Ok, it’s time I let out an ugly truth.
Sometimes, even now, I look at some Twitter accounts I don’t really like and…I find out that they have more followers than me.
This creates quite the dilemma, because as you might know, I am all about not caring about numbers in Social Media. Still, it’s kind of like that feeling you got in high school when the person you had a mad crush on ended up going out with that vacuous, boring, cliche person who you just couldn’t stand at all. Even if you had the best self-esteem ever (which we all do in high school), it probably made you think, “Gee…what am I missing here?” It throws everything you believe into a sort of purgatory, even if for just a few brief seconds. I see people on Twitter who are doing everything in the world I disagree with. There are people whose profile page can make you dizzy with all of the Retweet icons. There are people whose profile pages are just thank yous to other people for Retweets. And yet very often, these people have more followers than me.
You know what’s really sad? There are SPAM BOTS who have more followers than me! I mean, c’mon people. These aren’t even people! Do you want me to tweet about bacon? Do you want me to tell you that you can win an iPad? I’ll do it!
So what’s going on here?
OK, I’ve regained control of myself. Phew.
Truthfully, I don’t mind that some of these accounts have more followers than me. What really boggles my mind is a two-fold question. Why do hundreds of thousands of people follow those accounts, and why do people I follow follow those accounts?
Obviously a lot of this is created by the “auto-follow” epidemic. As an aside, if you end up following a Bacon Bot, it does make me wonder if you are taking your presence on Twitter seriously. As we say on Twitter, #justsayin
Maybe people follow these strange rogue accounts because you are sure to get your name mentioned. Sometimes autobots mention my name and I am seldom happy about the pragmatic effects of “my name getting out there.” Maybe I am missing something.
Am I missing something?
Image by Berkeley Robinson. http://www.sxc.hu/profile/Berkeley
Marjorie, thanks for saying something that I realized after reading your blog that I, too, feel. It’s a fleeting moment, but now that I admitted it, inspired by your blog, maybe I think through it instead of just feel it.
Part of me is glad we don’t see the #’s reading blogs because that would drive me nuts.
haha, good point. I haven’t looked even at my own blog stats in forever. Too easy to get tied into all of that jazz 🙂
Marjorie,
Awesome post. I’d have to agree. I’ve been experimenting with Twitter for about 2 years now. I am constantly amazed by what accounts seem to get all the followers. Sometimes it feels like people like getting spammed all day long via the hundreds of tweets they receive.
Like you, I often get frustrated and let’s be honest, there’s nothing wrong with it. Chalk it up to having a healthy ego.
Jason
Hi Jason!
Thanks so much!
Yeah, it’s just a “throw your hands up” kind of moment, but it does make you wonder. Just shows the evil of auto-follow I guess 🙂
BTW, I am not hearing anyone else having a problem with my RSS, so I don’t know what to tell you. Let me know how I can help. =/
I think that once you’ve topped 100 followers, your twitter stream just strolls on by anyway. You have to make lists to ferret out the people you REALLY want to follow or they get lost in the masses.
As an aside, I found myself saying #justsayin out loud at work this week. Yikes! 🙂