Twitter is going a little bit more mainstream in the hope of relating to new users.
The company on Tuesday announced that it is ditching its star-shaped "favorite" button in favor of a heart-shaped "Like" button. On the company blog post, Product Manager Akarshan Kumar explained it like this: "We know that at times the star could be confusing, especially to newcomers. You might like a lot of things, but not everything can be your favorite."
The change is part of a push from the company to make its product more relatable to a mainstream audience. It has had serious problems growing its user base, so helping the general public understand Twitter is one way to try and jump-start that growth. It’s one of the reasons Twitter launched its new multimedia offering Moments, and why it is spending a ton of money on an advertising campaign to promote it.
"Likes" are a common social currency on other platforms such as Facebook, YouTube and Instagram. So it’s probably more familiar to people unfamiliar with Twitter, and therefore more likely to be used. Higher engagement!
Not everyone "Likes" the new update, though. A lot of people are taking to — what else? — Twitter to air their grievances.
That wail you hear from across the office is because Twitter just changed "faves" to "likes" https://t.co/CQF6HrHqgI pic.twitter.com/W6l8Lie5B5
— New York Magazine (@NYMag) November 3, 2015
Thought today was gonna be a good day but now stars are hearts and I hate everything
— Katie Nolan (@katienolan) November 3, 2015
how could this take weeks https://t.co/YSUsJvH5Gc
— Matt Levine (@matt_levine) November 3, 2015Twitter core user Oct: Yay. Jack will know how to save Twitter!
— Ted Rheingold (@tedr) November 3, 2015
Twitter core user Nov: Jack changed something w/o consulting me.
I just find it hard to believe that this issue was at the top of anyone’s to do list. Feels like rearranging deck chairs. #⭐️
— Derek Powazek (@fraying) November 3, 2015
That's Valentine's Day ruined, people won't know if they're loved or being bookmarked for later.
— Eliot Higgins (@EliotHiggins) November 3, 2015
Woah woah, Twitter. Slow down. There's a huge difference between "you're my fave" and "I ❤️ you." #commitmentphobe
— Sandra Gonzalez (@TheSandraG) November 3, 2015
At a time when other networks are embracing more flexible graphical language Twitter is going with the fixed, literal Like. Ugh.
— Farhad Manjoo (@fmanjoo) November 3, 2015
im jumping off a bridge https://t.co/L6OCmo0hun
— ಠ_ಠ (@MikeIsaac) November 3, 2015
Dorsey’s other company, Square, chimed in with a pretty clever response.
Looks like our suggestion for the fav didn't work out.
— Square (@Square) November 3, 2015
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.
