Thursday, September 16, 2010

We are never free of SPAM! An ugly example of Twitter spam.

I continue to have mixed emotions about Twitter.

Don't get me wrong - I like Twitter. I think it allows people... and business... to interact, share, learn and grow. Never before in our history have we been able to share thoughts and content so quickly to so many people. There is good in that on its own.

There are just too many examples of Twitter abuse which continue to taint my impression of its value slightly. Mostly, I see through the abuse and place blame on the Tweeter, not on Twitter. But my Twitter experience is still diminished slightly.

Case in point: this example of Twitter spam.

This is further proof that we are NEVER free of unwanted messages, no matter where we are.

This Tweeter follows NO ONE, has 568 Tweets (at time of writing), each about a topic they are hoping will catch someone's attention. The theory is, if the Tweet is interesting, someone will click on the link. Then they have you - they've directed your interest to their site, where they bombard you with whatever message (unwanted, at that) they choose to promote. Spam. What's more, they've included a random Twitter address. This increases the likelihood someone will notice the Tweet and click on the link (since those random addresses will show up in the "Mentions" section of that person's Home page). It's just another obtrusive tactic to insincerely get your attention.

They have no interest in engaging in a conversation, which is the purpose of Twitter (and other social sites). Their only interest is pushing a message out to you (surreptitiously) when you didn't really want it.

That's spam.

Shame on you, Trixa, and the others like you.

You're giving Twitter a bad name, which it does not deserve.

No comments: