Twitter is to conversation as Direct message is to…
// August 12th, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Uncategorized
Rules of conversation are relative. It all depends on what you learned from your family and friends and where you are from geographically. In some places you can end a conversation over the phone without saying good bye (I would find this very disruptive)
With the advent of Twitter it seems that we are all learning a new way to converse. With only 140 characters and a few explicit ways to manage and direct the conversation flow, I find that is more important than ever to understand how to interact with others.
With this in mind I would like to share one of my core beliefs about the the Twitter conversation.
If Twitter is a conversation in a huge cafeteria where everyone can select the people they want to listen to, then Direct Messaging(DM) is the equivalent of asking someone into the hallway for a moment.
Using this understanding of DM, it would be ok with me to have you DM me about something personal, like your email or phone number. it would be ok to DM me something that might embarass me or you in front of the rest of the group, like asking what a hash tag is or telling me my avatar is super sexy.
It is NOT OK to direct message me generic information. If you DM me to thank me for following I get suspicious. If you DM me about a pyramid scheme or how to get more followers, I stop following all together.
Today I received multiple DMs about a charity that is trying to get people to tweet their specific congressmen about their cause. They created an app that puts out a message with a hash tag about your local politicians. Clever… but it also has an opt out button that asks to DM all your followers.
By sending DM to all your followers you will be setting a bad rep for you and thing you are sending the DM about. Follow me, based on what I have said so far… I have been asked into the hallway multiple times today to ask to join a cult charity. This was ok the first time, but with every new DM I get from a friend about this, I start to get more tired and unfriendly about the cause.
So, am I crazy about what the meaning of DM is? Is this how you see DM? Let me know what you think.
(The img used above by creative commons use is Lunch by adactio )
