Chris Brogan is by all accounts a nice guy. He’s also popular. He’s also self-proclaimed social media expert. Recently, he published a post on his blog entitled 50 Power Twitter Tips. I agree with some of what he says but frankly, I also think some of what he says is very bad advice, particularly if you’re a photographer. So here is my rebuttal, line-by-line.
1. Don’t read EVERY tweet. It’s perfectly okay. You have permission.
Completely wrong. What’s the point of signing up for Twitter if you don’t read the Tweets of the people you follow? How can you be engaged if you’re not listening?
2. Follow anyone who follows you (and unfollow spammers/jerks).
Completely wrong again except for the spammers/jerks part and then with qualification. The reason Chris probably gives you permission to not read every tweet is that he’s given you the bad advice that you should follow everyone who follows you. That creates so much noise that you can’t effectively listen. I follow a very small percentage of those who follow me and it works just fine. If you follow anyone who follows you, you are guilty by association. So if those persons are of low-repute, you are too. As for the jerks - absolutely - don’t follow them, in fact go further and block them. As for spammers, absolutely, if it’s really spam. But sometimes people like Chris claim ANY commercial activity is spam while they - wait for it, embed links to ads on their blog like Chris does. You have no right NOT to be marketed to. You do have a right to unfollow whoever you like. But all marketing is not spam.
3. Promote other people 12x to every 1 self-promotional tweet.
A lofty goal but not necessary and totally artificial in my opinion. Guys like Chris use words like ORGANIC and REAL and TRANSPARENT and HONEST and then set rules that don’t count any of those things important. Promote others as often as you can but only when it’s organic and real.
4. Build lists to watch people who matter to you more closely.
Good idea. But if it’s an excuse to cover the FOLLOW EVERYONE WHO FOLLOWS YOU advice I disagree.
5. Retweet the good stuff from others. Sharing is caring.
Yep - If it’s something that has merit for your followers I agree.
6. A lot of @replies shows a lot of humanity/engagement.
Yep.
7. Robot tweets are less sexy than human tweets.
Yep.
8. Promote the new/less followed more than the “names.”
Nope - again this is artificial. Promote the people who are important to you regardless of your or their stature. To do anything else is bogus and not organic and violates all the principles that Chris says he stands behind elsewhere.
9. Set an egg timer. Twitter is addictive.
Good advice.
10. Everyone does it their own way. You’re doing it wrong, too- to someone.
Yep and ignore those who tell you you’re doing it wrong if you think you’re doing it right. Heck ignore me - ignore Chris - ignore everyone but yourself. Make it real.
11. A non-standard background and face avatar means we believe you may be human.
Yep.
12. Leave 20 characters or more space in each tweet to improve retweeting.
Actually it depends on the length of your Twitter name - 16 works perfectly for me. You may need to leave more room or less room. For instance RT @scottbourne is 16 characters. If my Twitter name was THEREALSCOTTBOURNE I would need seven more characters.
13. Use Seesmic or Tweetdeck or Hootsuite so you can see more.
If you like them use them but don’t think you’re not cool if you prefer just good old Twitter.
14. Linking one update to several communities is technically possible. It’s just not respectful of each community’s uniqueness.
Could be true or false depending on your circumstances. I generally disagree. If you think multiple communities would benefit from the info, ignore Chris and tweet away.
15. Tools like http://bit.ly let you see stats. Use them.
Yep.
16. Make hashtags small and simple. We need room to tweet.
Yep and avoid them if you’re looking for Google juice.
17. If software allows you to “post updates to Twitter” as well as to the app, don’t do that. We rarely want to see them.
Yep.
18. If you develop software that pushes updates to Twitter, be VERY explicit how that works.
Yep.
19. Every time you use OAUTH to give apps permission to use your account, you open a potential security hole. Check your permissions monthly.
Yep.
20. The best mobile app is the one that you feel comfortable using. We don’t know better.
Yep.
21. Spamming us repeatedly is okay. We just unfollow you.
One man’s spam is another man’s treasure. Marketing is NOT spam. But too much marketing does tend to have negative consequences. You have to experiment and get a feel for how much of it your audience wants.
22. Spend more time in search than in chatting us up about your stuff.
Okay I guess.
