Twitter Influencers: Deciding Who to Follow
So you’ve decided to become influential, eh? Your latest mission statement proclaims that you will be the King of Twitter, with a Klout score of 75 bajillion, and Starbucks will name a new drink after you. You’re deconstructing each tweet and how it affects your target audience, testing it, agonizing over each word, and tracking who retweets it based on complex algorithms and spreadsheets in order to attract the “appropriate” audience with the perfect hashtags. Is that the best route to take to become an influencer, though? Here’s my take. If you want to learn how to get more followers, that’s a whole other blog post.
Don’t Be That Guy
Have you ever been talking to someone at a party and had them look over your shoulder scanning the room to see if someone “better” had just entered? How did that make you feel? Then, when they realized that you were the the best friend of the mayor, they suddenly became your best friend? Gary Vaynerchuk says it really well in his video! Everybody is relevant.
You Don’t Know Who They Know
So here’s a for instance. Let’s take me as an example. Because I’ve done lots of work for people in the trades, I know a million people in construction. Well, maybe a billion, actually. There’s a construction company, who will remain nameless, who refuses to follow me back because he believes I’m not part of his target audience. And yet, I live within 10 miles of his company, have many connections to people in construction, and ghost tweet for three companies in the trades. But none of my social media profiles says that I’m in construction. If he made the least effort to reach out, he could make connections to many more people. But since he won’t follow or engage with me, I’m not inclined to retweet his material or lift a finger to help him.
People Have Multiple Profiles
That “little account” that you refuse to take seriously may be responsible for an account with a million followers. They could know someone who works at the exact place where you’d like to apply for a job. They could be best friends with your mom, for all you know. So why not be respectful to everyone?
The Second Chess Move in Life
The Second Chess Move in Life
As Gary Vee says, if you open yourself up to people who are not your exact target audience, if you reach out and say hello to people and stop “strategizing” and act like a human being, you’ll find your exact right audience.
Gratitude
Instead of following someone based on their Klout score, how many followers they have, or whether they have the best hashtag, how about this? Follow based on conversations with others, whether they have interesting opinions, or if you have something in common. And then how about feeling grateful for the followers you do have? And by the way, here is my very favorite TedxSF talk: Louis Schwartzberg on gratitude.
How Do You Decide Who to Follow?
Is engaging with the “right” people important to you? How has that helped your cause?
Favorite Line: “…Starbucks will name a new drink after you.” HA!
“You Don’t Know Who They Know”
That is so true. I get discriminated against all of the time and I always say that. You don’t know who I know.
People ask for referrals all of the time.
You’re right about mutual respect and gratitude.
Also, I love that TED talk by Loui Schwartzberg.
YES. I just saw you included the Gary Vaynerchuk “Don’t be a d**k” video. Already I love the blog post.
I follow anyone who follows me as long as they don’t promise birthday presents (some new form of spam), are selling social followers of some kind, or are X-rated.
If I’m going to an event, I’ll click on its hashtag and follow some of those people, and maybe list them (I did this with WordCamp Orange County ‘s #WCOC tag last year.)
Hello Bridget,
We all know so many people, and sometimes those friends who are “loose connections” are the best ones. For those of us active on social media, we’re more like hubs in the area of influence.
That Louis Schwartzberg TED talk just might be my favorite of all time. It’s such a good reminder to be grateful for everything–having eyes to see with, having ears to hear with…Sometimes I get stuck in my “first world problems” worrying about, say, which kind of bread to buy that I have to laugh at myself.
Gary Vee always gets my attention through humor and passion.
And we have similar ideas about who to follow. (What is up with that birthday spam stuff?)
I love that hashtag idea–and the #WCOC hashtag is doubly great for you since you’re in the area, and many of those people will be local to you.
Thanks for always being so supportive. I really appreciate you!!!
Carol
It is true that WCOC is local, but lots of out-of-towners come to it.
I didn’t think of social media nerds/managers as being connection hubs. Hmm…
Oh, for sure. It has a small-town, friendly feel to it, and lots of great content. I love WCOC! Can’t wait for the next one.
Birthday spam is the new Team Follow Back.
Yes, I’ve seen a lot of that lately on Twitter. It’s funny…I used to see people using birthday apps on Facebook more.
Great information Carol. I learned early that Twitter IDs with a “bazillion” followers are probably not going to be social with little ole me. But I’ll follow if they put out valuable information. I love finding and following people who will chat about nearly anything.
Hi Patricia,
Often those accounts with a bajillion followers have been purchased, so they’re probably not going to be very social.
Like you, I like people who enjoy chatting and being social. :D
Thanks for dropping in to comment.
Sincerely,
Carol