The TWEET Method

The TWEET Method: Think, Write, Edit, Eyeball, Tweet

Twitter forces us to apply a discipline to our writing that we should actually apply to everything we write professionally. Let’s call it The TWEET Method – Think, Write, Edit, Eyeball, Tweet.

Think.

What am I really trying to say? What is my core message? Someone just Tweeted me asking how I was today. How do I respond? Do I want to keep it light and talk about the weather? Do I want to convey my innermost feelings? Comment on my breakfast? My plans for the day? I can’t squeeze The Morning of Brad into 140 characters. Therefore, I have to do one of two things – be brief about a few ideas or go deep on one big idea.

Write.

I’ve decided to go deep on one idea. Now I write a first draft of my Tweet -

Heading out to drive into Chicago for a client meeting to discuss several content issues for a new blog for a product launch. What are you up to today?

Edit.

No surprise, I’ve written clumsily and too much. After a little editing, I boil it down to this.

Driving to Chicago – major content strategy session with client for they’re new blog. What’s new with you?

That seems to convey the gist of it, plus I added the concept of major, which I neglected to mention in my first draft. To top it off, I inserted an important keyword phrase, content strategy. And … 34 characters to spare.

Eyeball.

Being a stickler for grammar and boring stuff like that, I like to give my Tweets a once over before pulling the trigger. To my horror I notice I’ve written they’re instead of their, sure to make me look the buffoon and inspire the wrong kind of retweeting. I correct the error – another bullet dodged.

Tweet.

Now that I’ve followed my TWEET discipline I can fire off my message with confidence.

Does this system take too much time? I think not. Once a discipline becomes routine, reflexive, it saves time. When you’re reinventing the creative wheel with every Tweet … now that takes time.

Over to You

What are your Twitter composition secrets? How do you balance time and quality in your Tweets?