Webware

It's #FollowFriday on Twitter, which means people will be updating their streams today with lists of users they think others should follow. Usually, the tweets say something like this: "#FollowFriday: @donreisinger @rafe @josh @caro @stshank"

Follow Fridays are a good time to add new people to your Twitter list, or promote the contributors you like the best. But what we really all want to know is this: How do I get included in Follow Friday notes? I did some research to see how a user could capitalize on Follow Friday to increase their follower count. I tried a handful of ideas. Some worked, others didn't. Here's what I found:

Idea 1: Beg
I decided begging would be the first option in trying to be added to Follow Friday tweets. I thought my followers would pity me and add me to their lists, thus exposing me to a whole new group of people.

It backfired. After updating my Twitter stream, many of my followers responded angrily, saying I was missing the point of Follow Friday. Others simply made fun of me. I didn't add a single follower.

Result: No change to follower count.

Idea 2: Insult Follow Friday
What better way to ingratiate yourself with Twitter followers than to insult them for being a part of a "Twitter scam"?

I updated my stream with discussions on why Follow Friday was a joke. I told my followers they shouldn't be engaging in such activity. I even told them that I didn't want to be on any lists because it was so dumb.

After three tweets and five minutes of keeping up with this ploy, it became abundantly clear that my Twitter insults weren't adding any followers to my list. In fact, I lost about 10 followers in that time. Most chastised me for not recognizing the value of Follow Friday. Others put it more succinctly by calling me a jerk. It wasn't a smart move.

Result: Follower count decline.

I've finally come to the conclusion that Twitter can be annoying. In a big way.

See, the problem is, I decided not too long ago that following everyone who followed me on the microblogging service was in my best interest. I reasoned that doing so was good for the entire community.

Don't clog up my Twitter feed.

In recent weeks, however, I've realized that there are some reasons why, even with my decree in place, I just can't justify following some folks.

I'll unfollow you if:

You follow me merely because I'll follow you. I've found that as soon as I wrote the column saying that I'll follow everyone who follows me, I was followed by a bunch of people who have schemes to increase their follower count. I was directed to a site by one of these people, proving it.

The person wrote on his blog that if you follow all the people on his follower list, you would be able to increase your follower count substantially. I did a little digging and found that many (almost 25 people) were using this technique to weasel their way into this list from Twitterholic of the top 1,000 most followed people.

Regardless of whether this technique of gaining Twitter notoriety is acceptable, I believe that we should all add followers the right way, through compelling content and similar interests. Using an automated process games the system, and I don't appreciate it.

You're a company that doesn't contribute to the community. I follow some companies on Twitter, but recently I've noticed that some firms (I'm looking at you, Starbucks) use their Twitter profile only to market their products.

I understand that Twitter can be a fine marketing tool, but as a user who is constantly looking for something worth a look, seeing that your company was selected as one of the Top 10 coffee shop chains in Seattle doesn't appeal to me. In fact, it wastes my time. More importantly, it prevents better content from getting through. Why not tweet about something more behind-the-scenes?

You're a music lover (to a fault). I can't tell you how many times my Twitter stream has been filled with tweets from users filling me in on the songs they're listening to. Not only is it annoying, but it pushes real content off the first page of my stream. I can understand if it happens every once in a while, but once I'm inundated with tracks multiple times in a couple hours, I will unfollow you.

You're an adult film star. Sorry, but I don't need to know what's happening when you're "on set" in your latest flick. I also don't need to hear about all the things you've done in your latest films. Call me old-fashioned, but I believe that some things need to be kept off Twitter. That kind of content is one of those "things."

Digg.com founder Kevin Rose is at it again with a Twitter directory called WeFollow. And although it's capturing much of the limelight right now, it's not the only service of its kind. In fact, there are quite a few sites that let you search for other users or see who the top users are on Twitter. While some are quite useful, you probably won't be surprised to find out that not all are created equal.

The standouts

TwitterCounter. TwitterCounter shows you your worldwide rank in terms of how many followers you have. The site includes a full list of the top 1,000 Twitterers, and regardless of whether you have 5 followers or 5,000, you can look up your own Twitter account to see how many people have added you in the past few days, how many you'll likely have in 30 days, and more. It's also a great spot to find folks you might not have known were on Twitter.

TwitterHolic. If you want all the functionality TwitterCounter provides, TwitterHolic probably isn't for you. Sure, you can search for yourself and others to see how many followers they have, and how many they've added over the past few months, but there isn't nearly as much in-depth data on the Twitter community at large. That said, it features the same list of 1,000 Twitter followers, and based on my testing it's just as accurate as TwitterCounter, which means follower counts are usually within 10 to 15 followers of the real figure. It's also a great place to find who the top Twitterers are.

