Twitter: Why do I bother?

~ beetleypete

I have had 361 followers on Twitter for as long as I can remember.

Not complaining! I am very happy to have any at all.

I only use it to promote my blog posts, and to retweet those of other bloggers/tweeters.

I try to get on there every day, but don’t always succeed in doing very much.

Tonight, I was trying to retweet some posts, but as usual, it ran away with me.

No sooner had I decided to retweet something, then there were 30 new tweets in front of it.

To be honest, I have to ask a question.

Is Twitter really worth the time it takes?

Answers on a postcard please.

97 thoughts on “Twitter: Why do I bother?”

  1. The reason you’re not seeing growth on Twitter is because you’re using it wrong.

    Twitter is the best place for writers. Why?
    You can drop ideas to get real time feedback. Network with other people in your niche. Talk directly with you audience.

    Many think they should be able to post something and people will just come. You’ll will only start to grow once you become a part of the community for your niche. Twitter’s algorithm is built for conversations not promotion.

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    1. Thanks for your advice, Chad. I am not actually bothered about more interaction or followers on Twitter, and I am already very much in the community of people who I know from blogging. My main gripe is the speed that it updates. No sooner have I sent a tweet, then it disappears under 50 others. I have no books to promote, so enjoy just interacting with ‘friends’ there. If I can find them. As for not using it properly, I have no doubt you are 100% correct about that. 🙂
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  2. I have an account, but it’s full of Retweets haaha sometimes I make my own tweets but no social interaction. 😦 haha

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  3. I made one to promote my new blog, but just like you said, there’s so many new tweets, some get over looked. That’s happening to me and I don’t even have a larger amount of followers or people that I’m following, I can’t imagine how many more tweets there will be as I continue to use it. I’m not sure if I’ll end up keeping up with it, but for now I’m going to try. Hopefully it’s not too much of a waste. 🤞

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  4. I’ve been using it since it started and still do nearly every day. I’ve also made some solid friendships there. It’s about finding the right people to follow and they follow back. Good luck.

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  8. I’ve found Twitter to be a place where I can engage (as in ask questions, comment, promote causes,) with other bloggers, authors, even some influencers. It’s value is more about engagement and community rather than getting hits on your blog although it is a good place to let others know what you do, ex. blogger, published author, podcaster, etc. I recently did a post on Andrew Greer’s book and he actually tweeted a few comments to me! I’ve chatted with Anne Lamott, Krista Tippett, and Brene Brown. Anyway, that’s what I’ve found. C

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    1. That’s good to hear, Cheryl. My main issue is how fast it moves. I can tweet something, and it has already disappeared under a list of 50 more tweets before I even get to view it.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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      1. I use the list tool on Twitter, you’re on one of my private lists, you name your list, like “my circus,” or “my favorites,” and when you hit the link only those who are listed appear. It slows the process down from 5,000 tweets to 20 and this makes it easier to engage. C

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          1. I don’t do much with Insta Shaily, I’m sure there are tricks! But most people say that’s where you sell your brand in images. So if your novel has a main character, drop images about her personality, or your logo, images about you as an author! Build your brand with images. C

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            1. Thanks a ton. As a matter of fact, my book has many pics. It is a story collection so quite a few characters too. I’ll follow your suggestion…or rather my ‘PR’ 😁 She’s my best friend and the artist who created the illustrations.

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  9. Why do you want the answer by postcard, Pete? Do you fear they will cancel your account, when your are ranting about? 😉 I am also using Twitter most time automatically over the WP plugin. On phone its to small for me, and on PC screen i am always feeling bombed. Best wishes, Michael

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      1. I agree. I have refrained posting pics of my daily meals so far. I have seen people get away with that though. My-baby-turned-9-and-half-week-old posts, I-bought-a-blue-hair-clip posts, my-new-dress-is-even-shorter posts, my-bestie-snorted posts…

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  11. Unless you can quantify how many blog hits that are read through, not click through from those 361 followers the answer is a resounding NO. Tweet and retweet and blog and reblog, as rewarding and warm as it is to see little blocks highlight by your post what have you really got? A debt to repay all those little squares with one of your own. It’s like smoking cessation. What would you do with all the time you recovered if you weren’t wasting it chasing an addiction? which is what all the staying dialed in to Social Media nonsense really is.

