Microblogging social media platform Twitter has recently announced updates to how people receive DM (Direct Message) requests. Twitter’s official support handle released a Tweet outlining the update, in which people will now have more context about whom is sending them a DM and how they may be connected to that person. This added measure of security fits right in line with Twitter’s recent focus on more transparency, both toward its community as well as for it.
As a mainstay in communication since Twitter’s conception in 2006, the direct message has grown and evolved alongside the platform it inhabits. Originally limited to 140 characters (the same as public Tweets at the time) direct messages have been used to start one-on-one conversations amongst people outside of the public timeline. In 2015, Twitter increased the character limit for DMs to 10,000 characters. These days, people on Twitter can now also send photos, videos, GIFs and emojis all via DM, as long as the person receiving the message has their preferences set to receive them.
The short and concise Tweet from Twitter Support explains that instead of simply seeing the handle of the person requesting to DM, account owners will now see how they are connected to that messenger. That could mean they are followed be the same people, they follow the person they are messaging or they have no connections at all. Additionally, after someone receives a new DM request, they can click or tap on it and see the messenger’s full profile along with the message they have sent to initiate the unsolicited conversation. From there, the person who receives the DM can decide whether they’ll allow the other person to officially message them. A small tweak to an established feature indeed, but the additional context for Twitter accounts that receive numerous DMs could truly help weed out the riffraff in daily communication amongst followers.
Twitter’s Focus On Transparency Extends To DMs
One of the major focuses of Twitter lately has been transparency as it relates to the sharing of information as well its overall role as a prominent platform in the social media realm. Giving people on Twitter the added peace of mind in knowing exactly whom is messaging them is an admirable move, especially for accounts that have had issues with inappropriate or hateful DMs in the past. In fact, the person messaging will not be alerted that the other person has even seen their DM until they decide to accept (if they decide to accept). This protects people from additional harassment for not promptly responding, or for actively ignoring a given message. Context before accepting a direct message is not only beneficial for individual Twitter accounts, but for many businesses who use the site to engage with customers as well.
One strategy many businesses on Twitter utilize is the setting to receive messages from anyone. This gives customers or fans of a given brand the opportunity to privately share positive feedback and ask questions. If someone happens to put a business on blast in a public Tweet, many businesses will respond and ask that person to DM them the details to amend the situation. The ‘anyone’ setting for direct messages offers a lot of opportunity for businesses to engage with its followers, but it also opens the door for unwelcome messages. Even though an account can receive messages from anyone, any account that is not followed by the business will still be presented as a message request. As a result, the new additional context and profile view of the account will be presented first. This in turn will allow businesses (or individuals who choose to allow anyone to message) the ability to quickly decipher if the messaging account is legitimate, and if its message is relevant and or welcomed.
While this is not the most groundbreaking feature to debut this year, it could easily save people time and frustration. It’s small tweaks like this that Twitter makes every so often, that keeps it on the forefront of the public conversation and helps maintain its status as one of the most widely used social media platforms today.
Source: Twitter Support/Twitter