I really don't know how to react when people immediately ask me for my Skype ID without a proper introduction about themselves.

Is this normal? I wonder to myself.

   Stephen:

 Your remarks are a little unclear my friend. Nobody does anything  specifically as part of an effort to acquire followers; but you write about followers as though   somebody here does something specific  as a "point" which expresses an intention to acquire followers.

           Moreover,  you are faulting Italki members, not  on the specific indication that they have done something wrong. You indicate that they do not answer your requests, but that indicates nothing about yourself, as to how you ask, the times you seek for appointments, or anything at all about the member who might not have the availability  at all to talk with you.

   Certainly, it would be a courtesy if someone answered you,but you offered no information as to whether you are paying money for  lessons, which is the common custom here.

  I am myself one of the exceptions, because I have never charged a student  any money for English Practices. So really my friend,  it is not at all clear  where any fault lies.  If people have made a good impression  upon Italki members, such that members "follow" someone, that only shows that somebody  made a good impression upon students of language, that's all.  It does not serve as justification to criticize anyone.

People are idiots.

True, true. Some people have many hundreds of followers but have only written a few notebook entries and haven't corrected many entries themselves. In other words, they have a lot of followers and "friends" but haven't done anything on the website.

I have a lot of followers and friends because I usually just accept any requests as long as they write something in the message.

Getting the right skype mate for a 50/50 language exchange has more to do with building up trust and reaching agreements than with the number of followers your profile shows. Some people like to go about exchanging in a quite serious way (only appointed meetings, strict 50/50 timing, etc.) whereas others prefer a somehow looser approach (no formal commitment, just connecting when <em>they</em> are free and chatting with whoever is online for whatever the time). I guess both styles are ok as long as everybody agrees on 'the terms and conditions' of the deal they close. From my experience I can say that the more you tell about what you want and the more you know about what the other expects, the easier it is to decide whether you two are the perfect fit for each other or not. I can also say from experience (mine as well as that of those I have talked with) that finding the right people to exchange with is not as easy a task as it may seem in the beginning. Nevertheless, the experience of a good language exchange is really worth all the time and effort that the search might involve.

Good luck!