Is Twitter a Social Ponzi Scheme?

I recently joined Twitter and soon came to wondering whether it is a social Ponzi scheme? Moreover, if it is a social Ponzi scheme, will it collapse?

 

A Ponzi scheme is one of the more widely known versions of a pyramid scheme. Pyramid schemes rely on an ever-expanding roster of new participants so that the original participants may receive the benefits promised them upon joining. This layering of larger bases of participants creates its defining name.

 

If you are not familiar with Twitter (but is not everyone by now), according to Wikipedia, it is a "free social networking and micro-blogging service that enables its users to send and read other users' updates known as tweets. Tweets are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length which are displayed on the user's profile page and delivered to other users who have subscribed to them (known as followers)."

 

Yesterday I was selecting fellow twitterers to follow. I began to notice that as the number of twitterers that I began following increased so did the number of twitterers following me increase. The two groups, those twitterers I was following and my twitterer followers were nearly symmetrical in their growth patterns. My first thoughts were akin to having just bought a lottery ticket, if I were to win, what would I do with the winnings. Only as a twitterer, my thoughts went more, and more, towards whether I could achieve those lofty follower numbers of the great twitterers, such as aplusk, cnnbrk, or even britneyspears. Could I get hundreds of thousands, or even a million, followers? What would I have to do to join the ranks of the elite? Would I have to sell my soul?

 

As yesterday progressed into last night, my thoughts began to evolve. I learned quickly that when you gain a follower it is common courtesy on Twitter to return the favor, that you also follow your follower. Thus, I quickly surmised I could never achieve the mass of followers that those great twitterers have. They began their twittering before me and therefore there was an extra layer, or most probably layers, of a twittering pyramid between us. The only way for me to achieve those lofty heights were if I were somehow able to move up the pyramid. I sincerely doubt that I would be able to find a secret elevator inside the pyramid. Maybe, if I were to channel my Indiana Jones I could battle all the odds and find the Holy Grail.

 

Alas, I have resigned myself to the fact that I became a participant in this social Ponzi scheme to late to achieve Twitter greatness. My only hope now is that the pyramid does not collapse until I have had a bit more fun with it. I think I will go and search for Harrison Ford. Better yet, I will keep a vigilant eye out for the next hot social networking tool and get in on its' first layer.

 

Jim Coburn