Internet Strategy and Social Media: Need more Twitter followers?
Posted by Jody Raines
You may wonder how some Twitter users have thousands of followers and why your account hasn't grown as quickly as you'd like. Perhaps it is something you are doing? Like any good Internet marketing strategist, I've analyzed what seems to work. Just like SEO for your website to get high Google rankings, the way you position yourself in Social Media can have great impact on your ability to connect with an audience.
In Twitter, there are three types of connections. Followers are people who want to hear what you say, they "follow" your comments. "Fans" are what you become when you follow someone, like a celebrity, regardless of whether they follow you back. You can hear what they are saying, but they won't hear what you say.
The two way conversation takes place when you mutually follow each other. We call that type of relationship "friends".
I attended a networking event recently in the local Philly metro area. It wasn't a fancy one, just a networking lunch. While I was standing there chatting with a new acquaintance, a fellow comes up to the two of us and introduced himself by handing each of us his card.
Since we are at a networking event, I didn't think that was odd. He then launched into a monologue - sharing with us his company affiliation and what his company offers. At the end of his breathless speech, he then asked for my card as well as the card of the gentleman I had been speaking with. Taking our cards, he glanced at the titles. Apparently the gentleman I has been speaking with initially represented more of a prospect. I know this because the guy who interrupted us focused his attention on him and last I saw the two of them, the pushy guy was backing the other fellow into a corner.
Shaking my head. It's a shame. An otherwise great event for networking was now a place where voracious sales types would pounce on any victim.
What, you may ask, does this have to do with Social Media?
Social Media, mind you, is also a social activity. Just as I wouldn't want to be pounced on by a predatory sales type at a networking event, I would not want to be preached at in any social networking forum by someone who just wants to sell me something.
I've seen an increase in salesy stuff on Linkedin that is very disheartening. I enjoyed Linkedin because it was clearly a business platform. When someone tries to sell me, I am totally turned off. And I don't think I am alone.
Another misuse of social media is by people on Twitter. What makes them think that I really want to hear a sales message 24 hours a day? I am especially disappointed by my friends who Tweet that they have a system to get thousands of followers. Is that truly what its about?
I use the 70-20-10 rule in sharing my tweets and postings. Roughly stated, 70% of the time is spent on interacting with others. I try to reach out and have good conversations and dialogue. For 20% of my tweets, I am sharing information. This includes posting articles I find interesting, or sharing quotes. I have a variety of newsletters and alerts set up to help me stay current. The last 10% of my postings are for me to comment about what I do. By that time, I've established some rapport. My audience is more engaged, and potentially interested in my message.
Just like attending a networking event, it's always a good rule of thumb to be conversational and knowledgeable. No one wants to hear you blurt out what you do, then walk away to conquer the next victim. Gathering followers without conversing is just like gathering a pocked full of business cards. Even if you call people after the fact, they don't know who you are, and they are not inclined to listen to you.
If you've been having a problem developing a following take a look at your ratios... Perhaps the solution is as simple as making new friends, not just followers.