The Age Old Question About Following Back On Twitter

Yes, I am one of THOSE people, I don’t follow every single person back on Twitter. It’s not that I think I am better than anybody else. That is not the case at all. I also don’t do it to offend people either. I reply to and interact with all of the people who take the time to follow me, and I appreciate every single one of them. However, it is my opinion that following every single person back who follows me is not the correct way to use social media.

Now you might differ in your opinion, and that’s perfectly understandable, but hear me out before you decide that my approach is wrong. Here are the top two reasons why I don’t follow everyone back.

1. I like my timeline to reflect my personal style on Twitter ~

I tweet about God, reading, writing and blogging. Following like-minded individuals is usually my preference so I can meet and interact with people who share a common interest or goal. If I follow someone who doesn’t share my personal style then my timeline would be filled with information I am not interested in. A perfect example is many people follow several news sources for instant updates, but I don’t. I don’t like the news. I like positivity, so I choose to not follow news sources which might put a damper on my timeline’s positive nature.

2. I don’t follow those people who don’t fill out their profile, put a personal pic up or those who tweet about their marketing tips or brand constantly ~

I look at Twitter as a way to connect and interact with people. Twitter is a way to share with people who you might not have ever gotten the opportunity to meet otherwise. Following those who don’t care enough to change their pic from the universal Twitter egg or to tell me something about themselves that might be of interest shows me that they really aren’t that interested in social media. Lastly, I don’t follow back businesses or marketing gurus that constantly just DM you links or put links on their timeline. I am not using Twitter to sell my business, and to be honest, 90% of the time I’m not interested in yours. I want to interact and inspire others. Following these people does not accomplish that goal.

I know that many disagree with this concept of social media. Many feel it is rude not to follow someone who follows you. However, everyone has their own personal social media style, and this is mine. I don’t accept every Facebook friend request sent to me, and I don’t follow everyone back on Twitter. That’s just me. What is your opinion about following back?