How Long Does Twitter Suspension Last For?
Have you ever got up in the morning, looked at your phone as you are getting out of bed and seeing your Twitter account has been locked? You can't log in. They ask for your phone number. You enter it but they don't call? You wonder "what am I missing." "What tweets did I miss since I was last on Twitter?" "Why did I get a Twitter suspsension?" you may ask.
I remember my last tweet was about seeing the space station flying over. I was not threatening the president or anyone else. I'm not a bot, I tweet and retweet all the time about things I find my audience will like. I tweet with links, with photos and sometimes just quotes.
My last tweet below before the Twitter Suspension:
Watching it now!!! https://t.co/Wxbl7BUCPq
- Lisa 🐥🐦🐤 (@Lisapatb) June 12, 2017
Twitter Suspension from 2013
I landed in Twitter Jail four years ago back in 2013. I was stuck in Twitter Jail for 48 hours. There was no reason or rhythm to it. No explanation to be found. It was almost to the day this time in 2017 that my Twitter suspension happened again.
It can happen to the best of us as Ana Hoffman found out back then and again now too. Back then I was in a tizzy over it. Not this time. I knew better. Experience can be the best teacher.
What To Do If Your Twitter Account is Suspended
- Don't panic! Take a DEEP breath. Remember, it has happened to many of us before. Twitter does suspend accounts every day with their automated system.
- If your Twitter account gets suspended the first time be sure to use their (That's new now! You must have your phone number on your Twitter account. I highly recommend you do. It also helps keep your account secure.) The call me feature may work the first time as it did for me. After that you have to contact them through their Support. You may contact them at And then go to the fix a problem button from there.You can also file an appeal which I did this last time.
- Double check your URL's in your Twitter profile if you are using both your personal and blog profiles on Twitter. I had both set to the homepage. I changed my personal one to my about page just to be safe.
- Be sure you are not tweeting all the same stuff on any multiple Twitter accounts you may use.
- Follow the Twitter Rules. There are at least 30 rules. If you haven't reviewed them in a while, it's a great idea to read them again. They have added and changed many of their Twitter rules since 2013. They are all not in black and white, many have gray areas.
- Read the Best Practices for following and using Twitter. They do monitor if you follow or unfollow aggressively. (Defined as following hundreds at a time). Beware if you follow and/or unfollow often. Any automatic unfollowing is not acceptable. I wondered if I had gone over this number in my recent Twitter suspension.
- Check out their troubleshooting page for additional help and on how long does Twitter suspension last for you.
So What Can You Learn About Being Locked Out of Twitter? 
Don't Panic....
First, Don't Panic. I knew last time it was 48 hours of being suspended. My world would not end in those 48 hours without twitter. Being in Twitter Jail can give you more time elsewhere.
You Will Gain Free Time
The second thing I learned while being blocked by Twitter was that it gave me a lot more free time!
I went over to Flipboard and increase my following there. Flipboard is my second source of traffic referrals and is growing. It's quick and easy to use too.
You Can Grow Your Other Social Network Audiences
The third thing I learned was I was starting to gain a little traction over on LinkedIn after Ravi wrote his success on LinkedIn pulse so I started working on more posts for LinkedIn in the future. I went from 5 views to 50 so I want to continue along on there.
The fourth thing I learned was spending more time on Quora and I was better able to answer people's questions about being blocked from Twitter - sometimes to be an expert you have to make mistakes and learn from by them sharing with others.
Tweet With Multiple Accounts Carefully
The fifth thing I learned was I was pushing it with Twitter I was taking some of the rules to the max they say when you have two accounts not to keep tweeting the same stuff. I do variations but I've got to be more careful going forward so if you have two accounts beware.
So if you have multiple Twitter accounts be very careful not to tweet the same stuff. Mix it up!
Don't Just Tweet All Links
Twitter does not like Twitter accounts that only tweet out links. I began thinking, had I been doing that? I do tweet many links as I'm sharing others content and my own there. Most bloggers do tweet out mostly links. It's time to go to the 80/20 rule to be safe. 20% of the tweets should not contain a link to stay within the Twitter rules.
The Most Important Thing To Learn From This Twitter Suspension
Do NOT rely just on one social network. Remember, it's all rented space on those. Having your own self-hosted blog is the way to go with content. You can make your own rules and do what you what with your own property. Being on the social networks is like renting, you never know when the rent will go up or the place will close down.
So What Happened After Being Stuck in Twitter Jail for 48 Hours?
I got an email with an apology from Twitter. Yes, they really did apologize! No wonder I love the Twitter network. They apologized for having my Twitter account suspended for 48 hours.
Twitter actually apologized for having suspended my account!
Twitter actually apologized for having suspended my account! Click To Tweet
Twitter Spam Groups
Caught up in spam groups by mistake? So it was nothing done in error. Thank goodness for that. So it can happen to you too for no reason. Always remember never put all your social eggs in one social basket. You may lose one and need some others along the way.
Just How Long Does Twitter Suspension Last?
From my 2 experiences of a Twitter suspension it was 48 hours to the minute on each time. But if you are being spammy or are in a violation of their terms your Twitter suspension can last longer. You could be kicked off Twitter for good. So be careful about how and what you tweet and know the Twitter rules!
Thank you to everyone who emailed me, sent me private messages with screen shots to find out what happened to my Twitter account. It's so nice to know fellow bloggers and content marketers have your back in these situations!
My Twitter Conclusion On Why I Landed in Twitter Jail - I believe I may have unfollowed too many people as I was using Social Quant. I have since stopped using Social Quant though I do NOT blame them in anyway. They have great services. I may have pushed it a little by unfollowing a few on my own. I may have been tweeting some of the same links on both accounts so I'll be much more aware of that going forward.
According to Twitter I just got caught up in the bots like their email response indicated.
Has your Twitter account ever been suspended? If so I'd love to know how long did the twitter suspension last for you?Image of wire fence courtesy of artur84 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
This post has been updated 6/16/17 from 06/17/2013.
