You might notice this post is not entitled '10 ways to get more out of Twitter'. That's because I do believe that successful use of social media is as much about what you give to it as what you take from it. So what does it mean to be a better Twitter user?
In my three and a bit years on Twitter I feel I've got a reasonable grasp of it - enough to guide clients through the Twitter newbie stage and see some of them take to it like the proverbial duck to water. So imagine my consternation to check my Twitalyzer profile and find I was slacking in several areas.
As a result, I am planning to become better at Twitter. A better Twitizen, if you like.
First up: what I won't be doing
There are many things I see others do and they give me a bad feeling:
- Over-Reliance on Automation: for example automating the majority of my tweets, using those 'get more Twitter followers' tools to boost my follower count, auto-following (and boasting about it), sending auto-DMs.
- Self Promotion by Proxy: this is a creeping problem. Re-tweeting every compliment or #followfriday, with the original comment intact and the reply added on the end, or re-tweeting tweets from another account operated by the same person (such as an individual re-tweeting a client's or employer's tweets) without disclosure. In my mind this kind of thing is even worse than tweeting nothing but promotional shouts all day to anyone who will listen - because it's not only deceptive but it clutters up followers' twitter streams unnecessarily.
- Speculative @ messages to people I haven't really engaged with yet. This is a lesson I learnt for myself, having been a bit too keen once to make contact with someone and having it backfire. These days I don't push, even if it is well meant.
On the other hand, this is what I will try to do more of, and it's what I will advise clients to do too:
- Not clog up my followers' Twitter streams with stuff they've already seen. When the big hitters like @chrisbrogan or @copyblogger tweet a link to a great article, I won't re-tweet it - because not only will most of my followers have seen the tweet already, but quite a few of them will re-tweet it too.
- Be selective when re-tweeting links. Will this interest enough of my followers? Is it a hidden gem worth bringing to light? Have I properly read the article I'm re-tweeting, and have I told followers what I think of it?
- Be more helpful. I like to think when I see a question I can answer, or an appeal I can retweet, I do so. But I plan to do this more.
- Always respond. There's nothing worse than not monitoring conversations about your brand or your name, and not replying to @ messages is even worse. I need to tidy up my Tweetdeck and take more care with my monitoring so that I never miss a mention of my name or my blog, and can acknowledge it - a thank you is often all it takes. I learnt this one from @garyvee
- Comment more. Not only on blog posts tweeted by people, but on people's tweets. Conversation requires participation.
- Make more introductions. Just as in real-life networking, people are delighted when someone takes the time to say 'I know just the person you're looking for, let me introduce you'.
- Keep my list clean. By this I mean regularly drop any dormant followers, bots or spammers that have crept onto the list (the Twit Cleaner is great for this)
- Keep seeking out new and wonderful people to folllow. If I really want a high quality tweet stream, I need to find all those people who will educate, entertain and delight me ... and help me do the same for others
- Use DMs for 1-2-1 conversations. There's nothing more irritating than watching a private conversation especially if it consists of nothing but 'tee hee's or 'lol's (although of course anyone can make a mistake and forget the D...!)
- Tweet more original, high quality stuff. If I really want to be taken seriously, add real value to the twittersphere and encourage real engagement, I have to blog and tweet more original content. Work out what I've got to say, and say it.
What do you think - are you the best Twitizen you could be? How else might someone become a better Twitter user?
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Robin Houghton blogs at the Eggblogg. Connect with her on Twitter - http://twitter.com/eggboxrobin