Back in April, Twitter announced an exciting new feature that it would be implementing soon: annotations. Twitter Annotations data could be considered analogous to Metadata or RDFa. Tweet annotations may contain embedded data of any type desired such as keywords, names, descriptions, specifications, address information, contact details, link to a web page, photo, movie or audio file. Since Twitter is not dictating what data types can be sent, a data producer can specify almost any data they wish (within size limits). The data standard is open though there are some suggested guidelines.
An annotation feed can contain up to 512 bytes (characters) total with perhaps up to 2048 in the future, transforming our modest 140 character tweet into a richly-detailed data feed.
Feed reader software could be created to display data feeds in a specific way (custom application) or it may have customizable, universal or auto-discovery features to display information contained in annotations.
For example, a subscriber to @amazondeals could receive special product information complete with specifications, size, color, retail price, photograph and a link to the product web page. Imagine your internet-connected device showing full product information at a glance with a link to 1-Click purchase the product. Or an iTunes music Twitter feed powered by annotations could display artist, album, song, genre, year, user rating, price, album cover art image and link to the iTunes store.
Some possible applications for Twitter Annotations might include:
- Enhanced business information
industry, products/services offered, location - Enhanced personal information
profession, skills, hobbies & interests, location - Latest products & special offers
(see @amazondeals example above) - Online auction listings
specific item type, details, photo, price - Real estate
location, size, photo, price - Restaurant reviews
filtered by restaurant type, location, price - Movie listings
genre, location, date, time - New music
genre, artist, song (see iTunes example above) - Job openings & recruitment
field, requirements, location - Local weather, travel weather
location, current conditions & forecast - News headlines and local interest news
topic, location - Personal ads
i.e. craigslist
The possibilities are limited only by a developer’s imagination. Twitter will provide the open medium to carry this data, and of course will be in position to analyze & monetize the data stream.
As online marketers, we’re excited about all the innovative ways Twitter annotations could be used to promote products and services, push enriched content to targeted subscribers, and generate attention-getting tweet content. Want more Twitter marketing ideas? Our CEO, Hollis Thomases, recently authored Twitter Marketing: An Hour a Day. Check out Why140.com, the book’s official website, and learn why readers are calling it “the Twitter marketing bible!” You can also follow the hashtag #TMHAD on Twitter to get the latest news and even win a signed copy!
Can you think of some innovative ways Twitter Annotations might be used? Please leave your suggestions in the comments area below!
Related posts:
- New Twitter Feature: Explanations Added to Trending Topics
- “Sneak Peek” #3 – Twitter Marketing: An Hour a Day
- To what extent do you use other social media networks now that you Twitter? [Poll]
- A Round Up of Great Twitter Resources for Nonprofits
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Voting (topic, vote)
Rating (tweet id, rating)
Events (title, location, date, time, type, attending)
We defined the #wnote format for wine notes posted through twitter. All wine notes following the format defined (http://tweetawine.wordpress.com/post-a-wine-tasting-notes/) have been automatically saved to the TweetAwine DB (www.tweetawine.com)
Amazing news. I hadn’t heard about this anywhere else. This will open up all sorts of possibilities.