OK, OK, OK.....#Imaddictedtotwitter! (wait, hashtags don't work in the real world, huh? Oy.)
One of my favorite things about twitter is Follow Friday - once a week, users recommend other users they think are worth a follow. Personally, I love this concept - I get to see who my favorites recommend, and I get to share with others the coolest of the cool tweeps I've met.
But a wise man once said, "Didn't we retire this a year ago? There are better ways to network." He has a point. Just seeing a whole list of user names isn't necessarily going to inspire everyone to drop what they're doing and follow.
Personally, it's worked for me. I have met some of the best tweeps using a Follow Friday lead. I do agree, though, that there's a good way and a better way to participate. I found an article that gives some good tips. Basically, choose who to recommend wisely, and give reasons why others might like to follow. Still confused? Think of it like this: How do you choose which friends to introduce to others? Same idea.
So, what's the big deal with followers, anyway?
One of my favorite things about twitter is Follow Friday - once a week, users recommend other users they think are worth a follow. Personally, I love this concept - I get to see who my favorites recommend, and I get to share with others the coolest of the cool tweeps I've met.
But a wise man once said, "Didn't we retire this a year ago? There are better ways to network." He has a point. Just seeing a whole list of user names isn't necessarily going to inspire everyone to drop what they're doing and follow.
Personally, it's worked for me. I have met some of the best tweeps using a Follow Friday lead. I do agree, though, that there's a good way and a better way to participate. I found an article that gives some good tips. Basically, choose who to recommend wisely, and give reasons why others might like to follow. Still confused? Think of it like this: How do you choose which friends to introduce to others? Same idea.
So, what's the big deal with followers, anyway?
In the twitterverse, people are judged largely on how many followers they have. There are even sites you can use to find out your influence on twitter. So, how do you choose who to follow, and how do you get more followers?
There are a million articles (I counted) on these topics. The simple answer - it depends on how you use twitter. Some people are here to promote a business. Others are here to get the word out about their blog. Others mostly follow news or other interests, and others just use it as a way to communicate with (and meet) friends, peers, etc. [Then there are addicts...er...users like me, who do all of that.]
Some people get really, REALLY upset when you unfollow. They might even call-out the person who has left their loyal ranks. Why? I'm really not sure. It's not like facebook, where someone has just broken up with you or ended a friendship. It's not personal. As an even wiser man once said, "They follow me, I follow them; it's not a contract."
No matter how you're using it, the best description I have ever heard is that twitter is one giant cocktail party. You move from conversation to conversation; you go back to find some people more than once, others you never see again. No biggie - it's fun, not personal.
Love it. I've come to realize I utilize Twitter in my own special way. Just like everyone else.
ReplyDeleteI still don't understand why people get upset when they get unfollowed. Seriously.
Nice post. Hopefully this will help us all find some good people to check out and to not take it so serious. :-)
ReplyDeleteI think people take it so seriously because they're taking the whole thing too personally. Which is a shame - they are missing some of the fun.
ReplyDeleteThank you (both) for reading!!