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Do You Have to Follow People to Use Twitter Correctly?
Social Media Consultant, Matthew Chamberlin @mchamberlin sent out a tweet yesterday that piqued my interest. In it, he scolds Senator Claire McCaskill about her use of Twitter on behalf of the Twitterverse:
As @mchamberlain pointed out, Sen. McCaskill (@clairecmc) had 2,256 followers on Twitter at the time of his Tweet. Thirty-four hours later, Sen McCaskill now has 3,464 follower and is still only following one person.
Sen. McCaskill is picking up followers at a rate of hundreds per day, yet is using Twitter wrong?
I get the impression that Mr. Chamberlin's expectation of Twitter users is that they must reciprocate follows. In the Senator's case, that would mean she should have taken the time to follow back the now-3,466 followers she's gained since joining Twitter.
Sen. McCaskill's tweets to date seem to fit her personality well. She's sending updates that are both job related and personal including mentioning that she'll be on Meet the Press in the morning and that she cheated on her diet at dinner.
People seem to really enjoy her tweets based on the extraordinary number of @replies and retweets her messages are receiving:
If I was to offer some free consulting advice to Sen. McCaskill about her Twitter behavior to date, it would be this: Don't change a thing. What you're doing is obviously working for you. Your constituents appreciate the additional access you're granting them one tweet at a time. While some Twitter follower may feel that you should follow them back, a United States Senator like yourself would be setting unrealistic expectations for constituents who may incorrectly assume you're taking time to read every message twittered by thousands and thousands of followers.
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2. Posted by: josh on February 8, 2009 9:22 PM:
So it's follow 1 or follow all? UGH.
3. Posted by: Ed Kohler on February 9, 2009 12:58 AM:
Josh, I hope that wasn't your takeaway from my article. My intent was to suggest that people should do what makes sense for them rather than rely on advice that may not apply to their needs.
4. Posted by: Rob on February 9, 2009 2:44 AM:
People should use the tool any which way they like. If I want to open a beer bottle with a screwdriver, who is anyone to tell me it's wrong?
5. Posted by: Matthew Chamberlin on February 10, 2009 10:38 AM:
Ed-
Thanks a lot for the RT on your blog.
One of the deficiencies of Twitter, and there are many, is that it lacks context. My tweet was actually a continuation of an earlier blog post re: the use of any and all social media tools. (Link here:http://bit.ly/T7eo)
There are no rules that govern the use of Twitter, but there are expectations. One of the problems most of us have with trying to interface with any large entity, whether it's the Federal Government or a big company like Sears or Comacast, is that it's hard to feel like you're really being heard. The whole purpose of Twitter is to enable conversations, which require a give and take. It actually allows people to feel, rightly or wrongly, that their opinion, ideas and feeling matter. It is clearly not necessary or advisable for Sen McCaskiil to read every single tweet that comes her way if she were actually following anyone. That's what staffers are for. (Candidate Obama managed to find the balance quite well.) But I am willing to wager that soon enough, if her Twitter practice continues to be a one-way feed, people will soon tire of it and turn away because no one likes to be talked AT.
Again, there are no hard and fast rules, but there is really only one way for Twitter to be an effective LONG TERM strategy and that is by engaging, building trust, and providing useful info or help to those who approach you.
6. Posted by: Ed Kohler on February 11, 2009 4:31 PM:
Matthew, thanks for the comment. While there are expectations, they differ tremendously. Personally, I don't expect Sen McCaskill or her staff to listen to every mundane think people who follower her happen to tweet about. There are much better ways to monitor what people may say that would be relevant to the Senator such as subscribing to RSS feeds on terms relevant to legislation, her state, etc.
Sen. McCaskill's decision to not reciprocally follow is setting clear expectations that followers of her should not expect their tweets to be read. If they have something they'd like to communicate to her, there are still plenty of viable options including @replies, email, phone, paper, etc.
7. Posted by: @MattWilsontv on February 20, 2009 8:38 AM:
Twitter is a medium that should be used in whatever way fit...nobody tells you how to use the telephone.
HOWEVER, there is telephone etiquette as well as twitter etiquette. People who don't follow anybody back seem rude, just like there are rude people using the telephone...
Use the tool whatever way you like, just be aware of how people think of you when you use it.
8. Posted by: venkat on February 23, 2009 7:57 AM:
Does we really need to follow people who are following us it's up to individual to decide ,some people may not that much active in Twitter the may choose not to follow someone.
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1. Posted by: Jeff on February 7, 2009 9:31 PM:
Well said Ed. It used to amuse me that these so-called purists constantly feel the need to call out certain users and chastise them with the "you're doing it wrong" whine. Now it's just irritating - it only serves to dissuade new users from embracing the tool and using it in a way that best serves their individual needs.