More gripes about blog ‘Followers’

~ beetleypete

It seems I do this all the time, I know. But nobody is listening.

Just this week I have had six more new followers who think that all they have to do is add a one-word comment to a post, then ask me to follow their blog in return.

It goes something like this.

First comment. ‘Nice’.
Second comment. ‘Follow me please’.

And variations of same.

This week, they have all been from India, for some reason. And they all have active blogs of their own too, though in most cases have just started them this month.

They still don’t seem to get that blogging is not Facebook or Twitter, and not all about ‘following back’ like we are some kind of electronic sheep. So I am now deleting these comments, and taking no notice of the ‘follows’. I have abandoned my usual practice of politely replying to those people, thanking them for following me, and replaced that by ignoring them completely.

Just so you know, whoever you are.

76 thoughts on “More gripes about blog ‘Followers’”

  1. I’ll b honest with ya Pete, I just always saw your name when I go to comment on Fraggy stuff, , and although I don’t read ALL of your words, I do like to give ya a like. ..with no strings attached 🙂

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    1. That’s fine, Kathy, and much appreciated.
      I am talking about a completely different kind of ‘follower’ here. Those who only follow in order to be followed back, with no intention of actually participating in the community of blogging at all. 🙂
      Best wishes, Pete.

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    1. That’s a strange development, Lara, as I have many long-term and committed Indian followers who are most valued. But the latest batch seem to have no clue about blogging. 🙂
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  5. Three things I wonder about: 1. Someone who “likes” every post in my Recent Posts list in less than a minute, so I suspect without reading any of them. 2. Someone who follows my blog without ever liking or commenting on any post. 3. Someone who likes all my recent comments, both on my blog and other blogs. Even comments like “Thank you” or “You’re welcome.” Weird but harmless, I suppose, even though it feels like I’m being stalked. I rarely get someone asking me to follow them, however.

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    2. Hi.

      I had someone who for a while was liking every post I posted, and finally I wrote a blog post about how I felt like people who did that thought they were helping raise my stats, but that it didn’t help me truly know what people liked and didn’t like of my posts. I talked about how, I wanted to have a good idea of what people really enjoyed about my blog so I could do more of what they liked and less of what they didn’t. I didn’t expect to see any change, but for a wonder the very person who had been doing that wrote me privately and said they never gave what they were doing a thought in the way that I wrote about.

      After that for the most part things began to settle down. Now, though I find I’ve lost a few people and I’m not sure if it has been due to the glitch of when I was sharing from my wordpress app on my phone which needed updated, and was showing my blog as having been removed, or if I have offended some in some way.

      I try not to give it a lot of thought, just yesterday I reblogged a post called, “Is Blogging Art” and talked about why I blog but sometimes that worry monster does slip in.

      I have to say that I enjoy Peat’s blog because the discussions had here are thought provoking, and have given me ideas, inspirations, and help me along my way.

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      1. It’s interesting that you engaged positively with the person who was doing all that anonymous liking. Apart from comments, communicating by “likes” and “follows” isn’t very nuanced, so misunderstandings can happen easily. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on blogging, Patty!

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        1. Well, the first thing was that I’d been following their work a while, and knew what type of person it was. Next, I made certain to start out by saying that I felt their intent was good, and went on to say that while there were some who didn’t follow protocol who were in fact spamming the blog, I felt that for the most part people’s intent was to help me because I was so new.

          I think, it was due to the positive spin I put on it and the fact that I recognized the difference between people, like my fellow blogger friend, and the type of folks, like Lawnmower sales person and India Follow me people, that the reaction was as it was.

          You’re always going to have those bloggers who are not serious decent people, and to that I advise, “delete block”

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            1. Well, I don’t always comment on everything I read. If I enjoy it I do always like it, but I get hundreds of different types of posts a day and there’s no way to read and comment on every one of them, and I don’t expect others to do it either. That’s unrealistic.

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  6. I’m very new to the blogging world, and I have no idea (as with other types of social media) how a lot of this stuff works. I’ve never even considered (now would I) ask someone to follow me; there is something tasteless about that. I look at blogging as a chance to practice writing, share my thoughts, (though I question why anyone cares what I have to say) and interact with others who have interesting things to say.

    I used to have no interest in Facebook, but it has grown on me because it has allowed me to get back in touch with many former students. (for that, I am grateful) As a teacher, I often find myself wondering what career path former students took. At the same time, I chuckle at those people who have 5,748 “friends.”

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    1. Thanks, Pete. After seven years blogging, I am becoming increasingly tired of ‘non-followers’, and have posted many times about them. If you hang around long enough, you will no doubt see me do it again. 🙂
      Best wishes, Pete.

