Should You Send an Automated DM to New Twitter Followers?
ByThe hottest thing in Twitter seems to be sending automated DMs to new Twitter followers. A DM is a direct message sent via Twitter which can only be seen by the receiver and sender, not by the entire Twitterverse.
How do they do this? By using a service like TweetLater to automatically follow anyone who follows them. They then create a message that TweetLater sends to all new followers.
When people first started doing this, it was kind of cool. You’d start following someone and suddenly you’d get a DM thanking you for following. If you didn’t have a lot of followers, it was nice to actually have something in your DM box.
But after a while it began to lose its cool factor. After all, if Twitter is really about building relationships, how are you getting to know someone by having an automated reply? In fact, now that I’ve reached a critical mass of followers I’m getting so many DMs I’ve started to delete them without really paying attention.
And yet, there was one guy I started following who did this really well. His Twitter bio says he has a free gift to all new Twitter followers. After following him, he sent a DM containing a link to get a whole lot of free tools.
So, should we be sending the DMs?
I attended a Twitter workshop at Podcamp Toronto last weekend when this topic came up. It sparked a heated debate about automatic DMs. One woman was extremely vocal about the subject. In particular, she hated DMs that contain links: links to your blog, website, podcast, free download, whatever. She commented, “I don’t even know you yet. We don’t have a relationship and you’re already asking me to take some action?!?”
That particular comment struck home. I’ve been telling people that Twitter – and all social media – is about building relationships one person at a time. You shouldn’t do anything online that you wouldn’t do in person. Sending an automated DM with a link is like trying to sell at a networking meeting before you’ve even had a single conversation with someone.
And I’ve been guilty of it too.
And not only is it annoying, several people in the session stated they unfollow anyone who sends them one of these automated DMs.
As soon as the session was over I logged into TweetLater and cancelled the automatic DM. I’m still automatically following anyone who follows me. After all, how better to get to know someone than by reading what they have to say.
So how do you build relationships with people on Twitter without the automated DM? I’m sorry to say, you do it the old fashioned way. Sending messages one person at a time. Read people’s Tweets and send @replies or DMs that comment on what they wrote. Start an actual conversation. Once you’re talking, once you have a relationship, then you can send that link.
Andrea J. Stenberg
What’s your opinion about automated DMs in Twitter? Love ‘em, hate ‘em, didn’t know you could do them? Leave a comment and tell us what you think.
Just found your post after searching google for “automatic message to new twitter follower”
Glad I found your post. Good practical advice.
I have to say the auto DMs were very helpful to me last week – I was able to spot the local real estate agents and unfollow quickly! They all promote their urls through DMs.
I to did a google search and landed on your page. I had been one to use TweetLater but then gave it up after I saw all of the auto-DMs coming to me. I didn’t want to be one of “those” people!
I tend to take the time and either @ or DM my followers once a week, introducing myself and seeing what happens…
thanks for the great post!
Jeff and Paula,
Glad you enjoyed the post. I really think the automatic DMs have become the spam of Twitter and they are doing people more harm than good.
Let’s hope more people learn the lesson so we have fewer DMs in our Twitter account.
Andrea
Automated message on twitter and elsewhere are great: they let me know the person cares more about selling than me – this lets me reduce the number of people I follow or bother having a relationship with.
I send an auto DM to all new followers and put in a link and password available to my Twitter followers. I post new material there from time to time. I can’t follow everyone, every day but I can show my appreciation to those who follow and listen to me from time to time. I don’t like junk, like thanks or here is my blog etc… I don’t unfollow those who send them because they do. I think if you give me a gift after I follow you I did not know I would receive, that is great. I allow people to learn and change and sometimes I tell them what I did and did not like. I guess I disagree with most people here.
I’ve gone back to sending out automatic DMs with a free (non affiliate linked) gift about mastering twitter. Some have replied to say thank you! I get loads of spammy DMs, but so what? Some of the celebrities on Twitter like Stephen Fry get hundreds of replies each day (most quite banal or intrusive)- whether they’re being followed or not. I guess they just skim to something interesting. I think if people get worked about receiving automatic DMs they must lead very sheltered lives!
Dave,
How true! If the worst thing that happens is I get an automated DM then life’s good.
I do like a free gift – if it’s of value. I just feel that the “hi, thanks for following” DMs are pointless. I know they’re automated. In fact, the person sending them may not have even looked at my profile. They don’t do anything to start a conversation or build a relationship.
Andrea
After your follow (David365) my auto DM has just sent you a message and a link to the free book mentioned above. I’d be interested in you feedback as to whether you feel this is still “spammy” or useful. I’m no expert and there is conflicting advice – its hard to measure what is the best way. David
David,
Just downloaded your free e-book. I think it’s great.
