Sam’s Secret Santa Sleuthing Guide
Twitter Secret Santa is fun for all, in this post I talk about ways to get the best out of it for you and your recipient.
If you have somehow stumbled onto this post and are wondering what it is all about then, you really should check out my project page on Twitter Secret Santa or check out the official NZ Twitter Secret Santa site.
It is better to give
In my opinion, it is better to give than receive. If everyone thought this way then everyone would end up with awesome gifts. I have said this before and I will say it again:
If the only thing you have to worry about in life is what $10 gift you are going to get from a strange off the internet, than you should count yourself a lucky person.
There’s sleuthing and then there is sleuthing
How to get your “sleauth” on
Remember someone is stalking you while you are stalking your person
via GIPHY
First check out their Twitter profile
First stop, check out their Twitter profile and read what they have written about themselves. It might be quite clear to what they like and are into, or they may be an enigma wrapped in a mystery. Have no fear, it’s time to delve a bit deeper.
Click on any links they have, it may take you to a blog or a website they are passionate about.
Start looking at their timeline, they may have a few tweets or maybe a few thousand, grab a cup of tea, coffee or your preferred liquid of choice and get comfortable. Write down anything that might be helpful, maybe they mentioned a band, a song, something they blatantly want from Santa, whatever it is, note it down and keep checking the Twitter feed. The more information you get early on gives you more time sorting out the gift.
“But my person hardly tweets”
Some people are just like that, you are going to have to live with that chance and doesn’t mean you can’t still be a great gift giver.
“My person’s profile is private and doesn’t say anything”
People have all sorts of reasons to make their account private, see if @NZsecretsanta can ask them nicely if they can either:
- Unlock their account for a short period
- Or update their profile with more information
It’s time to Google
You may or may not have enough information to go ahead with your gift sorting. Either way Google may help you.
Enter in your person’s Twitter handle / Real name if they have that in their profile and see if it comes up in any search results. They might have been mentioned somewhere, which can give you more of an idea of what they are into. For example, if you google my name you will see that I have a fascination with giant pumpkins.
You may also come across a Facebook page, a blog (might be linked to in their Twitter profile) or something else. All important sources for gaining information.
It’s gift time
It is better to give than receive, so make sure it is awesome. Sure anyone can go out and get a box of chocolates or scorched almonds by why would you? WHY?
“But I can only spend $10″
Sure $10 is the general idea some people go over that and some people go under that amount. Do what you can afford.
Be creative, make something, write something, just do something that is different, something that makes your recipient go wow, they took the time to make this thing for me, what awesome people there are out there.
I got a gift just like that in 2013. It comes out every Christmas and it is a hand painted Christmas tree with pumpkins on it.
But…….
If you really don’t have a creative streak, really can’t be bothered or for whatever other reason you do have to go with a box of scorched almonds or chocolates the least you can do it write something nice in a card.
Be awesome, and make NZ Twitter Secreta Santa awesome.
