In response to your idea about there being an exception to the rule of whether or not it is acceptable to send automatic DMs, I think that is a personal thing. How, if you don’t know someone, can you know if they will resent you pushing something your way? Apparently you don’t mind receiving automated DMs from @leadtoday. If I was following him, I would mind. And, I’d probably unfollow him immediately upon receiving said automated DM.

I think more important than “being authentic” is simply being human. Let other people figure out if what you’ve got to say is interesting rather than trying to jam it down their throat. I personally think push marketing is the stupidest idea ever conceived. It pretty well assumes that your audience are a bunch of idiots who are easily persuaded and are incapable of making decisions for themselves.

I like Twitter because it allows people who don’t have the skills to set up their own blog, don’t like Facebook, etc. to get their ideas out to the world. Those ideas then become searchable for 3-4 months (however long Twitter keeps posts around these days). If someone wants to find someone with similar ideas or maybe a new way of looking at a shared problem, they are able to.

As a social media user, you should allow other people to pull from you, let them decide to view your content. Don’t try to ram your content down their necks.

Toyota figured out a long time ago that “pull” was a better manufacturing paradigm than “push”. I think people will soon see that the same applies to content.

Use automation to pull, not to push. Do automated keyword searches against Twitter to find potential clients. Don’t bother people who have no interest in your product or service. Instead find people who are looking for products or services similar to yours.

Is it better to answer a previously unanswered question or to offer your thoughts on a topic that has already been discussed to death? The world only needs so many people like @chrisbrogan. I haven’t read it yet, but I’m sure he offers some pretty solid advice on how to approach social media in Trust Agents. You might also do well to read World Wide Rave by @dmscott. Businesses deliver value in part by being different, not the same, as other businesses.

I fully believe in products and services that sell themselves. If you’ve been hired to push something, it is probably because it is crap, or because ten other companies are making exactly the same thing as the thing you are pushing.

Find your niche. Establish yourself as an expert. Post once or twice a day to let people know you are still alive. Then dedicate the rest of your time to answer incoming queries. Work on being responsive and not “pushy”. Do this and you’ll find the authenticity question takes care of itself.