12 Steps to Recovery From “Twitter Follower Addiction”
Hello, my name is Ben Mapp (@roadmapp) and I’m a recovering “Twitter followers” addict.
I started off thinking I knew what was going on, that I could control myself. But then things slowly got out of hand.
Your Business in the Time of Crisis
Yesterday (Wed, July 15), this blog was offline for over an hour.
My All-Time Twitter #FollowFriday List
Twitter’s #FollowFriday has gotten a bit unwieldy.
Yes, it’s cool to acknowledge the friendly, helpful, and insightful tweeps you meet and get to know. But, the constant streams of ever-longer lists of “cool tweeps” takes up lots of screen real-estate.
My eyes start to glaze over with “FollowFriday blindness.” And I don’t always have the time to give shout-outs to all the people I’d like to.
That said, I thought I’d highlight the people who have made my all-time Twitter #FollowFriday list.
Some are marketers, some aren’t. Some I’ve spoken to offline, most I haven’t. Some are famous in their fields, most aren’t. Some I converse with on Twitter, some I just read and/or RT. Some have lots of Twitter followers, many don’t.
The common thread is that they all provide value in some form or fashion and, to me, their tweets are must-reads for one reason or another.
So, here goes, a list-in-progress in no particular order and sometimes in more than 140 characters. (Hey, my blog, my rules! 
):
@Bonniestwit Bonnie’s a tutor in NYC, who simply kills Twitter. You want to know how to “do Twitter right,” follow Bonnie. Period. She’s fun, provocative, inspiring, personal yet never boring. She rocks.
@LarisaBelliveau Another Twitter supastar who “gets” the medium with no agenda other than to communicate and be communicated with. Insightful. Fun. A friend I’ve yet to meet.
@Follow_Steph Steph is definitely good tweeple who says, “I love to Promote other Twitizens. I guess I’m a Twitterholic.” He communicates, RTs when he likes a tweet, and gives props when props are due. In fact, his #FollowFriday Tribute page is the inspiration for this post.
@melmilletics Melanie takes social media marketing to the next level. Informative. Hilarious. Follow and learn attraction marketing in action. Plus, her site’s chock-full of awesome marketing tutorials: Sponsoring Success.
@unmarketing No doubt a skilled marketer with an expertise in social media. Never one to shy away from an opinion or discussion, his posts and probing questions caused me to re-think my Twitter presence and stop auto-following. From Scott’s bio: “Stop Marketing, Start Engaging.” Indeed.
@itsallsuccess Seems like we’ve known each other for a long time. A professional network marketer who’s in the masterminds of several Big Deals. Literally. Deborah knows it’s really all about people, not just products and comp plans. Her blog says that and more importantly she lives it.
@PerryBelcher Bio: “Seriously Bad Ass Marketer & Neurological Copywriter With a Gift From God.” Yup. Tweets useful links about how to do cool web, marketing, copywriting, etc stuff. Plus, his informative videos usually feature a whiteboard.
@LorenaHeletea Bio: “Passion to Coach. We figure out where our old Beliefs have us stuck. We create new habits, set goals, identify actions.” Always positive vibes from another person who “gets Twitter.” She’s not a successful life coach for nothing!
@jawar Not just because his tweet style is featured in Mike Klingler’s “How I Built My First List” as an example of great tweeting, but because he’s truly motivational, insightful, and a masterful networker. Best plus: He really supports his tweeps and is great at connecting people with common interests.
@Ferny_Ceballos & @RaymondFong No, they’re not the same person with multiple accounts. But they are biz partners in SEO Networker. Cool guys who know their *ish about SEO and marketing.
@h0neyb One of the first people I “met” on Twitter and one of the most memorable. I mean, who else do you know who blogs about bees and can chronicle her move from UT to DC without sharing too much or revealing too little?
@rebelbrown Even my “more than 140-character” leeway can’t do Rebel justice. She’s real, humorous, caring, committed to transformation (of people, of organizations), a great conversationalist, a great ally. Simply a great person I’m privileged to know. Her ebook “Its Not About You Anymore” is a straight-up strategy for positioning your business. It’s free (no signup required). Get it. Read it. You’ll learn something.
@k0zm0zs0ul A masterful copywriter who I think of as the “Queen of the RT,” which is all good because the people she follows — and the perspective she has — leads to very useful tweets from all over the map.
@lorenzomyers The name of his business says it all about Lorenzo: Positive Impact Solutions Positive impact, indeed. He’s got a lot going on and will RT when he likes what he sees and reads.
@kimshahan Kim always seems to tweet some info or a new tool that makes me go “why didn’t I think of that?” or “why didn’t I know about that?” She’s connected, makes informative videos, and constantly creates useful content everywhere. A whirlwind.
@darrenmonroe First noticed Darren right before one of his “24 Hour Twitter Marathons.” Told him to make sure to walk around a bit! Seriously, Darren’s a committed entrepreneur who’s got his pulse on Twitter and marketing. And, he’s combined the two into a great Twitter program.
@vernitasherman Not a frequent tweeter, but when Vernita tweets a marketing tip, take note and take action. As cited here before, Vernita’s truly committed to being what her bio says– an “Internet Marketing Coach for Solopreneurs.”
@vene2ia Bio: “Physician, writer, entrepreneur, educationalist, pianist, world traveler, sports, good friend to many (not necessarily this order!). Carpe deum-what’s sleep?!” Judging from Yvonne’s blog, it’s all true. Plus, a fellow chocoholic with a nutrition site to prove it!
@marketingmandy Her first at-reply to me was a helpful suggestion. And from there, she’s been a consistent source of assistance and thoughtfulness, which embodies what her company, Marketing Kinetics, is all about: Strategy, Action, Results.
@ALauderdale Bio: “Bio Triple major, M.A. candidate, songwriter and poet trying to bring change to the world. I also have this blog people seem to like.” His blog, First Wonder of the World provides a peek inside the complex mind of a guy who clearly got a lot going on.
@kemet He stepped to me once saying that network marketing doesn’t work. I stepped back to him with some mojo of my own. We’ve been cool ever since. Provocative, opinionated, calls-it-like-he-sees-it, Bill will educate you on how to have your money work for you on his blog and Internet radio show.
(If you’re not following me — @roadmapp — or just started to, please check out my Welcome Twitter Followers page for more info.)
Wishing You the Best,
Ben Mapp
@roadmapp
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Network Marketing Tip: Learn Prospecting on a Large Scale
Top earners in network marketing know how to prospect effectively on a large scale.
One-one-one or small-group prospecting makes sense as far as it goes. The chances of success, it is said, can be much better if you could talk to a person or do a presentation one-on-one.
True. But there are two main flaws to that approach:
1. Having a better chance of recruiting the person does not mean he/she will turn out to be a better network marketer.
2. It takes a long time to build the numbers needed to explode your business.
Network Marketing Tip: Master Copywriting and Maximize Your Results
The top earners in network marketing are masters of copywriting.
That may surprise some. So consider this: In other industries copywriters are very highly paid. Their work determines how goods and services are seen, how and what people think about them, and, ultimately, whether people buy them.
Same with network marketing. Your copywriting capabilities will go a long way to attracting prospects to you and determining your level of success.
This isn’t to suggest that you need to be the best copywriter in the world to produce great results, just that your time spent mastering copywriting skills is time very well spent.
