Investment guru Warren Buffett once said that wide diversification is only required when investors do not understand what they’re doing. Well, the same could easily apply to Twitter.
Political Donations
The social network today argued that when people have conversations “about politics, they have them on Twitter.”
“It’s what voters learn and share in these conversations that routinely motivates political action. That’s why we’re making it easier for Twitter users to actively support candidates and causes.”
Facebook publicised its “donate button” at the end of last month, trying to reach a broader audience — but FB looks smarter targeting non-profit organisations.
Over-Diversification
Twitter is trying to buck the trend of a fast falling valuation by looking at new products as its core business struggles. In doing so, however, its managers are taking their eyes off the ball, making various attempts aimed at diversifying away in fields where Twitter doesn’t have a clear competitive edge.
In this context, we are still waiting to hear about the appointment of a new boss, which in fact ought to be top priority.
From Big Data management and strategy in the “AI” field via Products Pages & Collections, Twitter has shown a commitment to a broader offering that not only lacks a competitive advantage but also runs the risk of alienating its existing users.
“We’ve teamed up with Square to enable anyone in the US to make a donation directly to a US candidate through a Tweet, starting today,” the group said. That comes on top of news according to which Twitter is also teaming up with Stripe, a payments startup.
I doubt a bright future lies ahead, unless a fake takeover takes place.
(Alessandro Pasetti and Hedging Beta are not invested in any of the companies mentioned in this story)