Twitter provides the uncanny opportunity for you to connect with people. Whether you find them or they find you, the potential to discover like-minded people is perhaps one of the best things about Twitter. In many cases you don’t personally know the people you’re connecting with and that’s why you want to make sure your Twitter account legitimizes you. Whenever you follow someone on Twitter they will most assuredly check out your Twitter page to see what you’re all about.
They’re probably wondering these questions:
- Who are you?
- Why are you following me?
- Why should I follow you?
- Is this person legitimate or are they a spammer of some kind?
Surely not everyone thinks each of these questions when someone follows them, but these are the things that run through my head. I’ll typically follow anyone who seems like they share a common interest with me, even if it’s a remote interest. I’m always more likely to follow a person rather than an organization but in the end the decision comes down to whether I think you’re legitimate or not.
In an age where we can have friends that we’ll never meet in person, legitimacy is a big issue. You want to do everything you can to show people you’re a well-meaning, legitimate, non-spammy kind of person.
There are several things you can do to your Twitter account to show that you indeed are legitimate:
- Add your picture to your profile. A logo or some other picture is all right, but there’s no denying the connection of knowing what someone looks like. By adding your picture, you remove the opportunity for suspicion because if you don’t use it, it’s possible a potential follower could say, “Why won’t he/she show us what they look like? Are they hiding something?” More than likely you’re not hiding, but the absence of the picture can always make people wonder. Besides, you’re blowing an opportunity for real life connections. Your face becomes your brand on Twitter, so how well branded are you right now?
- Add a link. Your Twitter profile will let you link anywhere you want. This is your best opportunity to let people find out whether your legitimate or not. If you’re a blogger, send people to your blog. If you’re not a blogger but work for a company and are on the corporate “about us” page, link there so we can see who you are and read the bio. You just want to give people the opportunity to find out more about you to validate that you are who you say you are and subsequently worth knowing.
- Write a bio. Fill in your bio (within the 160 character limit provided) on the page. This is probably the least important thing you can do but it’s still helpful to give a snapshot of who you are and what you’re all about.
I’m surprised how many people don’t actually do these things. Sometimes people just forget to go back and check a few of these after they set up their accounts. That happened to me actually, so I understand. Twitter works best when you know you’re getting insight from legitimate people, so do everything you can to show you’re an authentic person. You know you’re real so why not let everyone else know too?
