February 17, 2010 110 Comments

Is Engagement More Important

Tom Peters Warning: Twitter-specific post I told my gang over on Twitter that they should follow the legendary Tom Peters, author of several books that impacted my life. Some of them wrote back, “why should I? He doesn’t follow many people back.” The logic is this: if you want my attention, you have to make it a two way street. Only, there’s a flaw.

Following doesn’t equal engagement.

If you follow someone on Twitter, it simply means that the person has the permission/right to direct message you. It doesn’t mean necessarily that you’ll see every tweet the person sends.

I’ve been on both sides of the auto-follow fence. Do I follow everyone back because it’s polite? Do I not follow everyone back because then I get lots of DM spam? Currently (Feb 2010), I’m auto-following people back, because I got a wave of people saying, “I’m so glad you followed me. I appreciate the two-way street.”

But there’s the rub, isn’t it?

How I View Following Back

When I choose to follow, it’s because I grant you the permission to send me a direct message. I will not likely see your standard every day tweets. At over 110,000 followed, it’s a technical and mathematical impossibility.

So, when I follow you back, it means that I’ve given you one step up on the hurdle. But that’s not the whole game.

Engagement is what Many Seem to Value

When people said they wanted Tom Peters to follow them back, they were saying (most likely) that they wanted to know that Tom would engage with them. Know what the measure of engagement is?

@

That’s it. If your stream is full of @replies, then you’re more of the engaging type. Check out my twitter stream. It’s about 80% @replies on any given day. (Mind you, Robert Scoble says I’m doing Twitter wrong.).

However, Is ENGAGEMENT the Big Value?

Engagement, talking back and forth to you, is maybe what YOU value, because you want social media to be a place where you feel seen. And that’s the absolute beauty of social media tools, especially Twitter: they let us jump gates and connect to people who matter.

But what if Tom Peters’ Twitter stream is full of useful nuggets and links to really useful stuff. Is it any less valuable?

I visited CNN headquarters a few months ago and saw what they followed in their news streams. Believe me, they don’t care who follows them back on their news-only accounts. They valued the information they could use. The story’s a bit different if you ask Rick Sanchez, who is using Twitter amazingly.

But my point is: the information is more important in many cases.

So Ask Yourself the Goal

Ask yourself what you’re seeking in the people you follow. If it’s conversations, ask whether it’s the follow, or just the realization that if you’ve got something worth talking about that the person will reply back to you. It’s not like everyone can reply back all the time, but if we do it more than we don’t, that’s probably good, right?

Ask yourself what you value in your use of the tools, but then realize that you’re working from what YOU value, and it might not be the same for everyone. ( Guy Kawasaki reminds me of this every time he talks about Twitter.)

What say you?

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  • http://dsinsights.blogspot.com DavidWeinfeld

    Do you think it would be worthwhile to eliminate follower stats from Twitter profiles?

    I ask because I think people get so wrapped up in achieving a “number,” grabbing the proverbial brass ring, that they miss out on opportunities to really connect with people. One connection born of mutual respect and shared knowledge is more valuable than thousands of people one follows “just because…”

  • Pingback: The Four Types of Twitter Users: A Content and Engagement Balance | Forrest W. Kobayashi

  • http://www.beyondbreakthroughs.com coachpalmer

    What about just following someone for what they have to offer? Tom Peters is a Management GURU. If he speaks, tweets or blogs I want to have access to it.

  • hokya

    yup, i agree with you

    social media makes me feel to be seen :D

  • http://inthebellyofthefailwhale.com Rob Gokee

    Engagement is how why Twitter exploded for me. I've found more paid work as a composer on Twitter than any other social media site, and I owe it all to engagement. Well, some of it's my personality. I hope.

    It wasn't until I started talking to people about their interests, their goals and their families that they cared about mine. It's the key to making Twitter work.

  • stephmajercik

    You pose a great question. I do value the engagement aspect of Twitter and in some cases if I don't feel that someone is there to engage I won't follow them back, but I also follow a number of people simply because I enjoy what they have to say and I can learn from them. Engagement is important, yes, but so is learning, and there are countless people to learn from. Just because a person doesn't have a stream full of @ replies doesn't mean they aren't putting out valuable information-there is a difference between spam and genuine information, and I think sometimes we forget that.

