Wham, bam, "thank you" spam

Online etiquette is a fine line. Etiquette in social media is an even finer line still. I've noticed a particularly annoying trend emerge over the past couple of months and I wanted to bring it up to get it out there and get your take on it. It's thank you spam.

I am seeing thank you spam more and more as people connect with me in social networks like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Here's how it plays out on Twitter.

1. A person follows you on the service and that sends you an email
   
2. You click on the email and go to their Twitter profile page
   
3. After vetting the person to your satisfaction you follow them back
   
4. Shortly thereafter you receive a direct message from that person with a greeting and link to their site
   
5. This direct message lands in your email and SMS (depending on how you set it up)
   
6. You are summarily annoyed
   

The reason it is annoying is that I am not asking for the pushy marketing message. I checked their profile, clicked through to their link and followed them. I don't mind people sending direct messages saying hello (though a short reply would suffice and not hit me visa SMS or email), I think it's quite nice. However, the push to a link turns it from a conversation to a sales pitch. This same type of pitch happens to me on Facebook and LinkedIn too. Those people are quickly blocked and/or decoupled.

I try to interact with people online as I would with you in person. The real life example of this type of introduction is when you go to an event, meet someone and they are immediately telling you all about themselves (usually while looking around for the next victim), not listening to a word you are saying.

Just so you can see what I am talking about, take a look at the following direct messages that I've received over the last month+. The images and names have been obscured to protect the individuals. (They know who they are.) Keep in mind, this is the very first contact that I am having with these people on Twitter.

What are your thoughts on this? Am I off base? What are your Twitter/social media etiquette tips?

UPDATE: Loic Lemeur is also seeing this trend.

Technorati Tags:
Facebook, Matt Dickman, micromedia, social media, social networks, Techno//Marketer, Twitter, thank you spam, LinkedIn

Comments

[Alan Wolk]

I kind of take the attitude that if I don't know you, I don't follow you. If, through a series of @ messages or similar interactions, it seems that we have a connection, I will follow.

But to answer your question, yes, it's kind of rude.

[Matt Dickman]

Alan -- Thanks for weighing in. I'm a bit more liberal with who I follow and that leads to a bit of this.

[Adam Singer]

i click what is interesting, and ignore the rest...what's clear here is that the spam techniques end up in the "noise" category, not the signal

if people do this too often, i simply unfollow them =)

[jackie]

For the most part I only interact with people I know or those with obvious similar interests. However, I am open to new relationships and new information -- so as long as there's some added value aspect or link back to my interests, I'm ok with it. So far, it's worked out pretty well. As far as being pitched, doesn't really bother me unless there is no connection to my life or what I write about at all. Luckily, I haven't had that happen too much, but when it does I tend to ignore it just like I ignore the boat loads of unsolicited (postal) mail I get each day.

I guess dealing with relationship management/building on a daily basis I've come to expect certain things. Those spammers on behalf of companies (or even on behalf of themself) are only doing more harm than good -- creating a negative image.

[Alex Beattie]

Sorry to agree with you so much - but I couldn't agree with you more. I love twitter.com and find it so engaging and useful, but there is an enormous potential for it to be abused - because of the very nature.

It is such a strange 'social phenomenon' that people ought to just let it be what it is, instead of turning into the proverbial cashcow.

[Bryan Person, LiveWorld]

Matt:

Whoa, this is kind of yucky, huh? I know that I occasionally drop people a "thank you for following me" direct message after they've followed me, but pretty sure I don't include a spam marketing message along with that.

I think Alex is right: Because Twitter is such an engaging tool, there are going to be people that decide to abuse it -- just like any other potential marketing channel.

Of course, we do have one solution than can help prevent continued DM spamming from that person: Unfollow.

[Ken Kadet]

You know, I think it depends on the frequency. Offline, it's polite and good business to send a thank you note...some people are a bit officious about it... but you get it, you smile or roll your eyes, toss it move on.

Online, we've become much more touchy. I wouldn't send notes like that -- I just don't think etiquette requires it, and I'd assume you'd checked my profile before making the add. But if the list you shared is typical and they do it once, I'd say give 'em a pass -- to me, it's pretty big stretch to call these notes 'abuse'(do it again, however, and most bets are off...)

Maybe you could pre-empt them and send them your own note when you decide to follow them (and I say this with tongue firmly in cheek): "Hey -- you're following me, and now I'm following you... no need to reply -- I've already checked you out and deemed you worthy! Later!"

[David Griner]

Matt, I've had a few actual respectable humans do this, too, (usually just telling me to subscribe to their blog) and it's just as annoying.

What's worse is when I've followed someone because they seem interesting, then they DM me about their blog, but never follow back. This is one of the main reasons I hate Twitter's one-way DM policy for people who don't follow you back.

[Debra Murphy]

Matt,

You are not off base. These people are not being authentic and using social media to build relationships. They are pushing their information at you rather than allowing you to learn about them on your terms. That is not the accepted culture of social media and they are developing a negative personal brand. They are taking email and blog spam to the next level.

You also have to be careful about clicking on links from people you don't know just like you do with email. You never know what is lurking at the other end from a security perspective.

[TravisV]

It continues to amaze me how many otherwise smart people use Twitter. A medium that better facilitates the production and archival of inane small talk, while most people are struggling even to keep up with their (important) email and reading to-dos.

[Ricardo Bueno]

I don't think that you're necessarily off base. I mean the messages used to be nice. They told me that this person cared to connect (at least initially)... Funny thing is, when you ask that person a question, or you make a general comment, ever notice that they DON'T respond to either! And I dislike people who are disingenuous. Unfortunately this sort of behavior seems to be becoming more and more mainstream :-/