When you start using Twitter you may not always have an idea about what types of things people are looking for in a good twitter user. How can you add value to the twitterspace?
If you’re not careful you can find yourself being unfollowed by other users. Here are 10 things you can avoid doing to ensure that people don’t stop following you.
10 Things That Will Get You Unfollowed On Twitter
- Constantly twittering about mundane things: Things like – “my coffee is hot” or “just got on the bus” are not really that interesting to anyone else.
- Never twittering at all: You set up an account, post one tweet about how you’re trying twitter, and then disappear. Quick unfollow.
- Using your twitter account only to spam people with announcements of your newest blog post: Your twitter account doesn’t seem to have a real person, just occasional updates from a twitter bot.
- @reply to every twitter you see, but without adding any real value: You constantly twitter replying to every twitterstream you find, adding no real substance to any of the conversations you’re joining. You’re tweeting just to hear yourself tweet!
- Sending a robot greeting to all new followers: Is it just me that finds it annoying when i start following someone, and I get an automatic direct message telling me about a great new service, or how I should check out someone’s site? I prefer a personal touch, or none at all!
- Having no avatar and little profile information: Your account doesn’t look like you’re in it for the long haul. You just signed up, did a few tweets, and that’s it. You have no profile information, no avatar, no custom background. You’re tweeting on borrowed time.
- Being offensive or rude: If you constantly swear, or are offensive in your tweets, I’ll unfollow you ASAP. I don’t have time for that kind of negativity.
- Your profile calls you a social media expert, but your tweets don’t back it up: You talk about how you’re an SEO or social media expert, but your tweets make you sound like you’re a bit slow.
- You constantly talk about how you don’t get “this twitter thing”: We don’t care that you don’t understand twitter! Just start using it, read a tutorial or two, and get going!
- You only have one tweet, and it is asking me if I want to learn how to make $15,000/month using google!: You sign up for twitter from your internet cafe in Nigeria and talk about how you can help me earn $15,000/month or more in this secret scheme! Unfollow!
Those are a few of my pet peeves, and reasons why I will unfollow someone on Twitter.
How Do I Know When I’ve Been Unfollowed?
Want to figure out why people are unfollowing you? Was it something you said? Sign up for a service like Qwitter. Qwitter will email you after someone unfollows you along with telling you what you twittered right before they quit. Maybe you said something offensive, or just tweeted “going home from work” for the 10th straight time. It will help you to figure out where you’re going wrong and change your tweeting habits so that more people will want to follow you!
What are some reasons you unfollow people? What makes someone a good twitter user, and makes you want to follow them?
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
“Good Morning” and “Good Night” messages. I’ll assume you’re up when I start seeing (substantive) posts. When you stop replying, I’ll guess you’re sleeping.
I luv the “just got on the bus” one…funny. With my tweets I try to tell folks when I post new photos or when I discover a cool informative article. I think the net is all about sharing cool, fun, weird stuff. Making a couple of $$ is an added bonus. Perfect article for a pillar post!
Hey thanks for the Tweet tips. They are very useful. I don’t agree with them, but then again, it is my duty to be Rude!