If you’ve been using Twitter to build your business, you have likely received an automated Direct Message along the lines of “john user uses TrueTwit validation. To validate click here: truetwit.com/link”
If you click the link, you go to True Twit’s website which asks you to validate through a Captcha.
The nominal purpose of this is to verify that, as a Follower, you are a Human and not a bot.
The first question that comes to mind is, Who cares?
I’m guessing the reason you are on Twitter is to meet people, either for business or for social purposes and to participate in conversations.
So why would you care who Follows you?
If I follow you, you will become part of my stream. I will see posts that you create. But you will not see posts that I create unless you a) Follow me back or b) I reply to a tweet from your stream.
How are you harmed or put at risk by a bot following you?
Oh, and this from TrueTwit’s web site FAQ:
Help!! If someone doesn’t complete the validation request, they won’t be able to follow me!!
Nope. Not at all. TrueTwit doesn’t prevent you from following anyone, nor do we stop anyone from following you. If someone doesn’t complete the validation request, they can still follow you.
So, actually, they aren’t prevented from following you anyway.
So why the hassle?
If you are going to be a part of the ongoing cocktail party that is Twitter, whether for business, pleasure or both, why would you want to impede people from connecting with you?
And if you are the receiver of this validation request, what is the value to you fo following thorugh and validating?
Nothing.
At all.
Period.
Again from the FAQ:
If I validate once, am I good forever?
No. Each time you follow a TrueTwit user, you will receive a validation request, unless you yourself are a TrueTwit user, or that user is already following you.
If you decide to go through the annoying validation process once, it does you no good whatsoever.
So using True Twit doesn’t prevent anyone from following you.
It annoys the people who do try to follow you.
In the end, it looks to me like the only one benefiting from you using True Twit is, well, True Twit. They get you to advertise (dare I say spam) for them, in the guise of protecting yourself.
Kinda clever of them, no?
Look, Twitter is for schmoozing. Meeting people, chatting and making acquaintances. If you don’t want to participate in that, maybe it isn’t the right platform for you.
That’s cool, just don’t annoy the rest of us with TrueTwit spam.
Please. Don’t use it.
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