THINKing

How To Write Tweets That Get Noticed

Editor’s note: Today’s article is by David Murton, who has been helping companies build and maintain their online relationships with customers since 2006. He also is a professional writer and webmaster with a particular interest in the open source Drupal platform.

Tweets are about connection. People sign up for Twitter with purpose: They want to tell everyone who they are. And, they want to build an online relationship with people like them, who can respect them. Tweeters build their followers and who they follow in hopes of igniting that social connection.

The goal is to write the perfect tweet, a tweet that can reach everybody, can be retweeted again and again, a tweet that will expand the tweeter’s reputation. How can you possibly write a tweet like this? It’s simple when you consider and understand two important rules: readability and retweetability.

Readability

Obviously, you need to learn how to write and to be read well. Find your voice and go with it. Need help? There are plenty of writing schools online that teach the skills you seek. Twitterers will notice your superior writing instantly. Just take note, writing one or two great tweets isn’t enough, you have to be consistently excellent to keep your readers engaged.

Think of your Twitter page as your business page. How can you provide value? First, you need a headline (your link) that grabs reader attention, that entices them to click and read more. Next, you deliver with quality content. Don’t make your reader regret reading. Sell your tweet by appealing to the reader. Close the deal by giving them something they can bite into. Remember to always be honest.

Know this: it’s not all about you. You don’t tweet for the sheer joy of writing. You tweet because you want to be heard. Write to your readers, give them something they can relate to. Combine your personal life with your professional interests. Be open about who you are and your purpose. Most importantly, be open to the ideas of others. Don’t bore your followers by always talking about one thing – branch out, be a part of the conversation.

When people read your tweets, they judge your writing abilities. Poor writing can lead to no feedback and no followers. Only celebrities have the luxury of being grammatically inept. You must watch your grammar, have perfect spelling, use correct punctuation and contractions, and always start sentences with a capital letter.

Retweetability

Keep your tweets under 140 characters. Short tweets are more retweetable because they leave room for the retweeter’s name and possibly a comment. Leave about 25 free characters for this. Doing so will make it easier for your followers to share your tweet.

Provide a link. This could be a blog, news article, youtube video – anything that reiterates your point. You want to share worthwhile information through your links. Giving your readers some place to go, to learn more, helps to solidify your ideas or thoughts. Linking to a known source will enhance your own credibility. Remember to always give credit to the source.

Use your manners and thank people when they retweet your post. Ask politely when you want to be retweeted. Tweeters who are kind and gracious are likely to be noticed and retweeted. Conversely, being a contentious tweeter may get you some attention but won’t get you respect.

Stay connected and retweet others. Twitter is more dialogue than monologue. In order to be heard, you can’t just talk out loud, you have to talk to someone. When you do retweet another post, leave a comment and tell everyone why this tweet meant something to you. Shorten lengthy tweets in an intelligible way that doesn’t affect the original tweet.

Build your online appearance with you bio or URL. Spell out your full name so people know who you are and provide a link to your site if you have one. Write your bio in the first person and include only the finer points of your character and your purpose. Upload your picture right away because Twitterers like to see who you are. All of these things will give you credibility. Do them well and you will seem more human in this digital world of the web.

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