WeFollow makes it easy to find people.

(Credit: Don Reisinger/CNET Networks)

WeFollow. It might be new, but WeFollow has already made an impression on the Twitter Community. The site groups together Twitter users and messages using hash tags--words that can be added to your Twitter messages and begin with an "#". Twitter users can update their stream with a tweet containing up to three hashtags they want to be included in and WeFollow adds their messages into the proper categories. The user list in each category is organized by the number of followers they have. I was generally impressed by the service and found that it's the best of the bunch, even though it's not as full-featured as I would have liked. But for directories, it's top-notch.

The rest

If you're wondering about the people who subscribe to your Twitter feed, there's a newish service out called Twittersheep that will tell you about them. It scours your list of followers and pulls together a tag cloud with various keywords to describe them.

If you remember Tweetclouds, the idea is similar, except instead of going through your posting history, it simply grabs its words from the profiles of those who are following you. This isn't an exact science, but it made me notice that a good majority of the people following me are work-related, be it PR people or staffers from companies we profile.

The site requires your Twitter log-in to do its business, so you won't be able to use the service with a friend's name. It does however have a search tool that will let you search for words that are getting buzz. In future versions, I'd love to see some additional metrics like how active your followers are with their own tweets, and things like age, location and gender.

Related: Tweetclouds, Twitstat, TweetStats

(via Digital Inspiration and BNET)

Part of my Twittersheep tag cloud shows me that most of the folks who follow me are marketing and PR people, or founders of companies.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

Realizing my last round of Twitter research left my Twitter followers wondering what was wrong with me, I thought it would be a good time to perform research that they actually valued. It wasn't easy. My desire to add more followers, at all costs, consumes me.

But this time, I think I succeeded. Instead of trying to find ways to add more followers through dodgy practices, I've researched ways to add more value to Twitter and become a better tweeter.

The Sweet Retweet
Although it's a relatively new practice, retweeting is an outstanding way to improve your standing on Twitter.

Has one of your followers updated their Twitter stream with an interesting article they found somewhere on the Web? If so, don't just read the story and go about your day, retweet it! I've found that when I do so, most of my followers will do the same and in the process, some add my username to their own update, exposing me to their entire list of followers.

Not all articles are created equal, though, so you need to make sure that the message you're retweeting is something your followers actually care about. I learned the hard way: it turns out my followers really don't care about horseback riding in Moscow.

To retweet, the accepted practice is to copy the original text into your own Twitter post and prefix it with "RT" or "Retweet" and the originator's name. For example: "RT @donreisinger: I resubscribed to the NY Post last week. Delivery was supposed to begin on Jan. 31. I have YET to receive a paper."

Sorry, but no one cares about your dinner
There's a common complaint, made especially by those who don't like Twitter, that too many people use the service to tell the world about things no one cares about. Usually, I think that's ridiculous. But sometimes, I find a few updates like that and realize that maybe those folks aren't so far off.

Look, it's nothing personal and believe it or not, I really care what you say, but I couldn't care less about what you had for dinner last night or how delicious your chicken salad sandwich is. I'd much rather see it filled with retweets and other interesting tidbits of information that the vast majority of users actually care about.

You're probably wondering how I know that it doesn't make you a better Tweeter. Unfortunately, I learned my lesson not long ago. The hard way.

Reply. A lot.
I like to talk. I'll even admit that I like to hear myself talk. As a Twitter user, that's sort of a problem.

Believe it or not, followers actually want to believe that you're listening to them. I know, I know, it's not all that easy and sometimes it's hard not to laugh at the dumb tweets, but you need to exercise restraint and realize that Twitter is a community where people want to have a conversation.

I had some trouble with that. And if you look at my recent updates, it seems I still do. But I'm getting better. I now realize that people on Twitter don't want to just hear what others have to say, they want to be heard. And the best way to satisfy that desire is to reply to their interesting tweets.

Find interesting stuff and post
You know when I told you that you should retweet interesting updates you see in your stream? That's lazy. You really need to be a proactive user. Go out and find neat articles and post them in your Twitter stream for others to enjoy. Maybe they'll retweet your update and you will be exposed to a slew of new people who want to know all about you.

I did it on a few occasions and it worked beautifully. It turns out many of my followers really enjoy tech talk and discussions on sports. Whenever I find a good article on those topics, I post it on Twitter and more often than not, my followers retweet my update.

It's OK to say nothing
Just because there's a big box beneath a "What are you doing?" message in Twitter, it doesn't mean that you need to say anything.

I'm not quite sure why we all get the urge to update as often as possible, but we need to realize that updates from scripts are a waste of everyone's time.

