I was raised in the South. Sugar Land, Texas to be exact. I’m a good southern girl, with good southern manners – most of the time anyway. [Insert evil laugh here]
Where I come from, thank you’s and please are a given – just like yes sir and no ma’am. As I’ve gone through life, and gradually moved away from the slow-paced southern life I once knew, I’ve noticed that not everyone is well versed in manners.
No, I’m not making fun of the “yanks” I now live around, as several my southern counterparts had gaping holes where their manners should be.
Yes, I am saying that New Yorkers don’t really dwell on the thank you’s, please may I’s and yes ma’ams. Just an observation. It seems manners are just hard to come by these days no matter where you live.
Unless you’re on Twitter!
I’m amazed at the well-mannered folks I meet on Twitter. My personal Twitter feed, and that of B Squared, seems stuffed with “thank you!” at every turn. “Thank you for the RT; Thank you for the share; Thank you for reading – what did you think?”
Is it me, or has Twitter revived the Thank You and made manners cool again? I realize not everyone does this. But I still find myself amazed by Tweeps who have mass amounts of followers and STILL manage to say thank you for every mention, retweet and share.
That’s what it’s all about. That’s walking the walk. These are the people that “get” social media.
Robert Caruso [@fondalo], Kimberly Reynolds [@QRKim], DJ Thistle [@DJThistle], and Martha Giffen [@MarthaGiffen] are just a few examples of Tweeps doing it right.
Each of them has thousands, even tens of thousands, of Followers. Even so they find the time to pay attention, to say thank you, and to show appreciation for their Fans, Followers and friends. I find that impressive.
I, too, make it a point to say thank you each time I’m pinged. Now, I don’t have 10,000 Followers – but that doesn’t matter. I want the people who share my information – whether original or curated – to know that I appreciate them taking part in the “social” part of social media.
And I don’t care if one day I have a million Followers, I’m still going to take the time to give gratitude to each and every one of them … even if I have to hire a team of “thank you” givers.
So, what’s in a thank you?
A lot. More than you can ever imagine. In our cluttered streams and News Feeds it stands out. It says something. It’s the epitome of social.
And if you want to walk the walk and tout yourself as a social media professional, expert, ninja or guru, this is one big tool you need in your arsenal.
The best part? It’s free to use.
See you in the social sphere! And oh, by the way, THANK YOU for reading this post!
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23 Comments. Leave new
Well I am one of those Yanks..born in Iowa..and moved to the South. Go Iowa! 🙂 Anywhooo…..over the past year I have learned that being polite on Social Media is the way to go. I have learned a lot from you about trying my best to thank everyone for a follow, a retweet, a post comment, etc. I do feel bad when I can not thank everyone! So I agree with this post and strive for this everyday!
Laurie, I know we get busy and have a zillion plus one things to do. I just find it amazing when people like those listed above (and others, too) take the time to say THANK YOU. To me it means they care. Does that mean people who don’t say it don’t care? NO. But it’s going that extra step to show your peeps you appreciate them and I really admire that (and embrace it myself).
THANKS for the comment! 😉
Well said! I absolutely agree with you! A please and/or thank you can go a long way and you never know it may even brighten someone’s day up! I always make the kids I watch say it. I usually stand there until they do…extreme, maybe, but it gets the point across! You have definitely taught me the importance of it in the social sphere as well! THANK YOU Brooke!
You’re biased, Judes – but THANKS anyway! 😉
I agree Brooke! Pleases and Thank Yous are so very important. I teach my kids to use these words all the time and people notice because even kids don’t say it as much as they used to. I do notice when people Thank others online. I am glad that you have surrounded yourself with such wonderful people!
I’m glad your kids are well mannered kids, Jen! I definitely notice when little kids have manners – it makes them EXTRA cute. 🙂
I just notice thank you online a lot (mostly Twitter) and it really makes me smile/feel appreciated.
THANKS for your comment today!
Great reminder pointing on what I hope more people/professionals will do more of during 2013! I am happy to follow peeps and poops but the un-thankful ones more or less disappear from my attention after a while. You do not necessary need to say or write TY but at least ‘show’ the TY… Been living around in the world and to be frank, the people I found that show most appreciation are the ones having the least – guess it ‘says a few’… Keep reminding us Brooke, THANK YOU! / Takk så mye! ツ
Thank you, Eddie! I’m going to continue to say thank you and will try to bump it up and make it more personalized in 2013 so people REALLY know how much I appreciate them. 🙂
Brooke, you’ve got the art of “thank you” down – and trust me, it’s so refreshing!
The time it takes to acknowledge a share or retweet does not go unnoticed in the social media community! A word of thanks goes a long way, in my opinion – and can definitely help strengthen trust in the people who share your content.
Great points and a great post! And thank you for sharing it! 🙂
Jenn, THANK YOU! I agree, it takes time to stop what you’re doing and say thanks to those who interact with your brand (personally or professionally). I think it really shows that you care about your supporters/advocates. I know not everyone agrees, or has the time to do it, but it’s special to me…
Two small words that carry so much power, especially these days when time seems to spin away from us. Thank you for the reminder of how important those simple words are especially in the social sphere.
You’re most welcome, Nancy! Thank you for reading and adding your thoughts. 🙂
Delighted to read your thoughts on this topic! Thanks, it gives me hope! I thought these manners were becoming extinct.It made my day. ThanXXX!
You’re so very welcome, Rob! Thank YOU for reading and commenting. I hope we’ll see you here again soon. 🙂
Brooke this is definitely needed because there are a lot of new profiles on Twitter that either aren’t aware of proper social media etiquette, like saying “Thank You”, or just don’t use what they know. There are also too many automated profiles that eliminate the ability to show appreciation to their followers. This is really a great reminder and is an area I need to improve in. Thanks again!
Thanks for your reply, Shannon. I agree that it’s something certain tweeps could brush up on. Like I said, I know it must be especially hard to thank every single person who shares your stuff – especially when you have tens of thousands of Fans or Followers – but to me it really starts to build on trust and the online relationship you may have with that person. Maybe I’m focusing too much on the warm and fuzzies….but I think it’s important!
Nice post! Thanks for the mention! I have to say though, I find New Yorkers to be a pretty cool bunch. They usually have good manners, they just don’t want to hear all the chatter that we southerners are famous for! LOL Tweet on . . .
Thanks, Martha! It was only too easy to use you as a stellar example. 😉
[…] love Twitter. I mentioned in my last blog post that Twitter is brining back the “thank you.” That’s not to say I don’t get […]
I think the upsurge in “thank you” Tweets is great! That’s just not my inner Midwesterner talking… I think it’s a great karmic balance to all the trolls out there!
Carrie Keenan recently posted…City Walk-About: Boston
Absolutely agree, Carrie! And GIANT eye rolls to the trolls out there. Ick.
Lovely! Tweeps sure are polite folk, you’re right on that one! I wonder if it’s because it’s all so visible out there in the Twitterverse?
gotta tell ya that I’m a born and bred Bostonian Yankee and I my mum (not momma…that’s Southern talk) taught me wonderful manners! 🙂
Oh I think people everywhere use manners, IF they were taught how to do so, Kerry! There are plenty of “Yanks” that have great manners. But they also aren’t quite as heavy on them … at least not that I’ve seen.
You could be on to something about Twitter and thank you being more public. Even if that’s the case, I’m just glad it’s happening!! 🙂