Edward Branley's blog

When you "follow" someone on Twitter, you usually expect to communicate with them, but there's a growing trend amongst "power users" on the micro-blogging service to use the "Direct Message" (DM) feature to put a business promotion or other commercial message directly in front of people new to their Twitter stream. 

For the newcomer to Twitter, the temptation to follow suit here and develop their own "auto-DM" is strong.  It's also a bad idea that will only contribute to you developing a reputation as a spammer and charlatan.  Here are five reasons this is the case:

1. Auto-DMs are annoying.  Many Twitter users set DMs to go to their mobile phones as SMS (text) messages.  They do this because they want to be sure they don't miss something important from a friend or a colleague while at work or when they're away from the computer.  Distracting someone because you want them to download your free e-book, "like" you on Facebook, or check out your loan re-finance calculator is just annoying.
2. Auto-DMs often cost the recipient money.    Not everyone has an unlimited-texting mobile plan, so those DMs can end up running up a bill.  On Tuesday of this week, our @freetweetadvice user got eight auto-DMs.  That's forty to eighty cents on the phone bill of someone with a limited-texting plan.  It's one thing to be merely an annoyance, it's another to actually take money from others.
3. Auto-DMs are lazy.  It's easy to set up auto-DM reply.  It takes work to actually communicate on Twitter.  Even if you sent one message thanking five or six new followers at a time, you actually have to type that up.  An auto-DM is generated by a "bot," a program that can run unattended.   If the creator of an auto-DM is willing to outsource a thank-you note, what sort of service should you expect from them in their regular business dealings?
4. Auto-DM senders are gullible.  People who are new to Twitter and are willing to listen to the New Media Morons suggesting auto-DMs show their gullibility.  They indicate people who can be suckered into get-rich-quick schemes.  They're part of the "Budget, No Income" mindset.
5. Auto-DMs can get you suspended from Twitter.  On @Yatmedia, @freetweetadvice, as well as my personal Twitter account, @Yatpundit, I "block and report" people who spam me with auto-DMs.  I actively encourage you and other users to do the same.  We regularly call out the New Media Morons who encourage auto-DMs.  If enough people "block and report" a user in a short period of time, that account is suspended by Twitter.  That means you spent all that time thinking up a Twitter name to represent your brand, you developed a cool background for it, and you worked on building up followers, all to have it vanish because you listened to a "guru" who gave you really bad advice. 

Don't opt for shortcuts.  Develop relationships the normal way, by actually meeting/greeting/engaging people.  You wouldn't go to a Business Card Exchange sponsored by a local Chamber or other networking group, only to pay someone else to pass out your cards!  Introduce yourself on-line.  Thank them publicly for following you.  Build up win-win relationships by acknowledging them and their businesses in your Twitter stream.  Most business people use common sense, and auto-DMs defy that common sense.  Think!

I had the pleasure of attending the "Katrina 5.0" symposium last night at the Louisiana State Museum. Overall, the panel presentation and ensuing discussion was great, but there was one comment made by a panelist that prompted me to respond here. In the Q&A session towards the end of the formal program, one of the panelists made a disparaging remark and noted that he personally had no use for Facebook, continuing that tirade for another sentence or two. In the midst of several questions about disaster readiness and such, I was astounded by this comment. My phone's battery fizzled a few minutes earlier, so I wrote the following and passed it to @LunaNOLA to tweet for me:

Wholesale disregard of Facebook in terms of its use as a disaster prep/awareness tool, give the size of its user base is irresponsible.

I don't care what your personal feelings are about Facebook, they're a huge player. You don't like their privacy policies or TOS? Fine, don't go there. Still, if your goal is to raise awareness about an issue or topic, you simply can't ignore Facebook. You may see your refusal to go there as a statement of conviction, and that's fine. As you feel good about yourself, however, evaluate the impact of such a boycott on the big picture.

When people who are placed in positions where their opinions are regarded as "expertise" make such irresponsible statements, it makes me crazy. Disregard Facebook at your peril.

Short URL

Bit.Ly, a popular URL-shortening service

Short URLs became popular because they make it easier to share web links via SMS messages and "micro-blogging" services such as Twitter. The concept is simple: The user enters the original URL (typing it in or copy/paste) into the service's database. The URL is given a code that is usually 5-8 characters long. That, combined with the domain name of the service, usually generates a URL that's 10-15 characters.

URLs that short make link exchange practical, but there are some caveats. If the shortening service is unreliable, clicking the short link may generate an error. Several third-party Twitter clients such as Tweetdeck and Seesmic allow the user to choose from a list of short URL providers, however, so the user can find one that works for them. Hootsuite uses their own shortening service, ow.ly.

