UPDATED: October 29, 2009
Please visit my Twitter Profile at the link below.
http://twitter.com/stephencrose
The link on the profile points to my About page on this blog. I recommend having a destination beyond Twitter where folk who are interested in you can find out more.
I recommend the use of TweetDeck to “do” Twitter.
Once you download it, I suggest setting up three columns, One for the basic stream of updates, one for mentions and one for the Twitscoop cloud.
Mentions are key. Use them to create lists that show who is reacting to your updates. My lists are currently those who retweet my updates, those who talk back and forth, those who mention my music (Blip) updates and those who are Twitter-related.
I ignore direct messages entirely.
The following little history may suggest a way to proceed:
I went through a period of inviting that built my list to over 10,000. I did it by hand, not using software. I then pared the list down to close to 2000. Unfollowing inevitably produced reciprocal unfollowing. I then reversed course. I now follow everyone who follows me, unfollowing only blatent cases of over-marketing (spam), etc.
At times I also use I use HootSuite. HootSuite leverages updates using Ping.fm. Usng Ping and Hootsuite, you can post scheduled Tweets simultaneously from HootSuite to Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, FriendFeed, Mashable and WordPress. You can control who gets the updates on the Ping settings page.
As noted I no longer actively follow folk. I get followers on the strength of updates and I assume by the size of my list. Currently I get between 25 and 40 new followers a day. I follow them back manually as they come. The exception to this is that I follow most folk who mention me by visiting their profiles and following.
To weed out folk who are no longer following me I use huitter.com Mutuality Version One. Use with care.
Sometimes I visit Twitterholic.com and check profile pages of anyone who interests me.
To conclude. I think it is harder now to build a following than when I started several months ago. But I would start by making it clear you will reciprocate in your profile. That is if your goal is to grow a following. Whether that’s your goal or not, I would then concentrate on making sure folk value your Tweets. This is shown by ReTweets (RTs) and @ mentions. If you have a few of these a day you know you are connecting.
Marti said,
March 31, 2009 at 11:17 pm
when I get bored of what I follow, I check the “everybody” section and have come across a couple pretty interesting profiles and I follow them now.
Jeremy Hoover said,
April 6, 2009 at 8:18 am
Really useful article, Stephen. When you say you don’t use external software or devices, do you mean you use the Twitter website for everything you do with Twitter?
stephencrose said,
April 6, 2009 at 9:59 am
Actually I do as a matter of preference. But today I started using TweetDeck mainly to shorten urls. I had been using another online shortener but yesterday I ran into a snag as either that outfit or a source I was using was found by Twitter to have dangers. They took out nine updates. I figure TweetDeck is OK when I need short urls. Generally though I use the site itself and of course my gmail account.
jenjoyner said,
April 7, 2009 at 12:36 pm
Very interesting article; I do wonder though what you mean by “follow invites”? Perhaps I haven’t received one yet. When someone follows me, I check out their profile before following them. I don’t care too much if I’m following someone and they don’t reciprocate; however, if I engage them in conversation and they ignore me, I’ll drop them like a hot potato
stephencrose said,
April 7, 2009 at 3:35 pm
To me a “follow invite” is what I am sending when I follow someone. Someone receives an email saying I am following. If that a person follows me back, that would be an acceptance. I agree that direct conversation is the main feedback element and that ignoring substantive @ replies is not too wise.
Twitter Tip: The Uses of Tweetdeck « Stephen C. Rose said,
June 21, 2009 at 1:54 pm
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Twitter Tip: The Uses of Gmail « Stephen C. Rose said,
June 22, 2009 at 8:29 am
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Henry B Stevens said,
June 29, 2009 at 12:39 pm
Stephen, I find your twits very interesting. I don’t know how I started following you, but I noted the reference to Veblen and was impressed. I am a follower of interesting Tweeters of which you currently top the list. I only follow. I’m interested in ideas from people much smarter than myself. I already know how little I know. s/henry
stephencrose said,
June 29, 2009 at 12:48 pm
If you read my sonnets on this blog yo will find that the cornerstone of my thinking is that I know nothing. And I am not being cute. That is the foundation of wisdom in my book.
Barry said,
July 14, 2009 at 9:12 pm
Stephen,
I found this very interesting. I often think about the people I am following. I have less than you, a little over 1000, but it still feels fake. No one can honestly follow all these tweets. If someone has 2,000 followers and only follows 250, that persons importance goes way up, I also feel more important if that person follows me.
I am interested in this passage ……If you have a specific page you want searched you have a good chance to get an audience for your term/s if you post it as a Twitter update. For example, I posted my “authority” page on the economist Thorstein Veblen recently . I am not sure what this means.
Thanks in advance and great blog.
stephencrose said,
July 14, 2009 at 9:28 pm
Hi Barry — This needs an update to incorporate changes in my thinking, particularly about the number of those one follows. I really agree with you. I am paring down those I follow. Hard but it makes sense.
As to the question, I have a page on Thorstein Veblen, the economist. When I note that page on Twitter I tend to get hits and retweets. People are glad to know about it.
Barry said,
July 14, 2009 at 9:58 pm
Thanks for response.
What is your thoughts on retweeting your post with a link to a post on your site a few times a day. Posting once is easy to get missed. I have noticed more hits if retweeted several times at different times during the day. Is this considered annoying or just smart to catch people with different schedules. I have used tweetlater to help with timing of this. Thanks
stephencrose said,
July 15, 2009 at 8:09 am
I have no idea. I think each person is probably judged by people’s perception of what the motive is. If it is self-promotion or direct sales I think this is seen as a misuse of Twitter. On the other hand many of us feel strongly about what we want to get out there. If others do not like what that is, they have the option of blocking or unfollowing. As to posting the same thing several times. I have done so with some posts, particularly if they have gotten a good response initially. When there is no response to a repost, I would see that as a good reason to stop.
Jeffe said,
September 11, 2009 at 10:47 am
Interesting post — I just joined Twitter two days ago and you found me almost immediately. Thanks for presenting such a clear map of your approach.