10 Tips to Avoid Getting Banned on Twitter
..and how to make the most of Twitter
Twitter continues to grow dramatically in popularity, contrary to so many people’s expectations. Predictably over the past 24 months Twitter has suffered its fair share of spammers and hackers, and this has resulted in the Twitter admin team taking various steps to curb that development.
If anything, Twitter users in general are less inclined than most to suffer hackers or spammers. If you follow someone and show any inclination whatsoever to spam or otherwise take advantage of your networking relationship you will be hastily blocked. Just lately you run an increasing risk of getting banned completely by Twitter too.
A list of stuff you shouldn’t do and things you should know if you use Twitter (or any other social media site):
- Don’t use the auto DM feature: It may seem harmless to you but scores of Twitter users unfollow if they receive even one auto DM from you.
- No personal attacks. Twitter is generally a friendly, welcoming place. If you don’t like what someone is saying simply unfollow them and end of story. Personal attacks will not only cause a mass unfollowing, they could quite easily get you banned or blocked.
- If you block someone it will also negatively affect your twitter score, and if you are blocked by someone it will negatively affect your twitter score (such as on Twitter Grader).
- There are lots of programs that promise you 1000s of followers in days or even hours: don’t go for it. One of the finest features of Twitter is that it allows you to build a network one person at a time, with people who you can build mutually beneficial relationships with. I’m not talking about selling here: I’m talking about hints, tips, support and a whole lot more that make Twitter priceless to so many who work or play online. Also, if you show up as having gained 1000s of followers in a very short space of time you will likely be branded as a spammer as that’s typical spamming behavior. It may even affect the website you link to from your Twitter profile: not a pleasant thought if you’ve been nurturing it lovingly for years.
- Retweeting what someone else says helps them by boosting their Twitter score. It also encourages other people to retweet what you say: what goes around comes around on Twitter.
- Stealing what someone else says and passing it off as your own content, is unethical, sleazy, and it could get you unfollowed, blocked or banned. Don’t do it.
- Spreading viruses or malware via Twitter is a serious matter. It is actually cybercrime. If you do it you could be (again) unfollowed, blocked or banned, and you may also be opening yourself up to legal processes that could end in a prison term.
- It’s quite acceptable on Twitter to buzz your blogpost or anything else a few times over a couple of days, but if you bang it out every hour on the hour for a week you are asking for trouble. Don’t expect people to like something you wouldn’t like if it happened to you!
- Using an obscene or objectionable avatar or personal picture might seem cool, but it will turn people off and it may damage your online brand permanently (depending on what you do for a living of course).
- Finally, if you want to make the most of Twitter and avoid ticking other users off, use the many Twitter search tools to find people who are interested in similar things to you. It’s the best way of ensuring you have fun on Twitter and that you actually make the most of your time there.
