OK before I go any further you can find the video of what I'm about to write here, on Seesmic and also know that this vlog supported blog post was inspired by Beth Harte, who got the ball rolling with her vlog. Beth has about as fresh a perspective of all things marketing and social media marketing related, as anyone could have right now and I strongly suggest you add her blog to your reader.
With that being said, I want you to tell me your process for how you utilize Twitter and how you decide who you follow, and who follows you.
Before I jump in, answer me this: Why did you sign up for Twitter? I'll tweet this. but I'm curious. Ok I digress.
Here's my Twitter process: I go through the email alerts and click on the persons name.1) I then look at their number of followers, 2) the number of people they are following, and 3) the number of tweets. 4) I then look at their Bio. and the link on the Bio. 5) I need to determine why this person is choosing to follow me. What is the reason? 6) Are they wanting me to look at their website. 7) Are they promoting something Are they just following as many people as possible 9) Do they even care what I have to say? and 10) Do they bring value? 11) Do they offer value? 12) what kind of tweet quality do they have? 13) How often do they tweet? 14) Are they even in my space? 15) Are they vertical enough?
Once I ask myself these questions then it's fairly easy to decide whether this is a relationship I want to take to the next level. You see, at the end of the day, I want us to be able to share, and learn from each other. I want you to share something with me that I previously did not know. And I want to do the same for you. I want it to be mutually satisfying for both of us. I know this sounds like we're dating but I want it to make us both better at what we do. As with all other social media tools, it's a 2 way street of communication. It's a dialogue not a monologue, and I value as much from what I learn from the people that I follow, as to what I give them in return. Value begets Value.
So... are you using Twitter the right way?