[tweetmeme source="admavericks"]
Talk to the hand ‘cuz the face ain’t listenin’.
Imagine being a parent watching your teen open a gift you gave them for their birthday. They unwrap it anxiously, wondering …”could it be an iPhone? A Droid? Maybe a Palm Pre?”
To their great disappointment, it’s none of the above. No, this phone isn’t just any cell phone. It’s a special one! One with no keyboard for texting. No number pad for making calls. No microphone for talking.
Nope, this phone is for incoming calls and text messages only! A Listen Only Phone.
“Isn’t it great?” you say. “We’ll do all the talking. You just listen.” That’s exactly the impression you give someone when you have an active Twitter account, but follow nobody. It’s like saying to a coworker or friend, “How ’bout we go out for a beer after work and you can listen to me talk.”
Everyone has their own social media strategies … and that’s a good thing. But ask just about anyone who’s been using Twitter effectively and they’ll tell you that it’s a conversational tool. You’ve got to talk AND listen. A quick wander around the local Twittersphere surpised us:
Karl Chevrolet is tweeting regularly. But with a big ol’ “zero” under “following” in their Twitter account profile, how are they going to hear me when I say: “I need a new Malibu.”
Centro restaurant in downtown is a can’t miss. Service is great. Food is excellent. But don’t they want to hear me when I say: “Had a great dinner at Centro with the folks from Farm Journal“?
Even take a look at some of the “communication professionals”:
Take a look at the Twitter handle for WHO-TV: 700+ followers. No follow-backs. Sure Keith Murphy has his own twitter account. Erin Kiernan should. Andy Fales definitely should. And we even have someone in our office 
who would be happy to stalk Ed Wilson via Twitter!
Not a whole lot different at KCCI (except for the confusing fact that they have two twitter accounts … one where they follow people – at least a few select people out of the 2000+ followers, one where they don’t – out of 1300 followers). The fact that they don’t even indicate that you can follow them on twitter on their website makes it even more difficult to find them!
Same story at alternative newspaper Cityview (300+ followers, no follow backs). Love these guys – and they always have an inside scoop on what’s going on in DeMo, but imagine the conversation these guys could stir up if they tried. Seems like a city’s alternative paper should be more engaged with the social media underground than their behemoth nemesis – the Des Moines Register – with 6,000 followers and 4500 follow-backs.
Bottom line: don’t make yourself look like a Twitter elitist by just using Twitter to be another feed for your blog or Facebook page. If you want to use it effectively, you’ve got to commit to using it as a way to talk with people, not at them.
So Congrats Twitter Elitists, you are our worst of the week.
Author: AdMavericks
www.lessingflynn.com
:: 
:: 
:: 
:: 
:: 
:: 
:: 
:: 
:: 
:: 
:: 
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
I was actually just in a podcast with Keith Burtis and Olivier Blanchard where we talked about this. Great post!
I'd love to see commentary on how to stay interactive with large-follower Twitter accounts. The dynamics of give-and-take are definitely different when you're 1-5 people trying to deal with 15,000 (or more) followers.
good article, but implying that people with 4k followers and 3500 follow backs is a successful strategy is slightly a shallow observation observation and potentially dangerous suggestion.
I can barely keep up with my edited and trimmed 255 +/- people I follow. I do second your sentiment that these local entities need to actually be engaged in conversations and many are missing many opportunities by simply projecting their message as opposed to engaging. Merely using twitter as another out channel.
I just worry that implying that someone following 3k+ people are actually listening.
Dave,
Don't you think its better to give the illusion that you're listening rather than the perception that you don't care at all?
Bigger point is, Twitter is a two-way medium, push-pull, etc. and companies that don't use it that way = #fail
Dave
I believe they were providing an example of what they perceive to be a productive Twitter page. They make some assumptions, but they are assumptions many on Twitter make. They assume having 3500 follow backs means the company is engaged in conversations not just following for the sake of it. Their assumptions are backed by statistics, most groups with that many followers "get it" and are involved with their followers, at least statistically. At least, that is the perspective I have after reading the above…correct me if I am wrong Admavericks.