Personally, I like getting referred to free resources that are useful. I’m not so keen on the generic “thanks for following”.
On the other hand, there were several people in the session on Twitter at Podcamp Toronto who were adamant that sending a link before you have any kind of relationship is pushy, rude and spam.
I guess when it comes to auto DMs, you need to make a decision and treat others how you want to be treated. If that turns some people off, so be it. I think it was Bill Cosby who said, “I don’t know the key to success but the key to failure is trying to please everyone.”
Andrea,
Yes, this does seem to be a hot topic. When I started with Twitter, I did an auto reply when someone followed, but it did NOT include a link. It was an upbeat thank you message.
I received many auto replies, but I NEVER clicked on a link. After all, I had just read the peep’s profile and perhaps clicked on the link on the profile. I found some pure spam, others insincere, and others very friendly and sincere.
As my numbers of followers/followees increased, I stopped my own autoreplies. The “cool factor” had definitely disappeared and I didn’t want to add to what seemed to have become a problem.
And now, I’ve stopped receiving autoreplies coming into my inbox from my new followers. Here’s a blog post I read that told me how, http://tinyurl.com/dmzhcg
To me, the important thing is to not get upset with others who make different choices from me. There’s room for us all.
I understand the issues but I am unable to respond in a timely fashion. I refust to be glued to a computer or cel phone 24hrs a day. I have a LIFE!
If the trends keep up the next phase of technology may be to turn us all into Star Trek type Borgs. That way we can eliminate all cumbersome interfaces and connect our brains straight to the network. What one person thinks we all will be aware of instantly. Boy wouldn’t that be nice! Of course I am kidding.
I do auto message… but with a question about what they like to do for fun, so that they know we have connected. Those who answer have demonstrated they are willing to share a conversation with me. I can instantly tell whether they read my post and personally continue the conversation.
I then personally reply with a response if possible related to the answers I have gotten. This gets conversation going and tells me more about the people who are following me.
I could care less about who unfollows me if they are not interested in what I have to say. Let them follow someone else. I prefer quality contacts rather than quantity and this is the best way for me to blend technology with my lifestyle.
Kenny
yes, the first time I got an automated DM from someone with a link to purchase something I was quite put off.
I want DMs to be real communication, otherwise I could just sign up for that person’s newsletter if I wanted a broadcast.
As always, the “how” is more important than the “what”! @David365, you seem to have the right approach – a polite, respectful DM thanking for the follow and offering something of value will be accepted by most – blatent self-promotion will alienate people…
_SH_
Andrea:
I ran across your article because I was thinking about sending out automatic DM’s. I’m fairly new to Twitter and obviously still learning.
I do agree that automatic DM’s can sometimes be annoying, however I’m thinking of sending out manual DM’s to new followers. It will require more work obviously, but I think it adds a nice personal touch and “breaks the ice”.
Anyway, I’m glad I found your article!
Thanks,
Barry
Very interesting! Thanks for the post
I had been sending out manual DM’s, but the process is very daunting. I was considering using automatics, but this and a few other google results I came across, made me think twice. I’m not selling anything, but did invite people to visit my cooking blog and promised to visit their site as well. Now that I have 125 unread “so and so in now following you on Twitter” messages sitting in my box, I don’t think I will be doing it anymore LOL Too much work! Something else I came across this morning (no it’s not my site, I just found it!) is http://twimailer.com I just signed up but it looks super cool. Instead of those generic following messages you get, it sends you an email saying who they are, how many followers they have, a link to their site, their last five tweets, etc. it’s a great tool. Looking forward to receiving those as clicking through to a person’s profile and going through all the steps is quite a task. Thanks again for the great post! And I had no idea there was such a thing as a Twitter workshop! 
Amanda,
Love that Twimailer site. I get individual emails of new followers but usually delete them because I already have too much in my in-box. What a great way to save time and get more information about new people.
Gotta love how social media lets you share ideas with new people.
Thanks
Andrea
I’m fairly new to Twitter, and have chosen to limit my following to people I resonate with, and with whom I may be able to have an ongoing relationship. I am not interested in automated messages, even though with my schedule it is tempting. The older I get, the more I want to relate, not merely acquaint (or annoy).
I too came across this post as I was looking to start using automatic DMs for all my tweeters followers. I am pretty new to tweeter and found it very cool when I received my first DM from someone I had just followed.
I tought it was a great way to promote your website or blog. I used to go on each email and try to click on the links. I found it very time consuming and exhausting. And the automatic DM kept pilling up in my inbox.
The more people I followed, the more automatic DMs I was receiving and found it very frustrating after a while.
