7 Rules for Following People on Social Media

Do you think there’s no strategy to who you should follow on social media? Think again. The company we keep matters – in the real word and online. Here are some guidelines for who to follow on social media.

1.  A follow reads like an implicit endorsement. If you’re an organic food company, don’t follow McDonalds. Need to monitor the market? Set up a separate account to follow the other side, or track via a social measurement tool.
2. Following people on social media is like dressing for success. Just like you should dress for the job you want, not the job you have, so too should you follow the brands and people you admire and aspire to be.
3. That said; do NOT ignore your peers. Don’t be a social media groupie. The first two commandments of social media are engagement and reciprocity. Talk to your peers and your customers/fans. Do not ignore them in hope of some kind of social media celebrity status.
4. Follow your best customers and business partners.
5. Mind the math. You’re follower/following ratio shouldn’t be equal. No one respects someone who auto follows anyone who follows them. Likewise, people who follow less than 50 percent of the number who follow them seem egotistical and uninterested in engagement.
6. Use a tool like Manage Flitter to find people who share your interests and weed out the dead beats.
7. Don’t go on a follow frenzy. (In other words, don’t be Taye Diggs.) Take it slow and don’t follow more than 100 people per week.

The bottom line when it comes to who to follow is be authentic. Follow the people who interest you. Engage in meaningful conversations with them. Remember, behind every social account is a person. (Unless it’s a bot in which case BLOCK that bugger!)