You really understand Twitter?
cramming that square peg into a round opening?
Of course, a tool is what you make of it. I could use a hammer to toss my salad. Or a fork to tighten a screw.
And one thing I adore about Twitter is its simplicity and flexibility.
But now that Twitter’s become a known entity to most people — gaining visibility during the US 2008 election process, through several catastrophes and tweeted-about gaffes, and most notably during the #iranelection news — it seems people with outdated sales-push mentalities are multiplying on Twitter, their accounts propagating like mushrooms during a wet spring.
Take the tweet in the graphic, above. Zoonini (gifted Montreal web designer, Kathryn Presner) mentioned skydiving in a tweet and immediately an “adventure expert” followed her. Last night I tweeted about a CMS (content management system) I’d purchased and I wake to two follows by other CMS developers. (At least these follows are more plausible.)
push is so past
But these all these actions operate on the premise that one can push, shove, foist oneself upon another Twitterer. They’ll search in Twitter for (their) industry-related keywords and follow anyone they find. Or, on the bottom rung, there’s the “make easy money” dreck who will follow anyone with a pulse. And I expect they anticipate a reflexive follow-back. But why would I do that? Why would I endure their “noise”?
voluntarily vexed?
Picture the most annoying, loud-mouthed, self-obsessed salesperson you’ve ever had to suffer. Okay. Clear your head. Now picture yourself at a distance from that person, and imagine yourself walking closer and closer to them. They’re getting louder. Their words are grating. A headache is ensuing. You’re asking “why? why am I doing this to myself?”
This is why I don’t follow salespeople on Twitter, or anyone else who has nothing to offer but their self-concerned, “let me get you to do this” blather. Just like I ignore TV commercials, billboards, bus stop advertising (etc.).
it’s about giving
Twitter at its best is giving. It’s human. It’s people that want to share their passion in an honest way. And themselves. Their frustrations and triumphs. It’s Chris Brogan and Havi Brooks dozens of others who don’t try to spin it. Kinda like love: let me see what you’re like (don’t stalk me) and maybe a deeper relationship (or a business contact) will evolve.
