“Netspeak” in Everyday Life – Good or Bad?

When I first saw this Cingular commercial in early 2007, my first reaction was: “Give me a break. Nobody actually talks like that.” A grammar fanatic at heart, I was still stubbornly writing out and correctly punctuating text messages. Not yet on Twitter, I didn’t even understand the term “character limit.”

Fast forward to yesterday, when I actually said “NBD” in a verbal conversation (meaning, “no big deal”). I was instantly embarrassed, but the person I was talking to was nonplussed. This got me thinking – how acceptable is “netspeak” in everyday communication?

There’s been a great deal of talk about this question, but this morning via BoingBoing, I saw an informal study on OKTrends (the blog of OKCupid.com, an online dating web site) that hammered the point home for me.

To find out how to write the most effective “first message” to someone, OKCupid analyzed more than 500,000 first contacts made on their site. Among other conclusions (Atheists get the most responses, “How’s it going” is the best greeting), the analysts found that the five worst words in a first contact are all a form of netspeak. Messages containing the following had the lowest response rates:

• ur
• r
• u
• ya
• cant

It’s not the most scientific study, but the “no-netspeak” trend was dramatic enough to make a point: Bad language is a turnoff in a first impression.

What do you think about the results of this study – do they surprise you? Share your thoughts about netspeak in the comments!

Photo: futureatlas.com