There seems to be some debate over the merits of scheduling tweets on Twitter. Some people find it disingenuous, others say it's a lifesaver for managing time.
On a recent Twitter chat, I had a brief conversation with someone who agreed with the former opinion. What he described was a person scheduling tweets that were comments about their day or opinions on topics. I had to agree, this sounded disingenuous. After all, tweets that share your experiences or opinions are assumed to be conversation starters. But if you aren't there when someone responds, it's kind of like leaving the lights on when no one's home. A fake out.
However, I fully admit to and advocate scheduling tweets that provide links to information. Not just for my own benefit as a time-management tool, but for the benefit of my followers. Scheduling tweets:
- keeps me from monopolizing the Twitter stream with back-to-back tweets
- allows me to establish a strong presence throughout the day by sharing one piece of information at a time
- allows me to gather the information and schedule it all at one sitting, freeing me up for other things including having conversations on social media
- allows me to reach different followers who are on at different times of the day
- helps ensure that I don't schedule more than one informational tweet per hour (the optimum ratio for getting retweeted, according to Dan Zarrella)
I use HootSuite to schedule my tweets. It also has other nifty little timesavers like a URL shortener and analytics so I can see which tweets got the most clicks. It also allows me to monitor lots of Twitter streams at once and I can use it to post status updates on and monitor other social media sites like Facebook and Linkedn.
Without an application like HootSuite, allowing me to manage my social media activities, I'm not sure I would even be on Twitter anymore. When you have so much information coming in, it's paramount that you avoid overload. And that goes for what you put out as well.
So that's where I stand on scheduling tweets. For posting links to information I think it's not only a great time-management tool, but it's also more considerate to your followers than flooding the Twitter stream with lots of tweets all at once.
For tweets that share your experiences or opinions, scheduling is not appropriate. It will only make you look like a poser - not a good reputation to establish.
Do you think scheduling tweets is a good or a bad idea? Why?
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Jenise Fryatt is Co-Owner and Marketing Director of Icon Presentations , audio visual for events located in the Palm Springs area of Southern California. Her blog, Sound 'n Sight , offers information on the events industry with an audio visual and social media bent. She is married with two teenagers (one now attends college in Canada) and has a background that includes print & broadcast journalism, PR, theater production and acting.
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Tags: #eventprofs, event planner, event planners, events, social media, Twitter
Jenise – Thanks for writing this post. I think you are exactly on target. There are plenty of ways to use scheduled tweets without losing the value of social media and the conversations that they start. I know that I don’t always have the time to sit and wait for responses on my tweets, but I always get to them and respond to the conversation soon after. Scheduling helps to spread out the content and keep our followers engaged in a way that they can handle. I love it and I love the way you have shared your viewpoint. I think it will be a great read for everyone!
I’m all for scheduling tweets, mainly because people are all in different time zones – and it gives you a different “reach”. Some people only log in once or twice a day, and if they happen to miss your posting, they will never see the information you are putting out there.
Also, I can’t always sit on twitter constantly, so the ability to schedule allows me to read/RT as I am able to – but still at a pace I am comfortable wtih.
I admit, if someone sends 20 tweets in a row and bombards my stream with information, it is easy to just scroll over the “chunk” of information. Thus, I try to avoid doing the same thing. It’s just not for me…
The exception to scheduling: I don’t schedule personal tweets/replies because it feels more genuine to communicate with real-time interaction. That’s just my two cents
Jenise, great topic for discussion. I tend to agree with you on all fronts. Informative tweets I have no issue being scheduled, but also agree that “conversation” tweets should be real-time. Informative tweets START a conversation, and then it’s important to spend time responding to those who comment, retweet, etc. in REAL TIME. A blend of both is completely acceptable in my eyes.
I guess that scheduled tweets are okay except for redundant ones. A couple of firms on twitter have these lame cartooned icons giving out the same tweets over and over. I can almost predict their tweet rotation!!!! I don’t want to see what automation has done to radio done to Twitter. I always thought that tweets should be fresh!
I agree completely with Jenise. Hootsuite is wonderful, and a great time-saver! I am able to reply to people’s responses to my tweets, @mentions, or RT’s with my Blackberry when I’m away from my computer. So even if it is a scheduled tweet, there is still a chance of interaction between my followers and I, because I’m always connected.
There’s no way that I’d be able to manage all of my different accounts, and be active in social media, yet still productive in my work for my company, without the ability to schedule tweets and updates in advance. It’s a time-saver and a lifesaver.
Thanks for this great post Liz and Jenise!
