Does Length Impact Engagement? Length Limits of Posts and Microblogging Behavior.

Managers of social media platforms aggressively compete for users to stimulate user generated content on their sites. In this study, we delve into one tactic of this competition which has become increasingly popular, but has received limited attention, the extension of character limits. In this study, we investigate how extending length limits of posts may influence user engagement. As expected, findings from more than 7,000 users suggest that extending length limits increases the average length of posts. However, results also indicate that the magnitude of the effect is infinitesimal (only 2 characters). Further, results indicate that extending length limits significantly increases user engagement by enticing users into posting more actively. Finally, it appears that accessing the platform through tethered or mobile connection strongly moderates these effects; inasmuch as the observed changes to post length and volumes are only observed for PC users (versus mobile-only users). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]