If you use Twitter, you will receive emails saying that so-and-so is following you. The email doesn't say why that person is following you. The email doesn't say how that person found you. With Facebook and LinkedIn, you send someone a Friend or an Invitation. You can't find get into that person's posts without their permission. With Twitter, you are only told that they are now "Following" you.

The most likely scenario is that the "Follow" is only prompted by them trying to get you to follow them - a marketing ploy. They really don't care what you have to say on Twitter, but one of your Twitter posts had a word that made them think that you are a target for their marketing. With that in mind, why would you follow anyone who follows you?

Can I Tell if this Person is Worth Following from the Twitter Email?

Here is an example of a Twitter follow email. Let's examine what you can learn about this person.

1. This person seems to be using their real name. That is a good sign - if it proves to be true. There is actually a Twitter account for someone named "Get_Rich_Quick." I immediately delete and ignore any follows from the obvious marketers. Especially, if they are ridiculous or obscene.

2. This person is active on Twitter - with 956 Tweets. That is a good sign - unless the tweets prove to be baloney or fluff.

3. This person is following a huge number of people. So, am I to believe that friend Neil REALLY cares about reading what I have to say. Maybe Neil doesn't have anything to do all day, but read the Tweets from 18,617 people and he really does care about me. Right!

No, that's not enough information; but OK, two out of three gives me a reason to click on his profile.

Can I Tell if this Guy is Worth Following from his Profile?

1. Here is a screenshot of his profile. No porn is a good sign.
2. No ridiculous claims about my making enough $$$ to buy a Ferrari and a condo in Manhattan (NY, not MR) any time soon is another good sign.
3. He - or someone - has taken the time to do some design. That is another good sign.
4. He makes some claims that can probably be verified - good.
5. He has a sense of humor about himself - good.
6. And, most important, his posts seem sensible and promise some real thoughts and information.
7. But, is this just stuff scraped from other places, or does this guy have something of value to say? Let me differentiate here. There is a difference between a Tweeter who passes on links to great articles, but still has some of his own content to share, and a Tweeter who Tweets the results of a Google Alert. Duh, I can get my own Google Alerts.

The REAL Test: Is the Website Worth the Time it Takes to Click and Load

1. Notice that the Twitter image above says that I'm Following this Tweeter. The reason is the value of the website.
2. I found some great business articles on the site - ones that I would ReTweet.
3. So, I'm not following Neil Patel because I expect a conversation with him or his staff. Instead, I'm following the account because I expect to get some great thoughts from their Tweets!
4. However, putting several other accounts who "followed" me to the same test, I deleted the emails. One of them had a great Twitter design, but the content was weak - not bad, just not worth my time.

 

This article is based on a discussion topic from the Social Networking for Business course
at Dickinson Lifelong Learning Center in Missoula, Montana

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