To sum up my activity on Twitter, let me break it down into 4 categories (which are really one)
I am by no means a Twitter snob. And to be honest I am pretty predictable.
- I post articles I read and enjoyed
- I try to help support my friends who are also pretty active
- Instagram pictures go there (of random things and my kids)
- I try to meet new people
Simple right? And if you look at the underlying theme here, its all about connections. True, once in a while I lament something stupid, (never controversial… EVER), and say something pretty pointless,
This just joined us in the elevator! instagr.am/p/QYhh7kxifW/
— Aaron Friedman (@AaronFriedman) October 5, 2012
but most of the time, its also to create a deeper connection with people I meet or want to meet. And on that note as well, I would say out of the nearly 500 people that I am following, I have met an overwhelming amount of them, at least once, or tried to converse on twitter. There are exceptions of course (i.e. Stephen Colbert) who I have no intention of hearing back from. And that’s ok for a celebrity.
But I am not a celebrity.
Once in a while I may spew out a few nuggets of goodness or something worth sharing,
At what point is leaving at 3 in the morning considered not cool.with a k #smx @aaronfriedman
— Casie Gillette (@Casieg) October 4, 2012
but I would venture to say that my Twitter activity is pretty statuesque, at best (maybe someone disagrees with me and I am selling myself short… feel free to tell me that in the comments).
Twitter is About Making Connections
I think I have clarified that there are really only 2 kinds of people on twitter, celebrities and everyone else.
That being said, why on earth do I have so many followers who have NOT tried to converse with me.
Not to get all philosophical but something to think about:
- On Twitter, if someone follows you, are you supposed to follow them back?
- Do you wait till they say something?
- What is proper edicate for un-following someone?
I am not going into this now (I think a lot of those questions are posts in and of themselves). I just don’t understand the value in following someone who you have absolutely nothing to do with. It certainly will not get me to follow you on those merits.
If you are too shy to say hello, then sprout a little confidence and just friggin do it. Whats the worst that can happen? The person turns out to be a massive jerk? Fine. Now you know. And frankly who cares anyway. Do you think they are the only successful person on twitter? In my experience 99 times out of 100, this is not the case.
True Story:
One time, I did meet someone who I thought was crucial to connect with and she turned out to be a massive snot about it. Guess what, we never connected and the world did not end. And you know where she is now? Not on twitter very often, that’s for sure.
But there is really nothing to be scared of.
Lets Chat
For the nearly 1,500 people that are following me on twitter, do us both a favor and lets try to connect. Who knows what can happen. I might not be the person that helps you, but perhaps someone I connect you to will.
I can credit the first SEO job I ever got to a connection I made on twitter. Do yourself a favor and start REALLY connecting to the people who you are following.
Be aggressive and keep trying. It will pay off.
And please, as much as I like followers, don’t just follow me @aaronfriedman, converse with me