Anyone who has been on Twitter long enough I am sure is familiar with the trend Follow Friday which was started by Micah Baldwin.  However, after talking with people on Twitter, I’m noticing others feel the same the same way I do in regards to its popularity today.  I have felt it’s “WOW” factor has worn off compared to when it first started.

Jodi Crosby of SmartVAforU had these couple of things to say…

…I don’t think it is as popular. I do have a #FF list also which is how some people are doing #FF now.

…It might be that it get’s overused. I know I recommend a lot of people while others only recommend 1 person/week.

After thinking about these comments in made me think.  Is Follow Friday more of spam than actual content?  Twitter users like to recommend people to follow, but when they do that, they can actually be loosing followers because someone may feel they aren’t providing anything valuable.  So, where is the benefit there?  I am starting to believe that in the beginning when Follow Friday first started, people thought it was something neat and original.  It definitely was that, but as time goes by it’s being used less and less.  I’d like to know why this is.  Like I said, I think it’s because it no longer interests people anymore.  The fad is gone.  If you think about it, it’s like a fashion trend.  Certain styles last for a little while and something new comes along.

Don’t get me wrong, people still recommend people on Twitter, but it’s not a list or bulk of people. It may be one here and there and honestly, Friday is not the designated day anymore.  I see users doing it any day of the week now.  I did feel that Follow Friday was quite interesting in the beginning.  I could learn and connect with new people, but it wasn’t a personal connection.  I didn’t feel like I actually new the person or got to know them.  It was as if someone was introducing me to one of their friends and I would never talk to them again.  Follow Friday had that acquaintance feeling to it.  I always liked finding new Twitter users on my own and those that shared similar interests as I do.  That’s a quality relationship to develop and I think that’s a better way to be social in social media.

Think about this, how many times have you unfollowed someone because they had tweet after tweet of recommending people you should follow.  If that’s how they want to use their Twitter account, fine.  Although, I don’t think users are going to take kindly to it because they will feel like they are being broadcasted at.  People want to talk and engage, not just have someone “shouting” at them.  I think Follow Friday had good initiative in the beginning, but it hit its decline quickly when it finally came to pass.  I’ve check on Twitter’s website to see the trending topics for the day, but it’s not the leading number one topic on Friday’s.  That in itself shows a trend on it’s last leg.

What’s funny to me is we had Super Follow Sunday as well.  That was killed off real quick!  I think it was for the best too because it was just a copy cat of Follow Friday, but on a different day. It was unoriginal and dumb, but that’s my opinion.  They say all good things come to an end and I think Follow Friday is inching closer and closer.

This isn’t a knock on a really creative idea, but it had it’s days in the sun.  Now, I just see it as spam and I think many others are viewing it as that as well.  I don’t have a problem with recommending someone, but do it in a way that provides value to the reader.  It’s like selling a product.  You would write a blog post saying, “BUY ME, BUY ME, BUY ME.”  Telling people to follow people is pretty much the same concept.  You are selling them on a person and even though it doesn’t cost them anything, you are still trying to get something from them.  I also understand that the purpose of Follow Friday was a selfless act of referring someone, but still, in my eyes, you aren’t providing value as to why that person should be followed.

Do you feel the way I do?  Is Follow Friday going away?  Is a once popular trend providing spam as oppose to value.  I’d really like to get your opinions on this since many people use Twitter and this topic of Follow Friday is very familiar to many people.

Further reading:

10 Reasons Why Twitter Should Remove DM’s

What’s A Large Following On Twitter Worth?

Is There Really A Problem With Sponsored Tweets?

How To Increase Followers On Twitter?