Follow Me! Creating a Personal Brand with Twitter

Chapter 6

Building Your Followers: Quality Versus Quantity

“What are you? Your name, your quality? And why did you answer this present summons?”

King Lear

When building your following, it’s hard not to let a little thing like numbers get in the way of your decision-making. Everyone wants to be the most popular person in the playground, and Twitter is just another such playground.

But here’s where we need to put our professional heads on and consider what we want to actually gain from the platform in terms of potential revenue. Yes, I’ve said it before and I’m saying it again: I firmly believe that it is possible to make money as a result of the connections and relationships built via Twitter. The quality-versus-quantity conundrum is the issue that surrounds its probability.

I’m Listening! Or Am I?

Numbers alone don’t equate to followers in the true sense of the word and, as I’ve explained, emotions govern our decision-making processes. There are thousands of bots that follow you indiscriminately on Twitter without the least bit of interest in you or your brand, Although this increased following might initially be a great ego booster, it’s a hollow victory in terms of your brand message having any real impact.

Imagine you’re the host of a show on your favorite radio station. Every ...