When I started on Twitter, I reached out to people by finding a person in a conversation with my friends and then clicking on the follow button.
That never seemed like enough.. almost immediately I decided to go one step further.
Theget to know a new twitter friend process goes like this:
Click on the name of a person I don’t know from an interesting thread
Read their profile page and look for a link to their blog or anything that they care about
Read till I find something interesting, copy the URL and Tweet about it
Include the @ handle at the end saying “thanks” and then the handle
Leave a comment if possible on the person’s blog
It wasn’t always blogs, but in the early days, I was there to connect with bloggers, so that was my favorite. I also connected on Facebook or LinkedIn when I could.
It didn’t take long and I had tweets thanking me. Even when I didn’t, I felt great sharing new finds with my friends.
Interspersed with this, and the conversations I had, I’d often say “Follow @coachdeb. She’s cool” or something like that (NOTE: that’s pretty close to the first tweet between my future co-author and I).
In January 2009, @micah noticed how many people weren’t spotlighting other like this and suggested we tell others about our friend on Friday. The #FollowFriday (also called #FF for short) hashtag and phenomena was born.
While I often quipped how this was what I did everyday.. I thought it was great that we were sharing that ethos with all the new people coming on Twitter. Trouble was, pretty soon it got very hard to see messages through all the #FollowFriday
In Fall 2009, Twitter added LISTS and @Scobleizer suggested we put our “Tweeps to follow” on lists. I tweeted this several times, and noticed that the fad has died down some, but every Friday, we see plenty of the tags.
No one wants to complain about the clutter. After all, each tweet is an endorsement. I sincerely appreciate all the people who take time to tell other about me.
In an excellent post, @ChrisBrogan shared an idea that you see used on this post. He suggests that instead of #FollowFriday list tweets, we take a few minutes to write about the people we are suggesting in a blog post, and then tweet the link.
I like the style Chris used to with a list and reasons to follow. I like bullet points and numbered lists because they are easy to read and people reading tend to use them as a checklist and are more apt to follow up.
My own style is usually more narrative. So you are seeing my list as I tell this story.
Please, if you haven’t already.. GO BACK and follow all the people in this list. While you’re at it, try the process I described above.. leave a comment, say something nice, be creative and get in a conversation.
Then, use this on your own blog. Write up who you would like to recommend, and tweet about it.
Extra credit. Pus a Twitter friend and brief description as a COMMENT here. I usually don’t recommend putting URL’s in comments (the exception being when the blogger asks for them) … but TODAY, I WANT YOUR URL COMMENTS.
Tweet about this post so others can try this.
And by the say.. this method isn’t just for Fridays… it works everyday, and works better the more you do it..
Call center employee brings works to a halt with prank with one tweet
My best estimate would about about 4000 followers when this happened. Sounds like all of them called in at once
The language is a little off what I”d hope to hear from a call center worker, but he’s off the clock and very real in his presentation.
Perhaps the most interesting part is the reaction from the big boss. I’d like to think I could end it this way, but just a few years ago, I would have blown this for sure.
This story is 2010. I’d imagine that while the attention to a single status update or tweet continues to fall, let’s not forget that the collective power of your customers is growing faster than ever.
I was asked by a Facebook friend why he should bother with Twitter.
Right away, I could tell he was in Stage 1.. so I wrote back:
I’d only recommend using Twitter if networking is important to you business. If you need to meet new people, build closer relationships with your network or keep in touch with a lot of people Twitter is the tool for you.
Most people go through 3 stages getting into Twitter.
It looks like a complete waste of time and “why would anyone want to know what people had for breakfast”
Friends say “use Twitter” and you get an account to secure your name while you can and still think it’s a waste of time
You get into a conversation with someone, pick up a new recruit, learn about some news and start saying “how did I live without this?”
Stage 1 is still most of the world. I’ve seen people in stage 2 for years.
FYI, these same three stage occurred in other technologies. For instance, when telephones came out, most executives assigned someone to make calls (if they had a phone at all). The same thing happened with email, Facebook, etc.
If you don’t use Twitter, that’s ok too. Most of my friends are also in Stage 1. I even know a few that refuse to use a phone. No sense worrying about getting everybody to do things the same way.
As we say.. NO RULES in today’s marketing. Just give people what they want, whenever, wherever, and in whatever format they desire. We all demand that today.
This video is a dramatization of the speed of Twitter.
But in real life, social media is not spreading news in real time.
Whether it’s an earthquake, weather, new product or angry customers causing your next crisis, you won’t have time to plan on a profitable social media strategy.
Today, like it or not, we need to be ready to react in real time.
I picked a outrageous claim in my Twitter box auto DM for the “Dumb Auto DM of the Day” today. (I post one of these with the tag #DADM on most days when I can to remind people who might have forgotten that they set up one and how they never are personal).
I don’t put any personally identifiable information on my #DADM tweets. My intention is to share a smile, teach a bit and initiate conversation, not belittle the person with the Dumb Auto DM.
Today’s tweet assumed I has just joined Twitter, which I laughed at.. but since it’ has the work “finally” I would think most of the people who could build the users network would be insulted.
Then there is the suggestion that an attached link has the secret to making money online. If anyone reads that far, that’s certainly a red flag. People won’t follow the link and likely will drop you if you spam them with a sales pitch instead of a personal greeting or real conversation.
My #DADM was Re-tweeted (RT) by several people and I got some @ replies and had the daily conversations where people tell me they hate automation and drop people for it and I remind them that sometimes real people use them and are just learning.
Then a BOT picked it up and @ replied with another offer to make money online. The account is NOT the one with the auto DM.. this is a separate scam from and account that is likely already shut down
There’s a lesson here. Funny to see the tweet, but I’m posting to have a piece to refer people to when they ask “Are some auto DM’s Okay?”
My answer: Maybe. You can use Twitter however you want. If you say “Thanks for following” you won’t get many believing it was you.. and some will hate you for it. But it’s your choice. Like we say in Twitter Revolution:NO RULES
Automation is wonderful. The same API that spammers and bots use allow us to integrate Twitter with other sites and reach out to people we want to meet. Like all good tools, it can be used for good or bad.
When I started on Twitter, I reached out to people by finding a person in a conversation with my friends and then clicking on the follow button.
It didn’t take long and I had tweets thanking me. Even when I didn’t, I felt great sharing new finds with my friends.
