People often ask me why I do not post a blog every day – or at least every other day. I mean, if you read all of the advice from the so-called “Social Media Experts” you MUST consistently blog a minimum of three or four times a week to “engage and keep” your audience. Well, I don’t buy that 100%. I only blog when I have something of value to say, something important, something…hopefully… or real interest to you my dear readers. Recently my good friend Derek Lewis sent me this note he wrote to all the reckless bloggers out there. I think he has it right, which is why you won’t see a lot of wasted space on this page… I simply refuse to waste your time!
Why I Don’t Follow/Tweet/Like You Anymore
Dear Person Whose Social Media I Used to Follow,
Who can forget that scene in Bambi where Thumper quotes his father’s sage advice: “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothin’ at all.”
I’m going to paraphrase that quote so you can understand why I don’t follow your social media anymore, nor read anything you write: “If you can’t share something great, don’t share nothin’ at all.”
You see, I “liked” you and “followed” you because you promised to help me. I expected to learn from you, to share the wealth of your knowledge and experience, and to use you as a resource as I pursued my goals. I’m sorry to say you greatly disappointed me.
For instance, I logged onto Twitter the other day and saw you posted—literally—eight tweets in a row, each linked to a different article. You did that for four days straight. Did you really read all those articles? Then I went on your blog and read your latest one. Did you put any thought into it—or did you just throw something together to meet your quota of a post a week?
Can’t you take the time to just tweet/like/share/email/write the crème de la crème instead of churning out link after link and post after post? It almost feels like…well, like spam, really. Maybe you’re just trying to game the SEO system. Maybe you’re just trying to cast as wide a marketing net as possible. But couldn’t you do that somewhere else, somewhere that doesn’t dump into my inbox/circle/list/newsfeed?
I’m afraid I no longer trust you. If you can’t take the time to give me your best, then I don’t want any of it. So, here are your tweets back. Here are all the times I’ve clicked “like.” Here’s my unsubscribe button.
If you ever decide to share unique, fresh, and valuable insights with the world, I’ll be here.
Until then,
Your Former Fan
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Derek Lewis, M.A., Certified Ghostwriter
Author of How Business Authors Work with Ghostwriters (available for the Kindle, NOOK, iPad, and Sony Reader)
Atlas Smirked – writing for inspired authors
derek@atlassmirked.com / 225.341.2425
Alexandre Dumas, author of The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo, was known for using an army of ghostwriters to finish his novels. Dumas once asked his son whether he had read his new book yet.
“No,” his son replied. “Have you?”