Blocking Twitter Spammers as a Best Practice in the Spirit of Social

Blocking Twitter Spammers as a Best Practice in the Spirit of Social
September 12, 2009, 9:36 AM by ROB
Posted in TWITTER, SPAM, RANT | 773 views

I dub thee "twammers."

Twitter Bird Credit: Freaky Frames

If there's one thing that throws people off about Twitter culture, it's the rampant spam. I don't mean spam as in the "V14GR4 4 L3$$" sense, but rather along the lines of "let's follow 13,000 users, hope 10% of them reciprocate, and unfollow the rest 1,000 at a time." Services that manage this

There's an inherent flaw in that scheme: it is totally and reprehensibly the opposite of "social" media. I say this on the following grounds:

1. It's not "social.

First, few—if any—of those who use these services and tactics to meet new users and actively engage in conversations. Instead, they're looking for cheap traffic for the shameless self-promotion of their blogs and services. Don't get me wrong—there are a few who will acknowledge that you exist, but for most, the best you'll get is an auto-DM saying "Thanks for following me! Now read my blog." Buying friends isn't in the spirit of social. Don't buy into the practice by following unless you're genuinely interested in what they have to say.

2. It hinders legitimate relationships

Second, for a hardcore analytics geek like myself, I like to know exactly how many real connections I have at any given time. That not only helps me grow from a personal standpoint by helping me keep in touch with the people who want to actively engage with me, but it also helps me ensure that the content I share is going to be read and passed along by relevant people. Similarly, I will only follow users that I know personally or that have contacted me to introduce themselves so that I can be that relevant reader! Most mass-followers care little about what you have to say (judging by the fact that they'll likely never see a tweet you post), which undermines the spirit of social.

3. It's killing a great platform.

Lastly, if you're a developer who runs a service to facilitate this behavior—especially if you charge for it—please take a moment to kick yourself firmly in the rear. You, mon ami, are the cause of a growing problem. I'd argue that ultimately, this behavior will lead to the decline of legitimate Twitter use over the next several months. The data that supports its growth supports the notion that spammers are flocking to the cheap traffic, not that users are benefitting from the service. Stop enabling and start sharing.

Block them. Like, now.

Have you been spam followed by a Twammer? Go visit TweetBlocker right now, find those who you don't know (and who aren't building your relationships) and block away.

That is all. Cheers!

Questions? Comments? Concerns? Weigh in using the comments below.

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