All of us are impressed with good etiquette. Whether we are called by our surname when signing something at the bank or we are thanked for letting someone in whilst driving – we know that being polite pleases others, especially when you’re representing a brand or even yourself as a brand online. On Twitter specifically, it is imperative to be polite to your community, because even though etiquette is seen as somewhat old fashioned, it will encourage your current community to keep coming back for more.
Ignorance is not bliss
Do not ignore your Twitter community. As many positive tweets that you have flowing into your Twitter stream, there will always be those few that do not like what you are saying. They might have a grudge against your brand, they may have had a bad service experience or they might just be having a bad day but the truth is that these individuals are out there. Some of us are scared to reply to these tweets and hope that if we do not reply to that hateful comment, it will go away. Wrong. Make sure that you reply in a respectable manner and try and rectify the problem but do not lower yourself to their level – that will only add fuel to the fire.
Turn on the heat, but keep it low
There is no reason to keep quiet, especially on platforms such as Twitter where conversation is key. Make your voice heard, but do not neglect what you are representing. If you’re an individual, then act like one, if you’re a brand, still act like an individual but represent that brand. Keep it tidy and do not shout to make your voice heard, rather speak and then listen – this is a better way to start conversation and keep it going. Twitter communities enjoy debate and there is no doubt that debate is healthy, but make sure that you keep it above board if you’re trying to gain and keep followers. If someone is offended, they will leave and take their conversation with them.
Give and Take
Is that not what it is all about? Without creating senseless noise, give (quality content) as much as you can as this will let others know that you’re not merely an automated response or a Twitter robot filling up others Twitter streams, but a person that is either representing themselves or representing a brand. Think about those 140 characters and how they will be portrayed by others and keep true to your tweets no matter what. Being polite can be one of the most underestimated factors in being a valuable contributor to Twitter and in order for your value to be recognised, you need to interact with others they way you would like to be interacted with.
Just an extra etiquette note: make sure that you aren’t being polite just to gain a follower or two or being nice out of feeling sorry for someone else. If you feel that someone’s tweets will not contribute to your Twitter stream in a positive way, then do not feel bad for not following that person.
Read more posts by Lauren Potgieter
Related posts:
- How to create a trustworthy Twitter profile: What do the experts say?
- Twitter strategy as part of Community Management – Some examples
- Monitoring Twitter effectively to find and build a community
- Top 5 things to avoid when engaging with your Online Community
- 5 reasons to Integrate Twitter into your website
