Fans not followers

Filed under Promote your book.

BubbleCow says twitter to find fansIt is easy to turn twitter into a competition. It is easy to look at the number of followers you have, those of your twitter friends, and those of mega twitterers like @stephenfry (944790 followers at time of writing) and turn it all into a competition. It is easy to think that the one with the most followers wins. The one with the most followers sells the most books or inspires the most readers. The truth is different.

The truth is that you need fans not followers.

The aim of twitter should be to attract solid, reliable, engaging, trustful, active, encouraging, supportive and friendly followers. The problem is that these kinds of followers are hard to find. They are selective with their attention. They are wary of clogging up their twitter stream with useless, non-value adding noise. These kinds of followers take time, effort and thought to attract.

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  • getreal

    Just like a real blog requires real content, not like a hundred words and a claim with little or no argumentation or explanation. Good job.

    • Gary Smailes

      Hi getreal,

      Not sure how to read your comment…

      This post is a gentle reminder for my readers regarding a topic I have blogged about at length and repeatedly. It sprang from a comment here (http://www.bubblecow.co.uk/2009/10/make-friends-not-readers/) and was designed to give readers a quick reminder of a growing internet truth. As for argumentation or explanation can I direct you to the writing of Seth Godin (mainly Purple Cow, though Tribes will also help), Chris Brogan (Trust Agents), Joel Comm (Twitter Power) and a number of interviews at Mixergy.com regarding building a following.

      I am sorry if you felt that this post was too short. If you want to email at gary@bubblecow.co.uk or wave me at garysmailes@gogglewave.com I would be happy to explain my thinking in much more depth.

  • http://www.helpineedapublisher.blogspot.com Nicola Morgan

    Gary – can you tell me something? On Twitter, what’s the difference between followers and “friends”. Cos in someone’s profile it always says a different number for each, with the larger number being followers. I’m sure you know the answer!

  • http://writeforyourlife.net Iain Broome

    A good gentle reminder indeedy. It’s pretty much like anything in life, I reckon. Quality not quantity. What’s the point in having thousands of people following you if they’re bots or simply not interested in what you’re talking about. Same goes for who you follow. I’ve really tried to stick to following and speaking to writers, because that’s what I’m on the interwebs for most of the time. Lovely stuff.

    • Gary Smailes

      I would also add that the longer you are in the ‘space’ the clearer it become who are the real movers and shakers. A mutual respect is the minimum required, though I am often surprised by the kindness and generosity of the writers I interact with on a daily bases.

  • http://www.rebeccawoodhead.com Rebecca Woodhead

    Hi, very good point. Regarding your later comment, I think Trust Agents is definitely worth a look. It’s brilliant! :)

    Nicola, followers are people who follow you, ‘friends’ happen when the following is reciprocal (you also follow them so you can DM). It takes ages to get the kind of friends being spoken about in this blog. I consider myself very lucky to have so many but they certainly did not arrive over night.

    Thanks for bringing up this topic. It is even more important to remember with the arrival of Lists.

    Rebecca

    • Gary Smailes

      Ohh don’t get me started on twitter lists!

      I would say that in takes about a year to start developing ‘fan’ relationships. Over this period you can see who is a genuine supporter of your work and writing. You can also see those who are looking for a quick plug or mention.

  • http://www.chrystalthewriter.com/ Chrystal

    Hi Gary,
    First, was I suppose to be confused with the comment made by getreal, or is this an off day for me? Anyway…

    I agree that fans more so than followers are needed, if I had more fans perhaps I would have fared better in getting votes for a great writing gig. :) http://www.sam-e.com/job/profile/269
    Thanks again Gary for casting your vote, it meant a lot to me.

    I have a post that touches on this subject as well, http://onlinewithchrystal.wordpress.com/2009/10/22/celebrity-twitters-dont-interact-or-support-their-followers/.

    • Gary Smailes

      I didn’t know how to take the comment – having a go or genuine praise?

      The post was aimed mostly at tweeps who set out to simply build huge followings. I am often followed by people that seem to have no interest in writing or books. My first thought is why follow me. My second thought is why should I follow you since you will not offer me anything of value.

      • http://www.chrystalthewriter.com/ Chrystal

        Gary,
        re: “I didn’t know how to take the comment – having a go or genuine praise?” Maybe it was a little of both – don’t know, as getreal never chimed back in on your reply to the comment.

        I realize what your post was about, and thought it to be on point & to the point. I know why I follow those that I follow – I’m a freelance writer, so I follow certain people including you – but you know that, right? @chrystal54

        I’ve asked people who’ve requested to follow me, why? especially if they don’t have an interest in writing. I’ve already helped several Tweeters to build their stats, now I’m more interested in cultivating relationships with the followers I have.
        Have a wonderful day…

        • Gary Smailes

          Wise words Chrystal. I was hoping that Getreal was having a go. It is only the best ideas that can stand up to scrutiny.

  • Nicola Morgan

    Rebecca – ah! I have some lovely and excellent followers and now I know who my friends are! I wasn’t worried about numbers or quality – I am thrilled by the numbers I seem to have gathered, even after I’ve eliminated the spammers and strange people, and most of them seem to be eminently sensible and mutually beneficial – but I just didn’t know what the difference between followers and friends was. Thank you!

  • pierre l

    I am not a writer and I have nothing to sell. I may have slightly different expectations from Twitter.
    I follow one author who has 5000 followers because I like her work and her blog. I see myself as a fan and do not expect her to follow me back (although I occasionally reply to her tweets and I am pleased if I get a general acknowledgement, as in “several people have also replied that they don’t watch X Factor).
    I am very pleased with my 58 followers because they are good followers (and I have a sufficiently small number that I can look at each one and block the ones I am not interested in).
    I would like to point out my favourite annoyance. People should avoid Tweets that link to a Facebook page that cannot by seen by the average fan. I recently stopped following one author who used to write one the first blogs I read; she has recently had a baby and put out a tweet which was a link to her husband’s protected Facebook page (presumably announcing the event — I don’t know because I do not wish or expect access to her personal Facebook page). Privacy is fine, but don’t point me towards something I can’t see. One occurrence is OK, but she had become unresponsive.
    I am honoured that @BubbleCow, @Caroline_S and @nicolamorgan all choose to follow @pierre_el and I shall start reading Chrystal’s blog.

  • http://www.helpineedapublisher.blogspot.com Nicola Morgan

    Pierre – I quite agree. I imagine that the person you’re talking about had Twitter and Facebook linked. I think this is a very bad idea, even apart from the reason you rightly give, because the style, content and purpose of a tweet is almost always very different from a Facebook update. If I have something I want to say to both sets of contacts, I will do it separately and differently. People really have to understand each one very separately.

    I am honoured that you are honoured that I am following you. I am similarly honoured that you are following me!

    • Gary Smailes

      It is all about trust. If a follower is paying attention then you owe it to them to not waste their time. Incidentally, Pierre is a FAN not a follower :-)

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