23. Finding people who need what you’re selling trumps advertising to us.
If you mean a targeted audience is better than a non-targeted one then I agree. The fact that you’re following me already tells me that “what I am selling” is what you need. Otherwise why would you follow me?
24. Retweeting someone’s nice words about you is lame and doesn’t buy you more attention. Let it stand.
Unless it’s REALLY special I agree.
25. If your link is an affiliate link or a client, say so (in parentheses).
If there’s room in your tweet I agree otherwise - disclose it on the source you linked to. It’s far less important WHERE you disclose it than the fact that you disclose it.
26. Your customers might not be on Twitter. Use rapleaf to find them.
Or Twitter Search for that matter.
27. Invite your customers to Twitter, then make it worth it for them.
Good advice.
28. Use Twitter as a personalized communication tool, not another blast.
Depends on your goals. I say use Twitter how you see fit.
29. Having different accounts for everything seems like the right move, until you realize it’s hard to grow multiple followings.
I disagree. It’s too hard to have LOTS of different accounts but two or three is no big deal. Better to keep your personal and business stuff separate. Religion, sex and politics will drive away 50% of your business clients. Save that for your personal stream.
30. Just make money and then the boss won’t ask about ROI any more.
Funny and true.
31. Twitter makes every event better. Post the hashtag everywhere. Make every speaker sign/label/name include a Twitter ID.
I like this one.
32. Apps like TweetChat.com make following event chats really easy. Put in a hashtag and go.
Not my cup of tea but you may like it.
33. Tweeting the content of events is nice, but so is occasionally making a real live connection with the speaker.
Yep.
34. It’s okay to tweet your blog posts, but try asking a question that leads readers into the post.
Meh - do it either way. I’m successful without following Chris’ advice on this one.
35. Can you invite Twitter followers to your other social platforms, like LinkedIn or Facebook? Sure you can.
Yep.
36. I’m not into mixing my location apps with my tweets, but if you do, do it FROM the location app into Twitter, not the other way around.
Yep same here.
37. Getting others to tweet your posts or news or registrations is useful, but sometimes comes off as a barrage or spam. Be prepared for that perception.
And if your followers decide its spam then they probably aren’t really engaged with you any way so let em go if they want to go. Do what you think is right without worrying about it.
38. Tweets that point us to photos and/or video and/or music, etc, are always a great way to enhance the experience.
Yep.
39. Please remove Twitter from LinkedIn. Use the #in tag instead and be selective.
Meh - I say either way.
40. Spammy or no, events that tweet their attendance registration seem to drive attendance.
No opinion.
41. Are your tweets really what you want to show in your sidebar? Doesn’t that direct people away from your site?
I agree here.
42. Think of Twitter as a guidance system to what you think is interesting. A lot of that is likely off-Twitter.
Yep.
43. Apps like VisibleTweets.com are neat, but can be very distracting at events.
I disagree - as long as they aren’t displayed right next to the stage who cares?
44. If you use tweets on a screen at an event, be warned if you moderate. Angry crowds can happen.
Yep.
45. Don’t forget to invite people from off-Twitter to follow you on Twitter. Include your actual Twitter ID (I see lots of “follow me on Twitter” with no details).
Yep.
46. Asking questions on Twitter makes for very interesting commentary and opinions for blog posts.
I generally agree. It can if you have a smart, engaged audience. It can also lead to a mob mentality so tread carefully.
47. Tweetups are awesome, especially if you make them about more than just drinking and saying hi. (Though, hey, drinks can be nice.)
Yep either way.
48. Outside of the Twitter app, keep “Tw” names to a minimum. We’re not your “tweeps.”
Yep.
49. If your only marketing efforts are on Twitter, start building an email marketing list. Never put your eggs in one basket.
Yep but despite the success many claim with email marketing, I’ve never seen it work as well as Twitter.
50. Start thinking in 120 characters (remember? save 20). Every bit of this advice is tweetable.
Yes except think save 20 or more or less depending on your Twitter name.
CONCLUSION
I actually agree with about half of Chris’s advice. My opinions are probably somewhat different because I see Twitter as a tool for photographers and Chris is talking about Twitter from a different place. At the end of the day, you should be generous, transparent and use Twitter as you see fit. If people like what you do, then they will follow. If they don’t - they won’t. The world continues to turn.