  • stephmajercik

    You pose a great question. I do value the engagement aspect of Twitter and in some cases if I don't feel that someone is there to engage I won't follow them back, but I also follow a number of people simply because I enjoy what they have to say and I can learn from them. Engagement is important, yes, but so is learning, and there are countless people to learn from. Just because a person doesn't have a stream full of @ replies doesn't mean they aren't putting out valuable information-there is a difference between spam and genuine information, and I think sometimes we forget that.

  • http://twitter.com/Tinu Tinu Abayomi-Paul

    It's the possibility of engagement I'm thinking people want. I know when I'm on the receiving end, that's what I want. I don't expect equal attention.

    When I follow back, I'm trying to convey that each person's voice is as important as mine or anyone else's. As such, I've given in to the follow back, but it's not completely automated, because I want to keep blocking spam. I don't have even a tenth of the scaling issue you had, but then, I never had the intention of following every single tweet from every single person.

    I view the medium as streams that I dip in and out of when I can. It feels unrealistic to stay in the river your entire life.

  • http://twitter.com/PhaseWare PhaseWare

    The reason I choose to follow someone is usually because they are giving me valuable information either in the tweet itself or as a link. It is kind of fun having a conversation but after the third reply wouldn't it just be easier to exchange phone numbers or email addresses or something? What could be the next step for people who are likely far apart geographically, want to continue a conversation but are not comfortable giving out personal info to someone that we don't really know?

    I always hope the reason someone follows my twitterstream is because I am offering information they can use plus be available if there are questions/discussions wanted about our product or the topic of customer service and support.

  • http://yetanotherstrugglingwriter.blogspot.com Luci Temple

    I don't believe in the auto follow:

    Different social media sites have different purposes. People who demand auto follow ought to spend more time on Facebook instead – that's where you ask permission for 2 way “friend” ship.

    The beauty of Twitter is that I can follow thought leaders who don't necessarily know or care who I am – getting an insight into things that would otherwise be difficult unless I somehow met them personally.

    My fragile ego might like it when people choose to follow me, but I would rather know that everyone who follows me is doing so because they value my opinions than having a bunch of people who auto follow but don't actually read anything I tweet.

    Reality is we all have different styles to our tweets, and what I like in a tweeter is different to what you might like in a tweeter, just as we may have different interests in film, literature, music – it's not personal.

  • TaylorEllwood

    I agree with your point. My own approach is to simply offer information of value, whether it's my own or others, while also making an effort to connect with people. I value the connections as a means of deepening or establishing relationships that can help me build a network that supports me, even as I work to support the other people in it.

  • Pingback: The role of the Twitter follower | Broadcasting Brain - different thoughts about thinking differently

  • http://zaneology.com zaneology

    Hey @LisaHickey..doesn't this conversation sound familiar? :) This is the 1st point I ever decided to step out and “make” on Twitter when I was a newbie.

    If you like someone and/or enjoy reading their tweets, but unfollow them simply because they don't follow you back, that is EGO.

    xo,
    zane

  • http://www.nextlevelblogger.com/about Christian Russell

    Great take on this…Twitter can be used for a number of different purposes; it's essential to make sure you're achieving your goals. I've never understood the hangup on following people back vs not. I suppose if there's room in your head to worry about that, you've got it pretty good ;)

  • http://www.dan-menard.com/ Dan M

    The thing I don't like about auto-following back is that it gets blurry very quickly. If a spam bot follows you, do you follow back? Of course not, it's a spam bot. What if someone that almost exclusively spams their own stuff follows you? Still follow back? Suddenly it's a grey area. What if it's someone that types in all caps or that only talks about something you have no interest in; if there's very little chance of interaction, is it still worthwhile?

    Essentially, where do you draw the line?

  • lisahickey

    Yes, here we are again, and I am SO in the minority here. Feeling like I have to duck and cover!

    I use Twitter to meet new people that want to engage with me. I follow people who look interesting, the follow is a form of “hello”, if they don’t want to follow back, no harm done, but I don’t follow them on Twitter. That’s me.

    The thing about Social Media is that it IS an equalizer, and there are lots of ways to get both news and access to people – all across the web. If I want “information only”, I become a blog subscriber. The news comes right into my inbox, and I read it alone. The way it was delivered to me. Or – amazingly enough – I actually BUY people’s content. I’ve bought Chris Brogan’s book, Seth Godin’s book, and Tom Peter’s book is on the list. Chris follows me back on Twitter and we’ve had many great conversations, heck, we’ve even had lunch. Seth and I have emailed, because that’s the way he likes to engage. If Tom Peter’s doesn’t want to engage with me, fine. But guess what – I recommend Chris’s book 10x, Seths 5x and Peters 0x. Hmmm.