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    2. The way I’ve my blog set up, I can send people an email invite to follow, but they must accept the invite, and then confirm it. So, this means that I get to send an invitation with a personalized message which I always provide, and then they can decide if they want to subscribe.

      On FB I can send an invite to like and follow one of my pages, and supposedly I can send an invite to someone to join a group, but I found the invite to join a group signs them up for the group as soon as they open it so I stopped that because I’ve been added to groups without my say so and that’s annoying.

      Of course we all make mistakes when we first begin at anything, and when I first started, not knowing any better I would put my link into the comments section, but thanks be for friends who understand I was simply erroring because of lack of know how and they quickly wrote me privately and told me not to do such.

      I don’t even look to see how many people follow my blog. First, I’m like you, I cannot imagine why anyone cares what I post, and secondly it makes me nervous when I think about it too much.

      I love to write. Love promoting others, and love reading other’s work, so blogging is fun for me.

      If I sell a few books along the way that’s nice too but I don’t even think about that too much.

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  8. I have a couple of “health” bloggers that think they can drop by and say hey and want me to follow…..I agree my blog is no Facebook and I refuse to be tricked into a follow….chuq

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  9. Hmmm…I’ve read that in prison, the best thing a person can do is shut up and listen. Don’t say anything until you have your legs under you a bit, until you’ve been mentored. I’ve been fortunate to have some good blogging mentors and you are one of the best, Pete.
    I must admit, that I keep an eye on my followers number, perhaps too much. And, for the most part, I do a quid pro quo, you follow me and I’ll follow you… If we click, then we interact.
    There is a young man–a follower–who’s blog delves into subject matter that I don’t like, so I didn’t follow him and I removed him from my followers and gave him an explanation as to why. He re-followed me. Ha! I thought that was funny. Audacious. I wrote him back, explained my ground rules and he excepted, He drops in every now and then, and I drop in on his blog about that often. He’s a good writer. We have a respectful relationship. To me, that’s the thing…Respect.

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    1. Thanks, Wilma. For some reason, that request always really irritates me. 🙂
      And it is silly too, because I might well follow them, if they didn’t ask.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  12. Mr. Pete, well said! I didn’t start my blog to get followers. Nobody listens to me either, so my blog is more of a record of me saying something regardless of who listens.

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  13. A man my age came into the paint store where I work two days per week and I asked him how he was doing. He said, “I could complain but nobody listens anyway.” I cupped a hand around my right ear and replied, “What did you say?” 🙂

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  14. I never consider the follower number or think of it as a real statistic. I think the number of likes and comments is a better indicator of how active a blogger is. I only average about 25-50 comments, and I think that’s pretty good! Most only get a few comments per post. I am amazed at some bloggers who get HUNDREDS of likes and just as many comments per post. They, to me, are the master bloggers who have been around a long time and have amassed a large community. My hats off to them. It would be a full-time job to have to answer all the comments!

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    1. Sorry, Cindy. I must have missed this comment.
      I agree that anyone who gets hundreds of comments every day must have to work at this blogging thing like a full-time job! 🙂 I rarely get more than 25-30 comments, but I spend a lot of time replying and interacting.
      Best wishes, Pete. x

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      1. No worries, you are the most active blogger I know. Yours is a full time avocation. I’m happy for you, for I think you get a lot of emotional satisfaction from it. Exactly what one looks for in retirement! I, for one, am counting the days before I am free to devote all my time to my avocations. It’s really hard for me right now to juggle it all.

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  16. At the end of the day everyone wants more followers for their blog and followers that actually read what they’ve written. Some people think one out of two ain’t bad, and others want a meaningful conversation. Many bloggers are too busy and just want to leave a ‘like’ and a one-word comment. I’m happy enough for anyone to follow me!

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    1. Thanks, Stevie. I have many followers who regularly leave ‘likes’ and rarely comment. Like you, I am more than happy for them to follow me, and appreciate them a great deal. But these ‘follow me back’ people get under my skin, and irritate me no end. 🙂
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  17. Pete, I have started getting some of this on my Instagram: “great photo, love your content, would you like to reach more followers with us?” Um, F right off please and thank you…

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    1. I have never been on Instagram, Facebook, or WhatsApp. They all seem to just be primarily about getting lots of followers. I think you made the right choice, John.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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      1. I think those social media platforms can be that way, however, my experience is much different. Especially with Facebook.

        I’ve 816 friends, and 531 followers at last count, and I have meaningful conversations with many of them.

        I also run 3 groups, and have 4 pages of my own and manage 3 for other people. All of which are active and growing.

