When capturing a users details, where the goal is to record their twitter handle (@username) and Facebook URL (/username121) what would be the best way to do this?
At first I thought using a simple text entry box with a label allowing the user to input their own information, like so:
But then thought to myself, and confirmed with my colleges that, people generally tend to not know their facebook URL / username.
Would it then be better to use buttons that open respective authorisation windows from Twitter and Facebook and have the user link their account, then pull their @username and /username from the API. Like so:
Is there anything to suggest one is better than the other? or what is the generally preferred method in the community. To clarify, I only want to know the users usernames so we can display a link to their social networks on their profile, I do not need access to their timelines or anything else from the API.
Answer
Generally speaking it is best to get it by having the user type it in themselves.
By connecting / linking your profile, you may end up with lower conversion ratings since the user may not want to give their personal information to an app.
What you can do however if users do not know their username on Facebook, you can redirect them to www.facebook.com/me and it will redirect them automatically to their profile and it would give their url. You can add a hint under the input box with instructions on how to get their url with this simple link.
Sometimes educating users is something you need to do, even though it shouldn't be up to you. Like reminding users how to find their Facebook username or Twitter handle. Though people tend to know their Twitter quite well.
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