    Again, that’s me. And just for the record, I love Twitter. Love social media despite (or perhaps because of) its messy, human flaws. And love you too, Zane, even if you think I have a big ego. :)

  • Batman

    Here's a question: If this is your attitude, why should we follow you? Your tweet to this comment brought me here. Your job is to keep me as a follower with your reply. Go.

  • davidscohen

    I agree, it is not a one-size-fits-all world and Twitter is certainly not a one-size-fits-all service. I don't try to sell enterprise software from a lemonade stand, and I wouldn't assume that what works online for one person is necessarily going to work for me unless we share the some of the same goals, products/services, outlook, behaviors and values.

  • lisahickey

    Hi Batman,
    The reason for following me (if you agree with my premise, which you may not) is that you think that at some point in time — now or in the future — I may be interesting enough to have a conversation with.

    Which is exactly what I think about you.

    And the only way to have a conversation with me — a real, two-way conversation with me — is to know *something* about me.

  • Batman

    Exactly. Your conclusion echoes sentiments I made over a year ago.

  • chrystieterry

    I follow people who interest me, who have something to say that I find of value. If they follow me back that's great..I don't follow back everyone who follows me either. For me the engagement is the 'Content' of what we are communicating.

  • http://www.8chocolate.com/ 8chocolate

    I get that not everyone will follow you back and engage with you. However when I'm following someone and they put out a question to their followers, it urks me when they either don't respond to anyone or discuss the answers received. The reason you answered them was because you were interested in the topic.

    It feels like they really don't care what the answers are – only seeing how many respond to their questions. Where's the conversation gone?

  • http://zaneology.com zaneology

    Lisa! I think you should have a big ego because you're awesome! :D (There's a difference between having a big ego and being egotistical)

    I remember when I first thought about this discussion…I brought up “the ego” – I chose to step out and say something because I wanted people to dissect and seperate where that “feeling” comes from then final actions of continuing to follow or unfollow….really hoping for an awareness of it – but not a judgement of it…

    Because…in actuality the end result is is my other “mantra” – which is that after deep thought and/or reflection (or not! hah) everyone needs to do (both in life AND on twitter) what makes them happy.

    I love this discussion because it's how Lisa and I found each other and first fell in love!

    xo always. z

  • http://zaneology.com zaneology

    Lisa! I think you should have a big ego because you're awesome! :D (There's a difference between having a big ego and being egotistical)

    I remember when I first thought about this discussion…I brought up “the ego” – I chose to step out and say something because I wanted people to dissect and seperate where that “feeling” comes from then final actions of continuing to follow or unfollow….really hoping for an awareness of it – but not a judgement of it…

    Because…in actuality the end result is is my other “mantra” – which is that after deep thought and/or reflection (or not! hah) everyone needs to do (both in life AND on twitter) what makes them happy.

    I love this discussion because it's how Lisa and I found each other and first fell in love!

    xo always. z

  • Pingback: Against auto-following back on Twitter | John McCrory

  • http://allpublicists.com/ John S

    I'm not a fan of the auto follow… I like to follow people that interest me or are in the same field as I am. I don't want people to follow me just because I followed them – I appreciate the authenticity of people who choose interesting people to follow instead of just doing it for reciprocity's sake.

  • http://subject2.com Nick Johnson

    Amazing post Chris! This is something I've been focusing on lately, intensely. I would much rather have @ engagement then just a simple follow or follow back.

    I've followed people back and made attempts to engage them personally using the @ reply and I've rarely gotten a response. It makes me wonder why they even followed me to begin with if they weren't interested in engaging.

  • stoneatwine

    I use twitter for the value it provides so I follow only people that I think will benefit me. I never follow anybody just because I think they will follow me back and if one follows me to get followed back, they will be disappointed if their twitter are not of value to me.

    Of course I like gaining followers but I can't mess up my stream with lousy content just so I could get followers.

  • http://www.quadrillio.com/ Michal Matovcik

    Where is the conversation gone…exactly. Doing this kind of favor of following back messed everything and now it's really hard to find relevant people with huge real following community. BUt I don't know if the trend is reversible.

