Twitter is a versatile and useful tool for any PR campaign, but using is willy-nilly can lead to great peril. In fact, if you really try at it, you can completely wreck your job, your life, even your marriage! Here are some helpful tips if you want to use Twitter in the worst ways possible.
Use a Work Account as a Personal Account
I have an old friend and colleague from my college days on my personal account. They now work for a major record label. In between tweeting about concert dates and new videos, they’ll occasionally post intimate details of their personal life.
Not only is it a major distraction from the business aspect of the Twitter account, it also sets a standard for their updates in the future. Their followers will come to expect complaints and gripes along with music news, and may unfollow the account. On top of that, I’ve noticed this person doesn’t respond to messages expressing concern about their awful life, so what purpose does it serve?
Spam the Crap Out of Followers
Here’s another great way to annoy everyone and ruin your life: instead of actively interacting with your colleagues on Twitter, repeatedly and unashamedly post links and updates about how great your company or product is all day.
This will make sure you don’t set up an active presence on Twitter, but instead have become a spam-bot that will get ignored and possibly deleted off the service. Even worse, your client or business will be known on the Internet as rank amateurs in the social media game and you’ll never get hired by anyone ever again.
Post Inappropriate Things
Have a great picture of your night out last night? Post it on twitpic and share it with your business colleagues! Constantly reading posts from an out-there right or left wing political website that has nothing to do with your business? Send links to everyone!
For better results in getting banned, ignored or unfollowed, mix up a good political discussion with a rousing religious debate. These two topics are always heated and hardly ever have anything to do with your business or client, so it’s an almost guaranteed way to lose friends and colleagues.
Insult People
Now for the #1 way to totally ruin your campaign and your life: find ways to insult your followers or even your clients! If you know office or company gossip, spread it around on Twitter. Know a flaw in your client’s business plan? Let everyone know!
You might think its ridiculous, but it’s been done before! You might not even realize you’re doing it. If you tweet how you think people that love to spend time on bonsai trees are dumb and one of your followers is a card-carrying member of the Bonsai Tree Advocate Group, then congrats, you just lost them as a friend! Now, you’re well on your way to ruining your Twitter life.
This article is written by Mickie Kennedy, founder of eReleases (https://www.ereleases.com), the online leader in affordable press release distribution. Grab three free ebooks, including the Big Press Release Book and Twitter Tactics, here: https://www.ereleases.com/free-offer/big-press-release-samples-book/