What the Twitviewer worm can teach us about web content
Posted on 25. Jan, 2010 by Melanie in Writing
I like Twitter. A few months ago, I saw a friend’s tweet about a nifty new application called Twitviewer. I clicked the provided link and saw this:
The tagline reads:
Twitviewer is an app to see who was the last 200 visitors you had on your twitter page.
It sounded interesting — if ungrammatical. Who wouldn’t like to see who’s been viewing their Twitter profile (which is what I assumed was meant by “twitter page”)? I went so far as to type my Twitter username and password into the text boxes.
(Don’t judge me.)
Then, something happened as my cursor hovered over the Submit button: I read the explanatory copy below the text boxes.
Want to know whos stalking your profile. Well with this new application you can! You can view the last 200 people who came to visit your twitter profile. This is a cool new application on twitter hope you all enjoy. What are you waiting for! Log in above and see whos stalking you!
Wow. That’s some seriously awful copy, probably written by a non-English speaker. Even applications created for no pay usually have better accompanying verbiage than this. Could this be a scam?
Sure enough, a few seconds later, the Twitter friend who had originally linked me to Twitviewer warned that it was a worm. I had barely missed being successfully phished.
So, what does this story tell us? (Other than that I’m shamefully gullible.)
Bad content destroys your credibility. In this case, the shoddy content led me to surmise (rightly, it turned out) that this purported “app” was in reality a hastily thrown together hack. No time, no talent, and definitely no money, were spent on creating helpful, lively copy that would reassure me that Twitviewer wasn’t a scam.
Now, how many legitimate interfaces and websites suffer from content problems this severe? In a word: lots.
If your application or website’s content looks exactly like that of a third-rate phishing scam, users will be less likely to trust or value their interaction with you.
marta
25. Jan, 2010
I’d probably stay away from anything that makes stalking sound like a fun day at the park. Terrible grammar and writing keeps me away from several sites. Sure. We all make mistakes. I make typos too, but there does seem to be a difference between the random mistake and the careless, don’t-know-better mistake.
Good luck with your new place here.
Melanie
25. Jan, 2010
Thanks, Marta! I agree. A typo or two is bound to happen. But when the copy’s downright painful to read, something’s amiss.
Tweets that mention Prose Kiln | What the Twitviewer worm can teach us about web content -- Topsy.com
26. Jan, 2010
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Melanie Seibert and Melanie Seibert, Natalija Heslop. Natalija Heslop said: This is a great read! RT @melanie_seibert My inaugural blog post, about the importance of web content. >> http://bit.ly/8jGPhP [...]
Prose Kiln | The image as text: When pictures replace logic
14. Feb, 2010
[...] my post about Twitviewer, I noted that subpar content uncovered a shoddy hack masquerading as a legitimate app. The chicken [...]
Kevin Cesarz
14. Feb, 2010
Good thing your cursor hovered. I hope we don’t see a time when spammers and phishers actually reach out to professionals to improve their copy. But people who notice poor grammer are not their clientele. Going back to your ‘images’ post, spammers and phishers would rather focus their efforts on image and appearance, The Myers TV point: “the subtle inculcation of the assumption that it’s not very important to be able to work with words” works to their favor. Here’s hoping pictures complement rather than replace logic.