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  12. Pete, it’s great that you retweet my posts, always much appreciated….but you know what I’ve seen? When I go to my WordPress account and see where traffic comes from, almost NOTHING comes from Twitter…even when you and others retweet stuff…it just doesn’t seem to drive any interest and I have also come to the conclusion: “why bother?”

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    1. I just checked before replying, and I have had 4 referrals to the blog today from Twitter. I will carry on Tweeting my posts, and my blogging friend’s posts, but I won’t be spending so much time scrolling the timeline in future.
      Best wishes, Pete.

      Liked by 1 person

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  13. I leave every time it asks me to change my password but I go back for the few people that I don’t connect with any other way.I like watching the political arguments ( I have one or two from each camp that I follow) and there are groups that read all I post and retweet it. I still avoid facebook and only spend about 15mins on twitter each day.( after wordpress) Now I need to check out bookfunnel!

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    1. I try to give some time to Twitter each day to retweet things for blogging friends. But if I dawdle over a tweet, the ‘conveyor belt’ takes over and I lose it.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  14. I agree that the Twitter feeds fill up so fast that if you look away, the post is gone, which also depends on how many people you follow. I’m on it rarely, so when I do get to it, I don’t usually find much that interests me.

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  15. Reblogged this on Stevie Turner and commented:
    I think Twitter will be the next social media site I discard. I’ve given up Facebook and Instagram, and have more book marketing success with BookFunnel and WordPress. In reality, we all tweet and re-tweet, but who the hell reads the tweets in the first place?

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  21. It’s not my deal. I have an account, but I forget to look at it very often. On the other hand, I’ve heard people swear by it, so obviously, it works for some.

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  22. I appreciate all your RTs of my posts…..I do not make it on Twitter everyday either….I use it mostly for the news sources that are on there….I do love all my followers on there……any other social media is out of the question for me. chuq

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  26. I think it’s worth it. I don’t spend a huge amount of time on it – far less than I do reading blog posts. I keep the Notifications open and check it every so often, though I’ve not been keeping up as much recently what with other things preoccupying me, but I do love Twitter.

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    1. Thanks, Felicity. I’m not 100% sure I could cope with more. The ones I already have seem to be retweeting the same stuff on a neverending loop.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  30. Twitter is the rubbish bin of social media as far as I am concerned, Pete, for the reasons you state here. People just post endlessly and relentlessly to Twitter. That being said, I do share to Twitter and I do visit a few posts while I’m there and follow the links so it is not completely worthless for me. Some blogs I follow are not WP and then I pick up the posts from Twitter [I go to the persons twitter account and look for their posts]. Just like shopping in a charity shop, every now and then you find something you love.

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      1. Oh no, I only go on to thank people who share my posts. I don’t spend much time there at all. I am a WP girl, I like to read and interact with people. I am also very disciplined about how much time I spend on any social media.

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  32. I love Twitter. I know it moves fast, but for some reason, my personality fits with all the quirkiness in with the tweets. i have several friends I’ve made there. I’ve also found some great books and writers.

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  33. Frankly, unless you live on your phone and have twitter open all the time I don’t think you have a hope with it
    I just use the automatic systems to tell the world I’ve published my blog. Then every so often (perhaps weekly) I check the notifications and like stuff people have retweeted of mine. 🙂

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  34. Ah heck Pete. Every second is clicks too fast. No one can keep up. I check it for news in certain parts of the world. That’s all it’s good for, honestly. (Please don’t even care about it… it’s about addicting people.)

    Liked by 4 people

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