Look, I'm really happy to hear about your life and what's going on, but I don't need to be inundated with items you're adding to Google Reader or songs currently playing on your computer. Maybe someone cares, but when I see my stream being overrun with automatic updates, it annoys me. Don't do it. Please.

Use hashtags
Have something interesting to say on a topic that's hot on Twitter right now? Make sure you use hashtags -- keywords preceded by the hash sign, "#". Over the past few months, hashtags have become a great way for other users to find content quickly.

Hashtags basically create groupings on Twitter that combine content of the same topic. It sounds simple, but whenever you have something really interesting to say about a topic that's hot on Twitter or Twitter Search, it doesn't hurt to place a hashtag after your tweet. It helps others find your update that aren't following you and exposes you to new people who might like what you have to say.

It's more than text
Have you ever taken pictures and uploaded them to a service like Twitpic so you could post it in your Twitter stream? If you haven't, your followers are missing out.

Sending pictures is a great way to add more value to Twitter and make you a better Tweeter. Let's face it: who really wants to look at text all day? Your followers might actually like pictures better than your regular updates.

That's why I've uploaded pictures from my wedding. It turns out my followers would rather see pictures of my wife than hear what I have to say.

And now, you're a better Tweeter. You don't have to thank me. Just follow me. Why not? You know what you're getting: a user that retweets your interesting articles, won't talk about his dinner, listens to you, finds interesting stuff for you, doesn't spam you, uses hashtags, and uploads pictures.

Over the past few weeks, I've quietly researched what works and what doesn't when you're trying to get more people to follow you on Twitter. There are some surefire ways to add followers--promote your Twitter stream to friends, colleagues, or family; say something that's retweeted by thousands of Twitter users; have notoriety; or have your username crop up on sites like CNET that Twitter users frequent.

But for all those successes, I've found many more ways to utterly fail at adding Twitter followers. From begging to stories to gimmicks, there are a variety of ways to make yourself look foolish on Twitter without getting one more person to follow you.

Asking: Laugh, then ignore

Will you please be my follower on Twitter? My username is "DonReisinger" and hey, I'll even throw in a link!

Didn't work, did it?

Last week, I tested this out a few times on my followers by asking them to tell all their followers to follow me, and all I got back was a few snide remarks from followers saying things like, "Nice try, Don" or "Um, no." Unperturbed, I decided to try again later in the day, since I figured a different group of Twitter followers were using the service now and I might have better luck.

Nope.

Asking for Twitter followers is a major faux pas in the world of micro-blogging. First off, most of your followers will probably laugh at your willingness to show how desperate you are for more. Secondly, all your Twitter followers simply don't see that kind of request to their own followers so you can reap all the rewards. What do they get out of their tweet? You guessed it: nothing.

Fake stories: Anger and betrayal

Realizing that asking my followers for help wasn't going to work, I next tried telling them that I had entered into a bet with a close friend to see who would reach a certain follower count quicker. But to make it believable, I had to create an elaborate trail of logic: "A close friend and I have $50 on who can reach 2,500 followers first. Whoever does so, wins the cash. Will you help a friend out and find me some followers?"

Unfortunately, my followers had a few unhappy thoughts to share with me and my obvious ploy to add more. Suffice it to say that family friendliness wasn't a concern in their replies.

But as a researching journalist, I trudged on, trying to find creative ways to add more followers, as more salvos from angry users made their way through my blatant subterfuge and pelted me with tweets outlining distaste for such a tactic.

The Great Retweet: size matters

Retweeting, the act of copying a tweet by another user and sending it through your own username, has taken Twitter by storm. But that doesn't mean it helps you add followers.

I tried retweeting what others wrote to see if it offered value to my own followers, who would then retweet my message and expose me to all their followers, but it didn't work. In fact, more often than not, followers decided to retweet what I did instead of using my username--a practice that probably makes the most sense, since the original person should receive attribution.

Realizing that, I decided to find out if I could get my own followers to start retweeting what I said. At first, I asked them to retweet and once again, that was a mistake. They generally ignored my request, but every now and then, a few followers would retweet my message. It didn't matter: I wasn't able to add any new followers. I think that only happens if the message is retweeted by hundreds or thousands of users. At least, that's what I hear.

More tweets: Lose 'em!

Realizing the direct route didn't work, I tried offering up a slew of updates to see if more Twitter followers would filter in. Once again, I was thwarted in my efforts.

Believe it or not, updating Twitter as often as possible doesn't provide any real value if you're only looking to add more followers. In fact, when I updated my account more than 50 times in one day, I found that fewer people decided to follow me on those days than when I had just a handful of really interesting tweets.

