8 Categories of Tweeps You Must Avoid

As you continue tweeting on Twitter, you will come across the following 8 varieties of Tweeps. These categories tend to be very annoying and must be avoided at all costs.

1. Narcissists

The narcissist is so preoccupied with him/herself that he/she actually believes that the world is interested in every minute detail of their dull lives. They tweet incessantly about what they are wearing, watching, listeing, eating, talking, and so on and so forth. The information is of absolutely no use to anybody; it can get boring; and worst of all, it clutters up your Twitter page. If you see tweets such as "Watching CNN, eating ice-cream, and enjoying it," "Cleaned out my desk at last!" "Thinking about roasting chicken for dinner," and so on and so forth, you are in the presence of a narcissist. These tweeps simply cause their follower's inbox to explode.

If you want to tweet, make it something of value to your readers. Otherwise send direct messages only to special friends who really care what you are planning to cook for dinner that night. Narcissistic tweeting gives the Twitter user an unsavoury reputation and drives many new users away from him/her. No Tweep on Twitter has the energy, time, or the desire to read such Tweets or wade through such Tweets in the hope of finding something of value.

2. Spammer

Ever found yourself hounded by companies?  I was annoyed to find a real estate company and a funeral home following me around on Twitter. Since I planned neither to purchase a house nor die in the near future, their attention was unflattering. Now, this does not mean that Twitter is not for business owners; it is one of the best places to build your brand and enhance your business. But you must follow the basic twittiquette and target the right people and not force your unwanted company of everybody who tweets out there. Spamming is never appreciated on Twitter, and if you catch anybody spamming on Twitter,  just block them.

3. DigMe Dudes

These Tweeps have zillions of followers, but they follow none. For example, Timothy Ferris, who has authored the book "4-hour Workweek," has thousands of followers but hardly follows anyone in response. If he does, he might have to spend a major chunk of his time just tweeting back to them. However, Timothy is an exceptional case; somehow, he gets away with such behavior because he has loads of valuable stuff to offer.

For the majority of us tweeps out there, following none, but aiming to be only followed, defeats the very purpose of Twitter. We are on twitter to build relationships and have conversations. And we can't do this if we do not follow anyone. Not following anyone on Twitter is like talking our heads off about ourselves at a party, but nodding off to sleep the minute the others try to speak about himself or herself.

4. Bottys

For some reason, these tweeps feel that they ought to repeat themselves in order to get heard. You will spot them tweeting incessantly about their blog post, and they don’t even change the way they word their tweets. The fact is that they get noticed the first time they post about their blog post. They don't have to do it again and again. On twitter, you don't have to repeat yourself. If other Tweeps find that you have offered something valuable, they will retweet your post. If you keep tweeting the same thing over and over again, you will really tick off the rest of the Tweeps out there.

5. Dumb Linker

Certain Tweeps post links without posting adequate information about the link. You will turn off other tweeters if you post tweets such as "Click on this link for some great fun!" How am I sure I am going to have fun if I click that link? Before clicking on a link, I need to know whether that link is going to be worth my time and attention. While posting links, also post some good reasons to click that link. Otherwise, your followers will simply check out the other tweets and ignore yours.

You must remember that people don't click any link. You first need to tell them exactly what they can expect if they click it. Telling people that they will have a good time if they click a link is the lamest tweet you can post because your idea of a good time might just not turn out to be the other's idea of a good time.

6. Twittermatic

Ever greeted another Twitter user and received a long response that surprised you? Well, you have just met a Twittermatic, who sends automatic responses to everybody who greets them after getting to know them on twitter. Well, people just don't like automated responses. They like to be acknowledged as human beings. So don't make another Tweep feel as if he/she has just linked up with a machine who sends automated messages every time he/she is trying to get friendly.

7. JabberJaws

As the name suggests, JabberJaws don't seem to have a life of their own since they tweet incessantly. They always seem to be on Twitter, tweeting away and filling up your inbox. People feel suffocated by such an attitude. We all like our space and we like to have our share of the conversation. On Twitter, conversation hogs who tweet all the time are simply not appreciated.

8. Twitter SmarmySales

Twitter is not a market place; it is a social networking site in which you can show that you have a brand to market. But it is definitely not the place for hard selling and aggressive marketing. The minute Tweeps realize that you are trying to hawk your products, they will start avoiding you like the plague. On Twitter, you are expected to be more interested in Tweeps and tweeting than in boosting your sales or driving traffic to your websites.

If you aren't one of these, you are a successful Tweep...an accepted, well-respected part of the Tweep community. You might even find yourself getting addicted to Twitter.