Twitter Tips - What Not To Do

I'm in the Twitter fanclub. It's easy when the way we communicate is surpassing print media and tip-toeing past television... but for now, many of us get our news and info via social media. I discovered the Michael Jackson tragedy via Twitter. I stay informed by following local news outlets, journalists and other notables. We share this information with those around us, we build a network, we instantly communicate.

It makes perfect sense to me, and unfortunately the "What are you doing?" tagline just barely scratches the surface of uses for the true fans. It's about informing, sharing and building relationships... not just a "waiting in line at Starbucks" update every now and then.

My advice for keeping your followers

No One Likes Spam

The example above breaks many of my personal Twitter rules. First, it smells a lot like Spam.

This is probably one of my (and 98% of the world's) biggest online pet peeves. Do not say the same thing over and over again. If it is your goal to follow thousands of people hoping for a reciprocal follow and your only updates are "Try my free e-book! http://blahblahblah.com" - no one is going to follow you back. At least not anyone that's actually going to care about your message.

If a tree fails in a secluded forest and no one is around, does it really make a noise? The same goes for your message. Quality is always better than quantity.

Don't Use Follower-Getting Services

There are many websites out there that boast they can get you hundreds or thousands of follows. And yes, they probably will inflate your follower count, but what good will it do you if they're not listening?

Some are free and some ask for money so you can become a "VIP" and get even more. But think about it... what good will it do you to have a bunch of people that signed up for this for the same reason you did? Most tweeps that use these tactics are only in it for some sort of personal or financial gain and are just hoping for more people to download that e-book or go to their website. These aren't the type of followers that will interact with you or be of value to your product or purpose.

If you want a bunch of followers in a few days then you're probably on Twitter for the wrong reasons (remember that whole relaionship building thing?).

For a genuine audience:

• make sure your tweets have value
• follow someone that you find interesting not just because they're human
• reply, retweet, repeat... when you share someone's name, they'll be more likely to share yours
• participate in Twitter events/topics like #followfriday or #musicmonday... that way you'll show up when people search the trending topics and again, you're sharing someone else first
• be patient. It's not going to happen overnight.

Make Sure You Have a Point

I understand that some days you may not have anything interesting to talk about or share... and that's completely alright! Just don't ruin that nice silence with a boring update that your followers will feel that they wasted 7 seconds of their day reading. Don't feel obligated to make 5 updates a day or even 5 in a week if you don't have anything of value to talk about.

Another thing that I see that urks me are batches of tweets. I dislike it when my Tweetdeck suddenly bursts five tweets from the same person because they've scheduled them. This goes against my next point of trying to remain human.

Your followers will appreciate you more if you're sparse and informative than frequent and most boring.

We Want to Know You're Human

I'm less likely to follow someone with the googley-eyed brown avatar. I immediately interpret that as someone that doesn't really care very much about being on Twitter. I generally check out every person that follows me to see if I want to reciprocate... This is always a big turn off.

Secondly, make sure you have some sort of bio or info about you or why you're tweeting. Leaving the bio section blank makes people think you're a bot. Combine that with the default picture and you have no human characteristics whatsoever.

Finally, don't be afraid to show some personality (for those tweeting for business). Customers like to know that there's a person behind the brand.

Give to Get Back

Just like anything else, you're going to have to give a little to get back. If you expect people to click on your links, retweet you, reply, and even follow you... realize that they're probably not going to do any of these until you make the first move!

Twitter reminds me of dating in middle school - most are scared to make the first move, self-conscious and scared of being judged. So, if you want things to happen you'll have to buck up and move in for the kiss (or tweet). Remember, you're following someone because you find them moderately interesting, so why not share something they posted by retweeting (simly put a RT before their name and message). If you're lucky they'll send you a quick thanks and maybe reciprocate down the road. And look! You've made a friend, not just a follower!

If you continuously throw links and self-promotion at your followers, they're probably not going to want to help you out.

Good Things To Remember

• be honest with who you are and why you're there
• interact with other tweeps via @'s and RT's
• share articles, blogs, sites, videos, pictures you find interesting
• follow people in your field, learn something, stay tuned in to your industry
• be patient and understand that a genuine audience takes time

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