Realizing that, I quickly came to the conclusion that quantity is no substitute for quality. In fact, based on my research over the past couple weeks, I've found that followers respond more to thoughtful tweets than quick snippets about life or the dinner you'll be having tonight. In other words, ditch the quantity idea. It doesn't work.

Performing research on what doesn't work: They never believe you

Realizing all my tactics for attempting to add followers on Twitter was becoming an annoyance, I explained to my followers that some of the updates over the past few weeks were for research on a column I wanted to write. I thought they would understand and realize that, because of what I do for a living, that excuse is quite plausible.

Quite the contrary, I was inundated with responses like "uh huh" and "yeah, sure, Don." And in the process, that didn't help me add any more followers either.

Now, will you please follow me on Twitter? I have this bet with my friend and if you retweet this, that would be really great too. It's fine if you don't; it's all for research, so it's no big deal. But, uh, please follow me, OK? I'll follow you!

The debate over whether you should follow everyone who follows you on Twitter has raged on ever since the popular microblogging service gained traction. Some say following everyone eliminates the real value Twitter provides--connecting with others of similar interests. Others say that following everyone actually provides more value.

But if you consider some of the finer points of following everyone who follows you on Twitter, I think you might come to the realization, just as I have, that following everyone is not just a responsible move on your part, it's good of the entire community.

Nope, there aren't rules, but there is etiquette

There aren't any rules forcing you to follow your followers on Twitter, but that doesn't mean it's not the right thing to do.

If someone has found you compelling in some way, shouldn't you give them the benefit of the doubt and follow them back? It's not like you can't block them in the future if you think their tweets are inappropriate.

To me, Twitter is all about the community. And by signing up, that community has made the conscious decision to interact and share interests, ideas, and personal information. If someone follows you, they're saying, in effect, that they want to hear what you have to say and care about your ideas.

I don't see anything wrong in following them as a gesture of appreciation and confirmation that you're willing to hear what they have to say, as well. After all, if you want to become a part of the community, isn't it only right that you hold up your end of the bargain and give them the same respect they've given you?

(Credit: Josh Lowensohn/CNET Networks)

The 'noise' argument holds little water

Whenever I discuss my reasoning for following everyone who follows me on Twitter, I invariably receive the same response from those who disagree: "following everyone is too much trouble and you can't find all the conversations you actually want to engage in."

Rubbish.

I currently follow over 2,400 people on Twitter and I've never had an issue finding really interesting and relevant information. Sure, some of it has nothing to do with me--discussions about grilled cheese sandwiches, for one--but there's quite a bit that my followers discuss that I'm interested in. I'd say that more than 80 percent of all the updates that flow through my stream are worthy of discussion. And I don't think I'm unique.

Mahalo launched a new Firefox extension last week at Gnomedex. It's called "Follow," and once installed, it does just that. It's a mix of a toolbar and sidebar that pulls up related search results from whatever page you're on. It's got a built-in Mahalo search box in an attempt to ween you off your Google and Yahoo search tendencies. It's also got a StumbleUpon-like function to recommend whatever page you're looking at to others with yes, no, and maybe buttons, along with a button to take you to a random Mahalo page. The tool is being pitched as a way to show how Mahalo provides more interesting results, but I can't quite get my head around it.

For one thing, the sidebar takes up a lot of space. It's also not necessarily a new idea. Blinkx's Pico, Alexas' Toolbar, and Lycos' SideSearch have all been here before, and with similar execution--except in the case of SideSearch, which was spyware. The StumbleUpon likeness of the toolbar confuses me even more. There's no clear listing of the top recommended sites, and the subsequent customized Mahalo landing pages offer little at this point besides links to outside pages. There's also no user incentive to keep providing your tastes, as the random page button doesn't seem to learn from your likes and dislikes. It feels very much like a first step, but with an unclear direction.

I'm also willing to wager that most people who are using Google and/or Yahoo to do basic searches are seeking out one specific page--and it's likely in the first few results. Once they've found what they're looking for, they're done. The whole idea of Mahalo Follow seems to want you to get used to the idea of searching the pages you're on continuously, in what seems like the hope of getting you to dig deeper--using Mahalo of course.

That said, exploratory Web surfing is fun, and the extension itself is snappy. It doesn't slow down your main browser frame's load time and doesn't pop up with any warnings or other nonsense when the sidebar has been dismissed. For those interested, Mahalo is giving away various prizes to people who can get their friends to install and use the toolbar through the end of next month.

See also Search Engine Land and Download Squad's take.

Previous Mahalo coverage:
Jason Calacanis' Mahalo: Screw the long tail

Once you've got Mahalo Follow installed, it will pull up a sidebar of Mahalo search results every time you do a Web search. There's also a StumbleUpon-like toolbar on top of every page to recommend pages to others.

(Credit: CNET Networks)