Modern Marketing Blog

I spend a lot of time on Twitter. Perhaps too much time. And the one thing that drives me crazy above all else is the automatic direct message from those I choose to follow. I don't even know how to set up the automatic message let alone send one. Even if I did know how to set it up I wouldn't use it. And here's why...

It's impersonal. It says "hi, thanks for following me. Check out my website and by the way, I can't be bothered to send you a personal thank you so I'm sending you my canned message because you're not important enough for me to do otherwise."

Why do people do this?  It seems to me it's becoming a trend to send the canned message. Twitter is "social media" with the emphasis on "social". How social are you being if you're sending out canned replies. Would you do that at an in-person event - if you could? I hope not. So why is it okay to do it at an online event. Because that's what Twitter is...it's an event. It's entertainment, it's information gathering, it's sharing. It's SOCIAL!!!!!

As business owners we need to be aware of our public persona and the image we project. In these days of looming recession and tight wallets it's more important than ever that we convey a message of caring. Caring enough to personally acknowledge a new follower on Twitter and not send them a canned hello. A new follower could be a potential customer. Sending a generic response implies you can't be bothered. If you can't put forth the effort with your twitter response then who's to say you'll put forth the effort in your customer service.