I knew there was something wrong with the process but did not know what it was.
Reading this post has really helped me understand what I was finding odd.
But we all know social networking sites are a powerful marketing tool. Following everyone on Twitter manually is a real pain as you have to be on your computer 24/7.
Is there not another way to use Twitter to promote your website, products/services, blog, etc… without spending much time? Does anyone know of anything else?
Like many that have already commented, I found your site when searching for a tool to set up automatic DM’s. I manage the corporate twitter feed for my company and it was becoming time consuming to send messages each time someone followed us.
I’m still not convinced for a corporate twitter feed if the auto DM is such a bad idea. I haven’t put a link in it to something yet, but have been considering this. I guess it depends on what you are linking to – if it’s too spamish, then people will pick up on that pretty quickly and un-follow you.
The real thing about Twitter (and all social media) is there really is no shortcut. Social media is like in-person networking; you have to put in the time to get the results.
Automated DMs are not about building relationships – they’ve become SPAM. I barely glance at the DMs I get now, because I get so many and they truly are SPAM, not personal messages to me.
What does make me stand up and take notice is when someone takes the time to send an @reply (@andreastenberg). As far as I know, there’s no way to automate these so when I see an @reply, I know someone took the time to send a message specifically to me.
I pay attention and this is the start of the relationship. I start paying more attention to the regular Tweets of people who send me @replies.
So sorry folks, I stand by my post. Don’t send automated DMs because they just don’t work anymore – if they ever did.
Interesting discussion.
I have never used automatic replies. But I do look into who starts following me and quite often write them a message.
Since I have a specific topic I tweet about (travel) I assume the ones that starts following me have that interest.
If I don’t start by asking them questions that pop into my head when I view their page, I sometimes tells them about my youtube page where they can see films from all over the world.
In my point of view I only do this as a nice gesture, provide them with tips they might like. I don’t make any money on this and I haven’t gotten any bad reactions so far.
For me it’s more like a startup conversation between two people sharing the same interest.
I’ve never thought people might find that offensive.
Looking forward following the discussions.
The auto DM has been a pet peeve of mine for quite a while now. Personally, I rarely even check my DM’s anymore. Literally only 1-2 percent of the DM’s to me are personal questions or legitimate communications.
The rest……….
Well, here’s the breakdown of my DM’s:
* 2% Personal Inquires
* 28% “Thanks for following” DM’s (Non-SPAM but unnecessary)
* 70% “Thanks for following”, now here is my offer… (SPAM)
I use SPAM loosely though. After all, I did choose to follow them.
Just remember one thing if you still consider sending out a “thanks for following” message (no matter how friendly)…
Does it really matter? Do I want a “thanks for following” message that I have to delete so I can get to the important messages? NO!!!!
Hi
I used tweetlater, then canned it. I recently thought about using it again for the DM feature alone. I’m so glad I came across this first
OOch! Glad I found this. I am a new twitterer, and I caught on two days ago that the messages I was getting seemed autogenerated – Thought I might like to try that – and did a google to find out how to auto send a direct message to twitter new followers. Well – now I know I don’t want to! I am gonna sign up for that twimailer tho – that looks like a good resource.
You may want to consider trying to find a way to shorten the link that you send out when clicking the twitter share and enjoy link.
My point on this is that as a new user of twitter I find this very impersonal and as you said the whole idea of Twitter and social media is to reach out and to personalize your messages to your customers. Developing relationship will likely help your business succeed more than anything.
If you are really desperate and don’t have the time to respond to tweets, hire/outsource an assistant and provide them with guidelines to tweet and develop relationships. Just make sure that the guidelines that you provide your assistant are a reflection of your personality.
I have this query on twitter for corporate branding. a brand is expected to be followed, not follow. Is this expectation correct? How will a corporate get followers if it doesn’t follow anyone.
[...] Andrea J. Stenberg wrote a post entitled “Should You Send an Automated DM to New Twitter Followers?“. It’s clever and insightful, but more importantly, it affirmed that which I already [...]
If you decide to send automated DM’s to new followers, do it well. For a company it could be something like “Thank you for following @company. We’d like to encourage you to share your thoughts and experiences with us.” It’s a direct opening for dialogue, and that is what social media is all about.
For a good overview of do’s and don’ts, please refer to http://econsultancy.com/blog/4160-twitter-dm-autoresponders-15-tips-and-40+-examples
I found your website because I was searching for a way to change my automatic DM to new Twitter followers. After reading this post, I am now going to get rid of it because like so many people said in the comments, all those DMs promoting things get really overwhelming, not to mention tiresome! Thanks for sharing your insights.
~Mary Lou