Today we have a new guest post written by Antonia Harler aka @antwizzel from SocialGlitz. In this post Antonia explains why some people manage to become successful while others fail miserably.
You are what you TWEET! You read correctly. It’s not a typo. Let me explain why. I get asked a lot about how Twitter works, why some people have thousands of followers and others have none, how some people manage to become successful through the platform or even why some companies’ Twitter strategies work extremely well and others fail miserably .
To many, Twitter is still the equivalent to a question mark. They don’t understand it or think they understand it when really they don’t. So, instead of listing all the mistakes you could possibly make on Twitter (and there’s a lot, trust me) I want to give you something to think about. In real life, people evaluate us based on the clothes we wear, if our hair and make up is in order and so on and so forth. You get the picture. What I’m trying to say is that first impressions count. There’s no point in denying it because that would just be a waste of time. It’s a fact. Yet, once the first impression turns into a second and third impression it’s not so much our exterior that counts but our personality. We try to dig deeper and if we find someone to be interesting we usually end up intrigued. As simple as this life rule is it’s also what counts on Twitter. One person recommends another person or we might even stumble upon a random Tweet which leads us to check out that person’s profile. We see the background, we see the bio and a whole bunch of numbers (Followers vs. Following, Number of Tweets etc.) All of that builds the basis for our decision whether to follow. That decision is made in a matter of seconds and therefore it’s important to get your bio and your Twitter background right. However, if people decide to follow you it’s vital to make them stick with you, just like bees would stick to honey. And that’s when the first impression turns into much more. People will start to dig deeper and more often than not people will decide to unfollow you if you are plain boring. You need to remember that in the Twitterverse you really are what you tweet. Everything you do and everything you say on Twitter influences how the rest of us sees YOU. Every single Tweet you send tells us something about who you are. 
Twitter is just like real life with the one difference that it happens online. We network, we share information, we make new friends… hell, we might even find a job via the platform. There’s no way of knowing who is listening to what you are saying and how you are saying it. You probably wouldn’t curse at random people on the street, (if you do, that’s an entirely different problem all together) so if you don’t do it in real life, don’t do it on Twitter. The platform is quite literally an extension of our being. As much as you might be what you eat, drink, wear, … you are also what you tweet. That’s what many people and also companies forget, which is also the reason why some are successful and some are not. It’s a simple life rule that no matter how you twist or turn it, also applies to our beloved Twitter. Don’t forget it! Be interesting, be funny, give information, retweet others, use hashtags to brighten up your Tweets, ENGAGE with others… Basically, show your personality and make “You are what your TWEET” your new Twitter motto ;).
Antonia Harler
Bio: Antonia is a quirky and awesomely goofy social media nerd who wrote her thesis about Twitter as a tool for Relationship Marketing. She also reads minds and hates bananas. You can find out more about Antonia by following her blog at www.socialglitz.com or by following her on twitter @antwizzel
Hello Antonia 🙂
I agree with your sentences completely how a normal user takes a decision in just seconds whether to follow that respective twitter user or not based on twitter bio,background and followers stats 😉
ENGAGE is the only word that comes to my mind when I start thinking of twitter 😛 .
Do you think on Twitter first impression counts ? , because I observed myself when I joined twitter, I used to tweet only my blog links and sign out and at that time I met many Indian bloggers who never replied me or ignored me [ part of a life 😛 ], But now I really feel positive because of my followers and those Indian bloggers are following me and have chat with me whenever time permits 🙂 😀
I enjoyed reading and Aaron even I am thinking of contributing here 😉
Couldn't agree more. Too many people tweet junk and put there followers off. Quality not quantity. And converse with your followers or else there's no point having them.
Great post.
Hey Sunil,
Yes, I definitely believe that first impressions count on Twitter. It's not only the background but also a person's Twitter stream that people look at when first deciding whether or not to follow. Engaging is extremely important on Twitter because it will allow you to network. Whether or not you engage shows in your Twitter stream. As I mentioned in the post, Twitter is just an extension of our lives which is also the reason why we should treat it that way.
You said yourself that in the beginning you only tweeted links to your blog, but you learned to engage with others which got you recognized in the long run. 😉
Thanks Mazher 🙂 Glad you enjoyed the post!
Good stuff Antonia, I had never really thought about 'first impressions' on Twitter but I think you are right although our brains must have to analyse information in a slightly different way to meeting face to face.
I think it's natural that we go by looks which is why' spammers' will often use a pretty face to attract people, but on Twitter the other factors you list, such as the numbers, come into play rather than voice or body language. It's quite an instinctive thing I suppose, best not to think about it too much or we would never follow anyone.
When it comes to Tweeting I really feel it's important try to let your personality to come through and be natural, people soon spot a fraud!
Thanks for an interesting post.
Tony
Hi Tony,
I definitely agree with you. Since the decision on Twitter is made in a matter of seconds the first impression does count, but then again, I would say it's maybe 10 – 20 % of the entire impression. It's pretty minimal. As you said yourself, letting your personality shine through and being who you are as opposed to as opposed to being something you are not is vital. It's way more important than a flashy background or the right avatar, though those are things we should not forget about 😉
Glad you enjoyed the post!
Antonia,
You are indeed quirky and awesomely goofy.
I was immediately impressed by that first picture. I thought, huh? Looks like a nice old lady and how weird that someone that old is writing about twitter, much less guest posting for Aaron. But hey, she was smiling and I was curious. As I read the article, I kept thinking “man, this nice old lady really knows her twitter”. I'd already decided to start following her when I got to the end of the article and now I will follow you instead.
You did a great job of explaining twitter in a way both newbies and naysayers should understand. And that's helpful for all us. Thanks!
Hello Billy,
I have to say, I aged well. 😉
Your comment just made my day. Thanks very much! I appreciate it.
Hope you have a wonderful evening.
Thanks for leaving such a entertaining comment Billy,
You made me laugh while having my lunch (12pm here)
Cheers
Aaron