Seven Reasons I Might Not Respond On Twitter

Twittequette is a delicate thing. One of the nice things about Twitter is being able to take part in conversations with a wide variety of people.

But not every conversational gambit gets a response. I recently posted this list of reasons why I might not respond to a tweet directed to me via a mention. A few people asked to see it memorialized, and I thought it might come in handy from time to time. So here are my "seven reasons why I might not respond to your tweet:"

1) I have nothing useful to add to your comment. This happens rather a lot.

2) I don't understand what your comment or question is trying to say. This also happens a lot. If I don't understand it the first time, experience suggests that asking for a clarification is not likely to help matters.

3) I generally don't respond to tweets that are just out to pick a fight, unless I know you personally and I have a significant stake in the issue at hand. And even then, usually not. Arguments on Twitter are exhausting and almost never productive, and life is short.

4) I generally don't respond to tweets that are purely political or partisan, because I don't find them productive.

5) Sometimes I just don't see them. Do you SEE how many tweets there are to read every day? Added to that, I have accidentally discovered through using different methods of viewing Twitter (TweetDeck, Web page, mobile phone) that sometimes stuff just doesn't show up.

6) 80 percent of my failures to respond should not be taken personally. The remaining 20 percent, you probably know who you are.

7) If you send me a link without explaining what it is, I am not only not going to click on it, I am not going to respond, and you run a serious risk of getting blocked and reported for spam.

Labels: Off-Topic

Posted by J.M. Berger | Permalink