After a show, when someone hands me a flier, it’s like they are saying ‘Here, you throw this away!’ - Mitch Hedberg

Two weeks in to my Twitter experiment I have made a lot of new friends, and have practically doubled the amount of people who have subscribed to my feed and my email list. But there is a lot of negativity around the approach I use. Without rehashing my last post, basically, what I do is add as many people as I can to my Twitter profile. They will possibly check out the website, and decide if they want to follow me back, add my RSS feed, or think I am worthless and move on.

Some people have called this fishing for traffic. Fair enough. I call it promotion in its most basic form.

One reason I like Twitter is because of the simplistic way in which you can quickly put yourself out there for people to see. I don’t hide anything, I explain who I am in detail in my About section. It is the closest thing to a flier as there is on the web. When using services like MySpace, you can really streamline your search for potential readers and fans. Twitter is just like handing someone a piece of paper with a name on it.

With Twitter, I am not invading anyone’s space. They will not receive a single note from me, nor will they receive a single tweet from me. I am adding their public page in hope they will check my website out. At the most, they will get an email saying Scott Sweeney is now following you on Twitter.

Example: If I go and follow everyone who is on ProBlogger’s Twitter profile (which I have), I might get a small percentage of people who think my information is worthwhile. Why does this sound familiar to me?

I remember now. I used to stand outside a sold out Jimmy Eat World show with a piece of paper and try to do the EXACT same thing to music fans. I would see 98 percent of the fliers I handed out in the trash, on the street, or folded up in to paper airplanes. I would do this 4 times a week, for years, in hope that I could convert just a few fans to listen to my music.

I do recall people making fun of me in passing, or in the distance. Maybe they would say under their breath that my band sucks. That would be the end of it. It is funny how the disguise of a computer icon makes people a little more trashy in the way they approach you when you are handed out a ‘virtual’ flier.

What seems to be upsetting certain members of the Twitter community is my Follower to Following ratio is skewed. This is, obviously, because I am adding every one I can. They feel this is an instant case of spam and decide that I should be added to Twitter spam lists and block lists. Which I take a little exception to because once again, I have not spammed anyone. I have never sent an unwanted email or message to someone. If someone decided to follow me and does not like what I talk about on Twitter, they can simply block me and move on. Why is the F:F ratio so important in that case?

I’ve had probably 20 new “friends” follow me in the last two weeks alone. Sure I’ll click on your friend link to see if I personally know you. If your followers/following ratio is hugely skewed as yours is, Scott, I immediately ignore you. You got lucky because I have insomnia (it’s 2am on the west coast) and wanted to see who does this sort of thing. - Dave on a comment from my original Twitter post.

If this was a concert, someone like Dave just refuses the flier, or takes it and trashes it. That part I didn’t mind. But because everyone (including myself to a degree) is hidden behind a computer, he felt compelled to come on to my website and speak his mind.After being slightly upset for a few minutes, I remembered the first rule of promotion. Don’t take promotion personal. I will gladly take 100 bad direct messages on Twitter for every one new person that says hello, or says ‘Hey Scott! I like what you are doing.’ I have found over 100 blogs and websites which are amazing, and I go to frequently through this approach on Twitter.

Am I missing something? Isn’t this what Twitter and blogging in general is about, sharing information? It shouldn’t matter how many people someone is following. What should matter is if that person who added you is worth YOU following back. That is not spam. That is promotion.

When I am in the mood for a laugh, I look back at my music career and listen to my old songs. I can hear the very obvious changes in my voice, but many people cannot. Here are links to three songs I have written at three different points in my career. Can you hear the difference?

Thank You For Dancing - 2001 [LINK]

Alone in A Corridor - 2005 [LINK]

On and On - 2008 [LINK]

Naturally, I feel that the last song is my strongest. 7 years of vocal progression have given my voice a more soulful delivery. Singing a song like On and On would have been impossible in 2001. How does this relate to what I am doing now in blogging?

Often times, people will jump right in to blogging before clearly identifying their voice. I know I did. The first mistake I made was not knowing exactly what I wanted to talk about. Initially, I started writing a column based blog. Then, like a lot of people, I became obsessed with the notion that I could easily make six figures blogging about how to make money blogging. The latter was extremely boring and tedious. My final progression has been to focus more on my experience, which is songwriting and music business, and how it can relate to blogging in general. This topic seems to be the easiest and most enjoyable for me to write about.

Although the progression only took about 8 months, I have landed at a place in which I feel happy and comfortable blogging on a regular basis. I also feel that what I contribute now is meaningful and worthwhile to someone, although obviously not everyone. I anticipate my blogging voice will continue to develop over time. Just as with singing, maybe in 5 years I will have a more soulful delivery.

If you are struggling with your voice, there are things you can try to help you figure out what is needed. Something I always did while writing a song was to ask myself what the song was about as a whole. Not specific lyrics or direct subject matter, but the broad overview of the song. When you figure out the broad subject matter, it becomes much easier to identify how to deliver the direct subject matter. Suppose you decide you want to create a make money blog. You can take the overall subject matter and strip it down to a way you feel comfortable delivering it. For example, maybe you want to focus specifically on affiliate programs. Once you streamline the overwhelming part of starting a blog, it is much easier to identify where you fit in and how to use your voice.

When I was struggling with a song, I would often shelve it for a fresh idea. If your current blog isn’t working the way you want it, try something new. If the original idea was good enough, you will find your way back to it with a fresh approach and attitude. I just finished a song that I wrote music to way back in 2004! Sometimes, an idea just needs to simmer for a while.

Writing a blog should be fun, but don’t be discouraged if at times it feels like work. This is part of the process of identifying what makes you tick as a blogger. When a blog feels like 100 percent work and 0 percent fun, that may be the time for you to look for a different part of your voice.

What challenges have you come across when establishing your voice?