The main concern people have with short URLs is fear of the unknown. Because the link references the shortening service's domain, the ultimate destination is masked. Be careful when clicking through on short links from people you don't know. Something NSFW or otherwise annoying/offensive may pop up!

Live-tweeting

t-shirt from ThinkGeek.com

Live coverage of events is something we're all used to.  Whether it's sports, political activities (committee hearings, debates, etc.), or entertainment, turn on the teevee or the radio and live coverage is all over the place.  That's fine and dandy, when we can access a teevee or radio.  The internet offers some live coverage, but smart businesses know how to restrict access to streaming media providers to reduce the strain on their networks. 

That's where live reports via SMS messaging and services like Twitter come in.  Those who can't watch can get the reports on the phone.  Events that are focused on social media users are perfect candidates for live-tweeting. 

Communicating what's happening at a live event in 140-character bursts can be quite the challenge.  Be sure to think about your audience when live-tweeting.

Block

The concept of "blocking" another user of a service you're on is not new; in fact, it goes back to the pre-web days of CompuServe and GEnie. It's simple, you want someone to go away, you block their access to what you write. In most cases, a block will work both ways, so that they don't see your stuff and vice-versa.

The actual effects of blocking another person vary from platform to platform. Take Twitter, for example. If your tweets are "public," that is, they're freely available in the public timeline, a user you've blocked can still read your stuff. They can't reply or use the "new" re-tweet format, though. Your block also works on client software like Seesmic and Tweetdeck. Thing is, though, your tweets are public, so the blocked user can go directly to your page on twitter and read the stream. They could also copy/paste your tweets into their stream to re-tweet. In other words, a user can still talk about you even if they're not talking to you.

You have a limited defense to this on Twitter, and that would be to "protect" your tweets by removing them from the public timeline. Once you "un-follow" someone, they can't see your stuff on any platform. The catch is that this is an absolute--when you go private in this manner, nobody but your followers can see your stuff. This is quite limiting if you're using Twitter for business or to meet new people.

Still, blocking is usually effective with all but the most ardent twitter-stalkers.

Great article by Loki to kick off his new gig at SixthEstate.com:

Women and Facebook: Which Comes First – Toothbrush or Status Updates?

I always thought this was because most of the males I encounter these days are hard-hat computer geeks, but Loki's got numbers to support it:

I’m sure you have at least one friend who seems to exist with his or her smartphone glued to his or her hand. It’s all part of the new era of connectivity that has exploded over the last decade, and Facebook is currently the leading connection. This is especially true where women are concerned.

Check out his findings, is a good read.

Client

screenshot of Seemisc for Android mobile phones

In social media, "client" actually has two meanings.  The folks who hire Yatmedia are our clients, of course.  it's the second meaning that we'd like to discuss today.

I noticed someone I don't know at all (but who follows @YatPundit on Da Twittah) mention that they installed Tweetdeck and had no idea what it was all about.  Tweetdeck, like HootSuite and Seesmic, are Twitter "clients."  These are programs that offer an alternative to the messaging platform's website.  They access Twitter via the platform's API (Application Programming Interface).

Client software is usually a boon for an on-line service, since it allows alternatives to the primary platform.  An open API enables software developers to write programs to access that service from a number of operating environments (Windows, Mac, Linux/UNIX, etc.)

What clients do you use for social media platforms? Tell us in comments here or @yatmedia on Twitter.

There is always a lot of talk about evaluating performance in Social Media. The first step is to establish baselines.

One of my favorite courses that I teach for Hitachi Data Systems covers a product called Hitachi Tuning Manager. It's a data collection and performance reporting tool. One of the first lab exercises we give students deals with establishing baselines for reporting. You have to know where you're coming from to observe your growth.

Make time today to record the following Twitter metrics:

• Number of followers
• How many lists you are on
• The number of Direct Messages
• How many ReTweets you are generating
• Klout rating

Today will be your baseline. We go forward from here.  You can find the first three numbers on your Twitter home page and the last two you can get from @klout.

guru

This is a guru:

Guru Hargobind ji (1606-1644)

It's a title bestowed on a teacher or leader by others. It's not a title that one assumes on their own. There's another term for self-styled "gurus," and that is "douchebag."

There are some smart people out there doing social media and PR. Look around, ask for recommendations. Don't get pulled in by e-books and webinars and "calls" with people who are all talk.

Bulls

Today is the Running of the Bulls in New Orleans, and @stephanieamayne says it all:

Here's the run from last year:

Summertime in New Orleans!