Biggers Can Be Choosers

As you'll have noted from the last blogs, my sights are now trained on Perception. And I'm taking five from Perception at large to improving Perception on Twitter. Here's why...

Take a minute or two to sit at your computer screen and watch Twitter's general stream. About 200 Tweets seem to flash by every minute. And anything you Tweet will be vanish from the screen in a second or two, missed by the very people whom you hope to reach--unless: 1) You have a substantial Followers base; 2) You ReTweet your core Followers who ReTweet you in turn; 3) You maintain a healthy balance between your 'shout-outs' (touts for your own work) and reach-outs--inspirational, informative or helpful stuff to others.

Let's look at each of these in turn...
1) What's a substantial Followers base? We begin to be taken more seriously at 1000 Followers. Then at 3000 we can take some pride that we're actually starting to look pretty good. But I now agree with John Logan: 10,000 seems to be the magic number--the point at which we're taken very seriously indeed...and at which we make super-desirable allies.
2) With a base of 10,000 we're in a position to offer them something important: the power to ReTweet about their new books and giveaways, etc. And our 10,000 Followers have their own fans in turn. When Claude Bouchard ReTweets you, the word goes out to his 300,000-plus Followers.  Getting up to 10,000 will take some hard daily work...but as Logan says, the growth process grows easier. The rich get richer and the big get bigger. And biggers can be choosers.
2) Balance becomes everything. If we're perceived as spammers or self-aggrandizing jerks, down we go: we get Unfollowed or get blocked. No one minds an occasional tout or even more than occasional--so long as balance is perceived. And we're more likely to buy or free-download something from someone who's amused or amazed us with well-written, unselfish Tweets. I discovered nearly all of my ebook writers on Twitter--through the power of their Tweets: Claude Bouchard, David Cranmer, Kirkus MacGowan, Roz Morris, John Logan, Rebecca Scarsberry, Diane Rapp, Douglas R. Cobb, etc.

Closing note on numbers: I hope to find a balance between Bouchard's volume and selectivity. Now and then I'll copy a block of Followers from a writer I like to help me gain some traction. But I prefer to examine each name, seeking those who share my interest in mysteries and thrillers or who stand out somehow in their profiles. Anyway, the game is on and I will keep you posted.