids, we were joined by Miss Kayla, a real friend of the marketing clarity podcast. And we talked about Elon Musk's Twitter, and how it's a real poopy show right now. So we wanted now let's think about what did we learn? I think one thing we learned was how it's okay to create perhaps another revenue stream among your your loyal, a loyal segment of your customer base, but to expect that of everyone. Mm. That may not always be a smart move. Yeah, Miss Kayla, what else did we learn today in our discussion?
Kayla Naab:You know, a big one for me is don't bite off more than you can chew. Right. So I think we're learning from Elon shoes that he thought he had this thing locked down and really has not very much of an idea what he's doing. I think the secondary learning to that is ask for help. Trust experts know that your team has some stuff handled that maybe you don't understand, ask them, converse with them. Don't fire people in an email. You know, I think we've learned a lot about conduct even more than we've learned about strategy
Ross Herosian:at this point. And I think for those of you out there, the Small Business marketers, if you have found success on Twitter, I think it's going to end up being a wait and see, unfortunately. And I think this is also a lesson about no matter what. And I know this is increasingly difficult right now, but not putting your eggs all in one content or distribution basket. And, you know, I would like to remind everyone they can go back. It's it's on this feed, and you can find it at marketing clarity. podcast.com, one of our previous episodes of this podcast that once again, Miss Kayla and I did was about owned platforms. It's a great, great episode. When during my time when I stopped going on Facebook, and I did a whole bunch shows about things you can do other than Facebook. Well, you know what, maybe now you're gonna have to play replace Facebook, with Twitter. Now, I think the most important thing we learned though, is you need to follow Kayla on Twitter. Okay, kids, so everyone, get your phones out. Get your phones out. We're going to follow now Miss Kayla, how can people find you and follow you on Twitter?
Kayla Naab:Yes, so my handle is at Kayla knob. So Ka y L A and a B. And I'm also on LinkedIn, Instagram and lots of other places online. I have a YouTube channel on a website. You can find me anywhere. As long as Twitter is alive, I will be there. So that's the best place to find me right now.
Ross Herosian:And while she was giving that plug, I actually went online and for $8 bought her name and I am verified. So So I I'm the verified Kayla knob so you can just follow me and I think it was a good investment. Now, I will tell you my tweets will not be a fraction. They won't be nearly as good or as frequent or as thoughtful or even as knowledgeable about the world of taro. Which you know is something that Kayla brings to the table. She may or may not be a witch I don't know. But don't be afraid. Okay go and follow her kala knob. Follow her there and and connect with her everywhere else on the internet and tell them tell them the marketing clarity podcast since you so until next episode. Once again you can find show notes for this episode and everything else at the marketing or marketing clarity podcast.com Bye
