Don't Follow Me on Twitter- Talk To Me

Everyday on Twitter we all seem to pick up a few new people who follow us. And if we follow some on our own, a few may follow us back.

Some find you via a website, Facebook page, LinkedIn profile or business card. Others do it by actively checking their stream, watching who their friends are re-tweeting or via a Twitter chat.

I’ve written before about why people follow on Twitter. And the primary reason (assuming you are not Ashton Kutcher or Kobe Bryant) is relevance. Something in your bio leads people to believe that you have a virtual kinship. Like cats, marketing, social media or rocket science.

So we follow.

But then what?

Well, without engagement, the initial value of relevance is lost. Because we’ve never talked to each other. To turn relevant into relationship. This happens on LinkedIn when people are lazy. Glad for the new connection, they stop there thinking “I’ll build that relationship later”. And if you missed yesterday’s post, you should ask if you are “lazy on LinkedIn“.

With Twitter there is this incredible opportunity to kick-off, maintain and build online relationships based on that original relevance.

But you have to want that result. Out of the 12,043 people who follow @TimsStrategy (a modest number), Klout says that my “true reach” is about 4,000. And I would wager that number is high.

So if you are using Twitter in a passive fashion, here are some ideas to begin using this great platform with more of a purpose.

Starting with me.

Pick a few of these five actions and do them right now:

1. Send me a friendly @message like: “Hey @TimsStrategy – saw your post. Here to talk.” Or show me your sarcastic side: @TimsStrategy “No longer following you. Got tired of that.”

2. Re-tweet this post (see button above) and then agree or disagree with what I said by adding: “—> yes, more talking please!“or “—> not that big of an issue”

3. Send this post to a friend just learning to use Twitter and say: “Thought of you re: ways to use Twitter . . .”

4. Ask me a question, say good morning or send me a relevant link (a post you wrote or like): “@TimsStrategy Thought you might enjoy this”

5. If I haven’t followed back, show me you are active and relevant like this: “@TimsStrategy Noticed you have a marketing background. Me 2. Please follow.”

I’m sure we could come up with another 20 ways to to establish a “talking relationship” instead of a passive “follow relationship”.

Oh, and one more thing.

Please stop with the automated direct messages after I follow you. I don’t know a single person who likes those. It’s like the licking both sides of the oreo and handing it to someone.

Let me be clear. I don’t want you following me. I want you actively talking with me on Twitter.

And I’ll bet I’m not alone.

Tim Tyrell-Smith is founder of Tim’s Strategy - a site that helps professionals succeed in job search, career and life strategy (http://timsstrategy.com). Follow Tim on Twitter @TimsStrategy and share his 30 Ideas E-Book (http://timsstrategy.com/free-downloads) with job seeking friends!

Tim Tyrell-Smith works full time as a marketing executive and part-time as a blogger, creator, and idea generator. He discovered a passion for helping others after his own 2007 job search. Click Here to check out his blog!