        When I went into the hospital and nursing therapy 2 years ago I got more support from people on Facebook than I did my local friends and family, and it remains the case today.

        I think you have to do a couple things for something like Facebook to work for you. First, you have to be willing to put real effort and time into it. You also have to be willing to read and comment on other people’s stuff as well as having them read and comment on yours, and when they do comment you must engage them.

        You also have to think about those who are reading who cannot see photos giffs, and memes, as well as screenshots, and add alt text or write a description, and if you’re willing to do those things you can build one heck of a supportive community.

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        1. Thanks for something positive about Facebook, Patty. My wife is addicted to it, and that level of addiction has always bothered me. So I have sworn never to get involved with that particular social media platform.

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      1. This is how to delete an Instagram account, Patty.

        To permanently delete your account:

        Go to the Delete Your Account page. If you’re not logged into Instagram on the web, you’ll be asked to log in first. You can’t delete your account from within the Instagram app.
        Select an option from the drop-down menu next to Why are you deleting your account? and re-enter your password. The option to permanently delete your account will only appear after you’ve selected a reason from the menu.
        Click or tap Permanently delete my account.

        Best wishes, Pete.

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        1. Thanks for that. Instagram is just too visual for me.

          Honestly for me Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn are my top three picks for social media and WordPress is my all time favorite way to promote and share mine and other’s work.

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  18. I recently rolled over the 200 follower mark. Out of those 200, there are about 20 who comment regularly.

    I enjoy the exchange with someone who leaves a meaningful comment.

    Recently, I removed a few followers who were obvious spammers — not just their comments.

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    1. ‘Followers’ are a minefield, Maggie. Most of the 4,000+ who supposedly follow me are just trying to sell something, or build up their own follower count to attract advertisers to their sites. I take 90% of them with the proverbial pinch of salt, and examine their own blogs closely, before allowing any comments from them.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  19. I might sound harsh but the mentality of some bloggers is shameful… as if they think following others is somewhat a right rather than an option…. many have told me to just follow them…

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    2. I don’t like it when I follow someone on a blog, Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn and the first thing to happen is they send me a message with no introduction, no hi how are you, glad to know you, nothing. Just a link wanting me to buy their book, join their group, or worse, donate money.

      Two words come immediately into play and become actions.

      Delete Block.

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    2. I think you may be right.

      I know the blogger I have a lot of trouble with lots of times only reads the title or a few words, assumes he knows what’s being talked about and at times will respond with things that aren’t even on topic. Makes me have to wonder why he doesn’t understand why he has such trouble in his life.

      Social skills are important.

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        1. Peat, I think you’re like me, sometimes you just have to get what’s bugging you off your chest and that somehow helps put it back into some kind of perspective.

          I do it too.

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  21. Well I totally agree with you! I also only comment when I have something to say ( like now) even at the risk of being unfollowed because.. what ‘s the point?

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  22. Recent new followers of my blog have included a blogger who seems to be only selling lawn mowers! When Worpress say ‘congratulations “mostboringblogonearth” has just started following you’ I go and have a look, hoping to find somweone who will be interesting and interested and often they are and I read their blog. But sometimes you wonder how they came across you and why would they want to follow you. Lawnmower person did not comment or ask me to follow him.

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  24. Hi. I agree with you 100-percent. It’s the most annoying thing on planet.
    Thing is, even Facebook is getting away from that. I got a tip notification the other day which I wrote about and shared because I thought it was so great.
    They’re recommending that you no longer just post a link and a one word comment but rather start and have a conversation, and if you do post links they’re recommending that you write a little something about what you’re posting.
    I for one have been doing things such as that for a while and got made fun of by lots of people.
    My come back to those making fun?
    It’s “Social” media which in my mind means be “Socialble.”
    Several persons were seeing their stuff knocked off FB and I still believe it may have been in part to the fact that there was too much link dropping and not enough conversating.
    OK.
    My rant is over. LOL.
    Bad to get me going before I’ve only had one cup of coffee, but this thing you’re talking about gripes me!

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      1. You’re welcome.

        I’ve a blog follower who does annoying things like this. I understand he has some issue with his screen reader and cannot make it so he gets replies, so I gave him the option of adding a note about this including his email address so people could talk to him directly because sometimes he did actually have things relevant to say, but he hasn’t gone by my rule consistently and I’m getting ready to remove him because he doesn’t seem to have the respect for me, my other followers or rules in general.

        I cannot stand that kind of thing. I’ve got a great group of followers, and many don’t comment but they do like, and many do share, but even so there seem to be a large number of people who I feel are inconsiderate.

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