You nailed it Pete. Dave does bring up a good point though, there is no "proof" of actual engagement. When I look at companies using Twitter that I consider following, I like to see a lot or RT's or @name in their stream. I mean, it looks like all Centro does is push soup.
@joshua
to your first point. no i don't. if you're concerned with perceptions rather than substance, stick to newspaper ads, local broadcast spots etc. twitter was a refuge for people to get away from the same old same old. if brands continue with disingenuous ploys their crowds and potential clients will move on and ignore. there is already a cynicism developing around twitter (has been brewing) once the hype machine has latched on and employed the same tactics that they have for years in other channels.
to your second point. yes i agree. if you're just pushing, you're failing, unless of course you're an actual thought leader in the field and you're saying something worth retweeting and people are looking to you for your expertise.
@pete and @josh
what is the "perception" you get from this page? http://twitter.com/SoteroGarcia yet if we look at the numbers, this guy really gets it. i was followed by him. took a look at his numbers of followers, number he follows and immediately deleted my email, without second thought of following him back. does that mean i don't get it?
/* disclaimer */
i agree with the meat of your argument a lot more than my devils advocate and poking holes in argument to make it a stronger message tactics imply. overall great article.
Thanks, Dave. I see what you're getting at and neither of us are all that far off from the same POV – we agree on how Twitter should be used. Thanks for chiming in and I love your disclaimer – well played! : )
I love to see companies that interact directly with their followers on Twitter and fans on Facebook – it shows that they're truly interested in what the public thinks of their company. I agree that the companies that operate on a listen-only basis are not taking advantage of the opportunities Twitter and other social media platforms have to offer.
My best experience with a company on Twitter occurred after I posted a ranting complaint about the company. Someone responded almost instantly, offering to help sort out the situation. That company came off not only as a company concerned with protecting their image, but one genuinely interested in helping customers, which I loved.
On another note, I am responsible for tweeting for an organization I am involved in, and another member of that organization questioned whether it was appropriate for our organization to be following individuals not affiliated with our organization. I had never considered the fact that following some of these individuals may reflect negatively on the organization. Do you think follow-backs could potentially have negative implications on an organization?
@norah
I guess to fully answer, it would depend on what your industry is and who it is that you're following. This brings up a good point about where the line of business and personal can easily blur on twitter. It's a difficult line to walk for sure
Ultimately though, I don't think following someone not affiliated with your industry should reflect poorly on you and don't think others will look at it that way. That would be like saying you don't converse with people with opposing view points. Or you are opposed to living in a city with crime. Twitter and your associations on that medium (although they may be termed "friends") are much looser and should not imply that you endorse all their views.
just my 2
Norah –
Thanks for commenting. Our take here is that it never makes sense to blindly follow everyone who follows you on Twitter. With some of the spam, etc. out there, it may not always reflect well. However, the bigger issue is to use the medium as a two-way communication tool – and engage people who engage you – and also those who you have an interest in.
Dave – I think you are right on. We tend to follow any of our competitors we can find, for example. They often have good information to share – and we're not naive enough to think we know everything. Marketing using social media is still a moving target and the only way to be good at it is to be open to trying things and listen to people who are smarter.
Great post Josh – long overdue for these companies, and others like them. Hope they wake up. It is sad to see so many businesses missing the boat. Twitter provides such immediate feedback, if you take the time to follow and engage with others. Following is just the first step – the companies you mentioned do not even give the illusion that they care about their consumers. Engagement though is truly key. Please don't just push your content – talk with me as a follower, a consumer. I strongly doubt that these entities even look at their @ messages on Twitter, once again missing out on ideas, comments and engagement opportunities with the very people they are trying to target.
What is this Twitter you speak of? And do those who use it have the sobriquet "twits"? And Maverick, one more fly-by and your wings will be clipped.
@renda – thanks for your kind words, but truth be told, "The Worst of the Week" is a group effort – not mine alone. : )
And, your comments rock!
Jess, you love Ed Wilson, the gap-toothed wonder? LOL
Agree with this post. KCCI is my favorite station, but I can't find the blogs on its site, and the double Twitter feed drives me nuts.
The Web site itself needs a total redesign. It's SO cluttered.