On Twitter, putting ‘@’ before a name tags the person/company/account to your tweet. This makes Twitter a more direct, connect conversation, where a social network is created, allowing users to contact and mention each other.
Instagram also has this feature, as each user can be tagged in images, tagged in comments or photo captions, or searched for using the app, with the ‘@’ symbol before their Instagram username.
Now, Tumblr has joined the ‘@’ conversation.
The small change to the website may not seem significant, but it is one step towards making the site more of a social network than a blogging platform.
The ‘@’ symbol allows users to tag others in posts that will trigger notifications, similar to both Twitter and Instagram.
Previously, Tumblr uses could only connect directly using Tumblr Ask, a direct messaging feature that required manual enabling, or by liking or reblogging other users’ posts. The new ‘@’ feature now allows users to have direct contact, turning blogs into conversations.
