Hi. I'm Josh.

A spaceship in downtown Toronto? Only when U2 is in town. (by...

Wed, 13 Jul 2011 11:31:41 -0400

A spaceship in downtown Toronto? Only when U2 is in town. (by JoshMcConnell)

Waking Sleeping Beauty: a fantastic documentary that should be...

Sun, 10 Jul 2011 17:23:53 -0400

Waking Sleeping Beauty: a fantastic documentary that should be watched by all (by JoshMcConnell)

Watch the trailer on YouTube.

New water fountain on the backyard deck (by JoshMcConnell)

Sun, 10 Jul 2011 17:20:42 -0400

New water fountain on the backyard deck (by JoshMcConnell)

Good morning, Toronto (by JoshMcConnell)

Thu, 07 Jul 2011 10:12:55 -0400

Good morning, Toronto (by JoshMcConnell)

Watching the Facebook announcement live on our 50” via my...

Wed, 06 Jul 2011 13:26:06 -0400

Watching the Facebook announcement live on our 50” via my iPad. (by JoshMcConnell)

Trying to help my man Earthworm Jim take flight on his rocket...

Sat, 02 Jul 2011 16:28:34 -0400

Trying to help my man Earthworm Jim take flight on his rocket (by JoshMcConnell)

Graffiti alley in Toronto. No Rick Mercer to be seen. (by...

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 20:55:00 -0400

Graffiti alley in Toronto. No Rick Mercer to be seen. (by JoshMcConnell)

Click the picture to view on Flickr and see it larger (as well as two others).

Trading in Sims 3 for PilotWings (both on the 3DS) was a great...

Sun, 26 Jun 2011 12:15:44 -0400

Trading in Sims 3 for PilotWings (both on the 3DS) was a great decision. Love it. (by JoshMcConnell)

Nothing like a summer treat: the cone with the curl on top (by...

Thu, 23 Jun 2011 20:08:43 -0400

Nothing like a summer treat: the cone with the curl on top (by JoshMcConnell)

Loving Zelda for the Nintendo 3DS. Pure nostalgia with updated...

Mon, 20 Jun 2011 14:17:40 -0400

Loving Zelda for the Nintendo 3DS. Pure nostalgia with updated graphics. (by JoshMcConnell)

Happy Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D release day! (by...

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 13:45:07 -0400

Happy Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D release day! (by JoshMcConnell)

Fire alarm pulled at 10 Dundas St East. Again. (by...

Sun, 19 Jun 2011 11:17:26 -0400

Fire alarm pulled at 10 Dundas St East. Again. (by JoshMcConnell)

Yonge Street closed for NXNE (by JoshMcConnell)

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 21:24:30 -0400

Yonge Street closed for NXNE (by JoshMcConnell)

Yes, there are actually lots of trees in the concrete jungle...

Thu, 16 Jun 2011 15:48:32 -0400

Yes, there are actually lots of trees in the concrete jungle that is Toronto. Love it. (by JoshMcConnell)

Party in the square at Air Canada Centre tonight for game seven...

Wed, 15 Jun 2011 20:06:00 -0400

Party in the square at Air Canada Centre tonight for game seven of the NHL Finals. The place to be tonight in Toronto! (by JoshMcConnell)

Social Media Etiquette 101: Retweet Overkill

Mon, 13 Jun 2011 15:06:00 -0400

In a previous post, Social Media Etiquette 101: The Beauty of the Retweet, I discussed why it is imperative for social media users to give credit where credit is due. I discussed that this sort of interaction, and not stealing the credit, is what has caused social media to thrive in its early days. It brings together the community with a simple gesture of tipping your hat toward others.

The good news is I’ve actually seen a number of friends try to retweet (or “share” on Facebook) more since my last post. That’s fantastic and I applaud your efforts. The bad news is as I step back and evaluate, I’m starting to see another trend on Twitter in the aggregate: retweet overkill.

Despite what others will try to tell you, social media is all about building a relationship with other users. It’s not a one-way form of communication. If that’s all you are using it for, you might as well be in advertising. You need to start a conversation, reply to other people and have some fun with it. It’s not necessarily about numbers, such as the number of followers you have, which is why I personally choose to focus on quality and not quantity. It’s about having a strong follower base with a high level of interaction. I may not have a huge followers list compared to some, but I know the vast majority of the ones I do have trust me, click on links I post and interact with me. That’s more valuable to me than having a large follower base that is simply trying to gain followers for themselves.

So all of this being said, there are those who simply aren’t using Twitter effectively by ignoring completely what social media stands for. The best part of this fact is a lot of them are self-proclaimed “experts” in social media or a similar field (marketing, communications, etc). So what are these “experts” doing? Retweet overkill. I share this with you in hopes that you not repeat the same mistakes they are doing right now.

What is retweet overkill? It is relatively self-explanatory. If you click on their profile, their tweets are largely made up of retweets. Whether it is a straight tweet-for-tweet retweet or perhaps a retweet with a couple of words added for additional comment, their feed is filled to the rim of a form of retweet. The remaining tweets in the guilty party’s profile are typically comments that simply have no value-added. There may be a couple of comments on an in-the-moment TV show or sporting event that are similar to thousands of other users. For example: yes, I know Toronto Blue Jays’ Bautista just hit a homerun from the many others in my feed saying the same thing, including the Jays’ official feed. Chances are if someone in your feed wants a play-by-play of a sporting event, they’ll follow that team’s official account. By not contributing much originality to an in-the-moment event, such as with pictures or even witty commentary, there is once again no value added. Finally, the other possibility is that the few tweets that actually hold value in these profiles are lost in the constant stream of retweets.

Yes, retweeting is very important. I stressed that previously. But, at the same time, original content is vital to success in your social media presence. If the majority of your tweets are retweets, you will simply get lost in the shuffle since you aren’t creating original content. There is no value-added, therefore readers/followers will go elsewhere for content. It is as simple as that. It doesn’t matter if your original content chases after a niche market, because at least it is something to help you to build traction.

And don’t just keep sending followers to your own website to “read more.” Somehow create the interaction within the 140-character limit free of charge. Have some fun and show you aren’t just trying to gain something. By showing a no-strings-attached approach, you’ll be appreciated and respected more. Readers aren’t dumb, so they can tell when you are treating them as if they are.

If you are truly trying to gain a following or are professing yourself as an expert, sit back and re-evaluate the type of tweets you are sending out. Otherwise, the contradiction is obvious and your credibility won’t hold up in the long (or even short) run. We want to build up social media by clearing out the excess content with no value and by focusing on relationships. Help us make this form of media continue to thrive in the right direction.

Hanging out at Festival on Bloor. (by JoshMcConnell)

Sun, 12 Jun 2011 20:23:44 -0400

Hanging out at Festival on Bloor. (by JoshMcConnell)

I got a heart in my latte from Starbucks ;) (by JoshMcConnell)

Sat, 11 Jun 2011 15:10:58 -0400

I got a heart in my latte from Starbucks ;) (by JoshMcConnell)

Reading with a view (by JoshMcConnell)

Sat, 11 Jun 2011 11:34:15 -0400

Reading with a view (by JoshMcConnell)

Beautiful, sunny afternoon for a swim in the pool (by...

Mon, 06 Jun 2011 00:44:10 -0400

Beautiful, sunny afternoon for a swim in the pool (by JoshMcConnell)