Hi Jenise and Liz
Again another invaluable post. Currently I do not use a scheduler for tweets but would imagine if I did I would be adopting your common sense approach to its use. Being in the UK I do get confused by the time zones especially when I know that you often work and party late.
I always know when my friends across the pond are on real time tweeting as there is that conversational engagement that you mentioned.
As with Nate I just hate the broadcast tweets that work in rotation. What is the point of that especially when you have a group of #eventprofs who really understand the whole #EIR thing – wonder where that came from Jenise!!
Thanks for weighing in on this, everyone! It’s great to hear the different opinions on this somewhat controversial Twitter topic.
Liz – Thank you for the comment and for the opportunity to guest on your wonderful blog again. You make a good point about getting back to people who @reply you in a timely manner. The sooner the better. I’m not always as good at that as I would like to be.
Joyce – The different time zones issue is one we should always keep in mind. It’s very likely that most of your followers will miss the 10 tweets that you posted between 9 and 10 am your time. Spreading them out does increase the odds that more of your tweets will be seen by more people.
Eric – Thanks so much for your input. After reading a blog post by Scott Stratten of Unmarketing, http://blogs.bnetau.com.au/aussierules/2010/06/27/the-seven-deadly-sins-of-twitter-btalk/ I realize how important those @reply tweets are and will definitely be diving more into conversations on Twitter.
Nate – Yes, scheduled tweets really have received a bad rap, due to some major abuses. It’s important to keep this in mind.
Ashani – Thanks for your input, again! Yes, I think the only alternative would be to hire someone to tweet for you, but that in itself could be disingenuous as the whole point of social media marketing is to offer a face and personality that can authoritatively speak for your brand and build one to one relationships. HootSuite is a MUCH better alternative.
Paul – I think you are one of the best examples of someone who knows how to use Twitter to start conversations and build relationships. Thanks so much for the #EIR shout out too. I always appreciate your input.
Great post Jenise! If a person #EIR’s, engages, informs, retweets, I don’t mind scheduled tweets. It’s when I see a one sided twitter stream on their profile when I will unfollow. I myself just started scheduling tweets on days that I know I am going to be really busy…but even if I were to get mentions from a prescheduled tweet, I am constantly checking my blackberry so I try to reply back from it. I think the key is to always read what you tweet.
Everyone has great input on the subject. Jenise, as you and I have talked about, a mix of real-time conversational tweets and informational posts helps one appear more human, rounded and authentic. So, in sum, I’d say use scheduled tweets to post helpful info when it’s appropriate for your target audience, then use @replies for the real-time conversation. Thanks for being a Twitter thought leader!
Lindsay – I always appreciate your input. Thanks! Yes, monitoring your mentions is extremely important. We need to get back to people, thanking them or responding to any questions as soon as possible. Going overboard on the automation will make you a “broadcaster”, someone who doesn’t get that the secret to social media marketing is building relationships. If we are always shouting and not responding or listening, then there is no relationship. As you say, Lindsay, rapport + trust = referrals. A great way to create that relationship is by making sure that you regularly engage in conversation, inform w/ helpful links to articles and retweet other people’s posts. #EIR.
Heidi – Thanks so much for the comment. I admit that at first I hid behind a barrage of useful but impersonal informational link tweets. It wasn’t until I started to engage in conversations, however, that my social media connections really started to take off. Now I realize that even though scheduling useful link tweets helps you to establish a credible and strong presence on Twitter, those @reply tweets are really what make you human and accessible to your followers. I will continue to post informational links because I know a lot of my followers appreciate it. But I plan to start and contribute to many more online conversations.
What a great post and topic for discussion, Jenise! During a recent Twitter chat (may have been the same one you were at), I brought up FutureTweets as one of my favorite tools for scheduling tweets. What followed were a lot of questions from people who weren’t sure about the concept of scheduling tweets because they thought it was disingenuous. I specifically use tweet scheduling if I’m managing a Twitter account for a conference with a lot of sessions. I schedule tweets to go out 5-10 minutes before a session starts to serve as reminders. I may even schedule reminder tweets ahead of other goings-on at a conference, like book signings or Tweetups. Attendees who are following the conference on Twitter find these little reminders quite helpful, and scheduling helps me to focus on monitoring conversations, answering questions and talking with attendees.
So, that’s how and why I use tweet scheduling, and I totally agree with your point of view and suggestions. Thanks for clearing the air on such a controversial topic, Jenise!
Kari,
Yes, I think you were on the same #eventprofs chat that I reference in this blog post and I remember your comments. Thanks a lot for commenting and describing another very useful way to use tweet scheduling. What you describe sounds extremely helpful.