A while ago I was a bit annoyed by brands that started to follow me on Twitter. I guess they noticed my name in someone else’s list and hit the follow button”that’s another one on the list.” On my personal blog I wrote a post about these brands and asked them to address me personally on twitter, and I would follow them back. One tweet saying “we noticed your post, you see?”, that was all I asked.

When I was writing that post I stumbled upon a fantastic wiki: How to have a great conversation. There are a few tips and tricks that are really useful when you are at a networking event for example. What is more interesting is that these tips and tricks for real life are helpful online as well. Behind every valuable account there is a person, interact with them as you would offline.

A few tips translated to social media:

• Listen! This is the most important part of any conversation. Pay attention to what is being said. If you listen well, the other person’s statements will suggest questions for you to ask. Allow the other person to do most of the talking. A part of listening is letting the other person know that you are listening.
• Ask questions, show interest in the person: Remember, there was a reason that you wanted to talk to them, so obviously there was something about them that you found interesting. Don’t exaggerate rather ask clarifying questions. Everyone loves having a chance to teach another willing and interested person about their hobby or subject of expertise. Especially bloggers.
• Forget yourself. Dale Carnegie once said, “It’s much easier to become interested in others than it is to convince them to be interested in you.” If you are too busy thinking about yourself, what you look like, or what the other person might be thinking, you will never be able to relax. Introduce yourself, comment , then forget yourself and focus on them instead.
• The best conversations come from gaining new understanding about the topic discussed or the person. Try to lead into personal stories and anecdotes. These give limitless conversation and are revealing about the character of a person.
• Be sincere! Compliments are great, but too much flattery is obvious and will reveal you as being insincere.