Thursday, June 4, 2009

Is it Tweet-Worthy?


Consider this a PSA to all the Twitter newbies (Tweetophytes?) out there trying to figure out what is and is not appropriate to tweet.


For chrissakes, nobody cares...
  • what song you're listening to.
  • that another driver cut you off. (You shouldn't be driving under the tweetfluence anyway!)
  • that the person next to you on the train smells.
  • that you're sick.
  • that you're feeling better.
  • that your Porsche is in the shop.
  • that you're happy it's Friday. (That makes all of us.)
  • that someone is about to go onstage at a panel. (Now, what they say on that panel is a different story!)
  • what you're eating.
  • about a picture of what you're eating.
  • about anything you have to say while you're on the toilet. (Thx @Jacqui_Cooper!)
  • the trials and tribulations of your relationships (hat tip to @KrisMcDermott)
  • how many reps you did at the gym or miles on the treadmill (another one from Kris)
  • that someone else tweeted about you. (In other words, don't retweet a tweet just because you're mentioned in it!)
  • that your plane is delayed... again.
  • what you think of the American Idol voting results.
  • who you think we should follow. (#FollowFriday)

However, we do what to know...

  • what decision you're trying to make? (Maybe we can help!)
  • what funny line you just overheard.
  • what restaurant you really recommend.
  • how good that movie was.
  • where you'll be hanging out tonight. (Just in case we want to join you.)
  • about that awkward situation you just found yourself in.
  • where to find good deals on just about anything.
  • your top 10 lists.
  • where we can find pictures of odd things you encountered during your day. (Just make sure they're funny odd!)
  • what you think of the new Microsoft search engine. (You're enjoying my barrage of tweets about Bing, right @ErikEngman?)
  • what song the band just played at the concert.
  • that you just got arrested.
  • that you just posted something to your blog. (I know some people will argue with me here but I think promoting your blog posts are fair game. Twitter's the new RSS.)
  • what funny headline @TheOnion just ran. (So retweet away!)
  • what you think of the "I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here" voting results. (Just kidding.)
  • what you think is a #SignOfTheTimes.
So, do us all a favor and next time your ADD kicks in and Twitter is the only thing within reach, stop and ask yourself, "Is it Tweet-worthy?" Oh, and this goes for Facebook updates too, capiche?

Update: @duey23 makes a good point, "What you might NOT find worthy, some mom in Wyoming MIGHT."

And @RonKJeffries weighs in with "chained tweets" as being decidedly unworthy -- aka "RT @abx RT@zxc RT somebody." (If you're that many steps removed from the original tweet, you don't have the right to retweet it!)

Keep 'em coming gang and I'll keep updating this post!

Update 2: Indeed. RT @IanSohn
@AaronGoldman You forgot a classic "Sorry I haven't tweeted all day." Gosh, we were so worried.

Update 3: Here's another to add to the Do-Not-Tweet list -- anything about how much you hate your job or the project/task you're working on at the time. Not only should you be thankful you have a job but your boss or client might read it and you may find yourself soon without one!

Update 7/17: Wondering what the best practices are for corporate Twitter accounts? Just posted, "Is it Tweet-Worthy? Corporate Edition."

5 comments:

@brandmarketeters said...

I also think it should be more of a conversation and less of a one way post.

But, follow fridays has helped me to find some cool info so I disagree that no one wants to hear that. I also find it interesting when people right article and presume they are speaking for everyone. Might want to rethink that generalization.

Alissa Sheley said...

I like follow Fridays as long as it's not a big list of people. I'd prefer to see a single recommendation and why that person's good to follow.

What I really don't care for, is when people post the same Tweets over and over, trying to boost their update count. I un-follow those people fast!

@alissasheley

Aaron Goldman said...

Thanks for weighing in guys.

@brandmarketers - I know, I know. Who died and made me arbiter of all things Twitter? Suppose it should go without saying that these are my rules based on my personal pref's but there, I said it.

@alissasheley - I hear you re: Follow Friday. Listing one person and explaining why is certainly better than a list of 6 random tweeps.

Cheers!

Nicole Rivera said...

Thanks! Twitter is still evolving (at least from my perspective)and I like getting other people's perspective on Twitter etiquette. I only use Twitter for business, so I try and post relevent articles to my industry.
Anyway, thanks for the good info

Janie Watanabe said...

Though I am not interested in how many times someone changes their catbox, I do like using twitter to find people in my industry or who have the same interests as I do.

Hopefully people will use some of your tips so we can cut down on the noise.

I have long ago learned to disable the phone alerts so I am not buzzed every 20 seconds in the middle of the night.

Related Posts with Thumbnails