Why Having 100 Real Followers Today is Worth More To Me Than Having 100,000 Fake Followers on Twitter

Image Source: Climbing up to business success for young owners

It has been about a month since I began tweeting.  Today I earned my 100th follower, thanks @American Management Association.  One month ago I had one follower, who I know personally. Soon after, I earned my second and one of my most valuable followers @craigpsmith. Slowly but steady, I have been growing my number of followers. Yes, I do have a lower number of followers than I follow, but I do not mind this one bit and here is why.

I follow people who I believe are worth following. What makes someone worth following is someone who has valuable content, is transparent, is a reliable brand, and is authentic. Geoff Weiss from Entrepreneur recently posted a piece, What Truly Authentic Companies Know which raises the question, "Is your company really authentic or is it just a front?"

@JohnAguiar put it best when he said on his post 10 Things I Learned On My Twitter Journey To 100,000 Followers, "But tweet me because you want to, not because you hope for shit back."  His raw honesty is what keeps me so engaged in his content. I know that what I am getting from him is real. 

How to know if a twitter is worth following? 

Once You Follow Back, Do Some Research 

I look at your profile and read what type of content you are tweeting. I click on your links to your websites, and I read your website and/or blog. I sometimes go as far as googling your name to learn more about you. If I find you approachable and someone I can learn from, I will ask if I can follow you on LinkedIn.  

Doing some research can go a very long way. 

• It helps you determine whether or not you will learn anything from this twitter. 
• You will know if the content is good, helpful and relevant to your target audience.
• It helps you have control of what you tweet and your twitter feed. 

Track Your Followers and Your Own Following

Image Source: Digital Trends

I pay attention to my followings's profiles and monitor who unfollows me, who tweets what content, who blogs and write articles on LinkedIn and other social sites. 

Nevertheless, I have had a few instances where I have someone unfollow me immediately after I followed them back (this is another reason why it is so important to research your followers). You can read more about this kind of fake following on Caroline Moss's article I tried Using Instagram Like a Teenagers--And It Completely Changed the Way I See The App. When I see this happen, I immediately unfollow the person, not because the person unfollowed me, but because it demonstrates their level of authenticity. 

Numbers Do Matter

Remember that numbers do matter. After all, there is a reason why you are doing all this hard work. However, it is better to have slow and steady numbers than to lose your integrity and inability to identify between what is real and what is fake. If you practice fake following, it is likely that you are cheating yourself or your business. You must decide what you want your brand to be. Then ask yourself, how long will this front last?  

What has your experience been like on social media following? What are some tips that you have used to remain authentic? Share below.