    Nice article, thank you

  • livjon

    I think this place is for celebs….and who'll get engaged using social media? So it would be better to have fun if you can fine it without getting into it.
    seo firm

  • mackmclaughlin

    Chris,

    I follow some because we are already friends and it's an easy way to stay connected, but I follow more people to learn from them and stay connected to the world, it's great that they follow back it says that they value my attention, but do I think they are engaged with me, no, nor do I expect it. Maybe over time some of those follows will grow to become relationships and that would be a nice bonus. When you first join a Social Media site it's like a giant all you can eat buffet, your eyes get big and you put more on your plate than you can eat, even things you know you probably won’t like but want to try, but if you go to the same buffet regularly you eventually only put the things on your plate that you know you like and will be able to eat. So follow anyone you want to and decide over time if you are getting value from the relationship even if it’s only in one direction, it’s up to you to draw the other person in, it’s not their responsibility to become your friend just because you are following them.

  • Ian Smith

    Chris, I treat Twitter as a broadcast of interesting facts, sayings, links that I believe are useful insights for the business community.

    I hope by doing that I'll connect with really smart people who will help raise my understanding of trends, technology and stuff. So for me info first, connections second.

    Ian Smith, President, Vamosa.

  • http://twitter.com/thinkstrategy Mat Maynor

    Right on Chris. The bottom line is that when those of us that are not in the “public” eye are followed by someone that is it strokes our ego. Frankly, it made me feel good when you followed me back several months ago. Although I have never DM'd you I did @ you and garyvee and got a response the same day, which I think proves your point. Even though I did not send a DM you still engaged me and frankly that meant a lot at the time of that reply. I've been in marketing strategy and analytics for a long time and I do believe it's about engagement, I think you can measure it, track it and show benefit as well. So, yes to all of the above.

  • http://chrisbrogan.com Chris Brogan

    Glad you came by, Nick. Thanks for the thoughts. : )

  • http://chrisbrogan.com Chris Brogan

    It gets tricky at my scale to respond to every answer back, because I might get over 200 at a whack. It's just not sustainable, and it litters over 100,000 other people's screens. That said, I do reply about 80% of my stream.

  • http://www.riverwoodwriter.com/ RiverwoodWriter

    Fascinating discussion…I'm still in learning mode and loath to turn anyone away. I follow everyone back but hate the amount of spam DM. Right now I'm small enough to just sift through it. Those who get put into one of my TweetDeck columns are those with whom I wish to engage or from whom I think I can learn. Still worry about missed opportunities but do the best I can!

  • http://www.bafman.com/ Brad Friedman

    Very interesting post. I've never considered “engagement” in this light. I must admit, maybe it's human nature, but I do appreciate the occasional DM or @Reply from a follower just to reinforce the fact that I exist, and have said something worthwhile. Generally, though, I follow people to gain knowledge from the information they are providing. I don't follow everyone who follows me. I look at each person first to determine if I think they will be providing me with worthwhile information, on the occasions I actually see their tweets. I don't have as many followers as some, so this is a manageable task.

  • http://twitter.com/adrielhampton Adriel Hampton

    If someone doesn't follow back – at least signifying mutual respect (even if that is an autofollow, and there are tools for cleaning up spammers) is not apt to reply or hasn't personally engaged in another fashion, I see almost zero reason to follow them and I won't recommend them to others. It's simply that there are many, many people in this world, and many, many media channels. Engagement is important to me, like it is to so many others, and I think that with rare exceptions, those are the people who are going to get true value from Twitter.

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    It does not make any sense weather you talk or not talk without engagement. If you know person than its enough to talk. Knowing any person is worth it only as per my view.

  • http://www.TwentyFeet.com/ Paul Herwarth von Bittenfeld

    Thank you for this post, Chris! Really good thoughts!

  • Pingback: To Follow or Not to Follow, that is the Question « TwentyFeet – Check your Track!

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    I follow some because we are already friends and it's an easy way to stay connected, but I follow more people to learn from them and stay connected to the world, it's great that they follow back it says that they value my attention, but do I think they are engaged with me, no, nor do I expect it. Maybe over time some of those follows will grow to become relationships and that would be a nice bonus. When you first join a Social Media site it's like a giant all you can eat buffet, your eyes get big and you put more on your plate than you can eat, even things you know you probably won’t like but want to try, but if you go to the same buffet regularly you eventually only put the things on your plate that you know you like and will be able to eat. So follow anyone you want to and decide over time if you are getting value from the relationship even if it’s only in one direction, it’s up to you to draw the other person in, it’s not their responsibility to become your friend just because you are following them.

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