“Just got a WordPress site? Want more comments?
Posted: Tue May 27, 2025 4:51 am
The tweeps who follow and follow back are controlled by programs. The Ordinary Dutch with 28,000 fans. Who announce daily how far they are from the next milestone in the number of followers. Who send out automatically filled daily Twitter newspapers.
Use Twitter smarter
No, I'm talking about us
Because we ourselves, normal talkers and non-spammers, also send out quite a few ineffective tweets:
“New blog: Bit.ly/HiHaHo”
So we don't click on that. What do we click on?
Just to be clear: of course, not every tweet is meant for everyone. We get that. Every business or ideological list to data Twitterer has their own target audience. And tweets about sport fishing rarely get clicks from followers who like ballet. But what should a click-ready tweet contain in any case?
1. It should be clear what your tweet is about
A tweet like this:
“I didn't want to know: Bit.lyAbCdEf”
Leaves the reader so much to guess that he skips it. He doesn't have that much time. The writer may think that riddles make the reader curious. But every good riddle has a context. And too little context in a tweet leads to a kind of reverse analysis paralysis : the tweet gives the reader too little insight into what will be in the piece to which the tweet links. In short: no one clicks. It is very different if it says:
“Rutte: 'I had heard something about the fraud at SNS Real Estate. But I didn't want to know': Bit.lyAbCdEf”
2. Your target audience must understand that your tweet is intended for them
Logical, you think. But my target audience will understand that by themselves: after all, they see what the subject is? You would think so. But suppose you have a site for people who are taking their first steps in WordPress. If you tweet this:
“10 Awesome Comment Plugins for WordPress: ow.ly/QwErTy”
Are many beginners already so intimidated that they don’t even dare to click? Put yourself in their shoes. What was it like for you when you first started with WordPress? Sure, that was six years ago, you’ve grown into it by now. But we all started somewhere. And we’ve all been at our wits’ end. At some point. Dig into your memory and remember how on that cold weekend in 2007 you just couldn’t figure out how to create a link. Or where on earth to put the Google stats code. And imagine how it felt, as a child, to arrive in a country where you didn’t understand the language.
Drop the jargon. Write:
3. Your tweet should make your target audience very curious
Not a little bit. We are all too busy for that, online. But very. Very curious. And better yet: irrepressibly curious. So that we click, even when we don't have time. Even when we are about to leave the house. Even when the taxi meter is running - we really have to read this first.
How do you do that?
By writing tweets about topics that are close to your target group's heart. With remarkable content. And above all: tweets that indicate that an answer will be provided in the link. That's why a tweet with a question is often better than an answer. Compare this tweet:
“Today a conversation about entrepreneurs and fear
With this:
“What fears do you encounter when you want to profile yourself at a networking event? 3 smart solutions: wp.me/A1B2C3”
If your target audience consists of entrepreneurs who want to get rid of their networking anxiety, there is a good chance that they will click.
Good tweeting
Seems too simple to be true?
Just try it out. And oh yes, make sure that the piece you link to actually gives good answers. Nothing is worse than a promising tweet that ends in a piece full of open doors. So: we will never blindly retweet again. Agreed?
Use Twitter smarter
No, I'm talking about us
Because we ourselves, normal talkers and non-spammers, also send out quite a few ineffective tweets:
“New blog: Bit.ly/HiHaHo”
So we don't click on that. What do we click on?
Just to be clear: of course, not every tweet is meant for everyone. We get that. Every business or ideological list to data Twitterer has their own target audience. And tweets about sport fishing rarely get clicks from followers who like ballet. But what should a click-ready tweet contain in any case?
1. It should be clear what your tweet is about
A tweet like this:
“I didn't want to know: Bit.lyAbCdEf”
Leaves the reader so much to guess that he skips it. He doesn't have that much time. The writer may think that riddles make the reader curious. But every good riddle has a context. And too little context in a tweet leads to a kind of reverse analysis paralysis : the tweet gives the reader too little insight into what will be in the piece to which the tweet links. In short: no one clicks. It is very different if it says:
“Rutte: 'I had heard something about the fraud at SNS Real Estate. But I didn't want to know': Bit.lyAbCdEf”
2. Your target audience must understand that your tweet is intended for them
Logical, you think. But my target audience will understand that by themselves: after all, they see what the subject is? You would think so. But suppose you have a site for people who are taking their first steps in WordPress. If you tweet this:
“10 Awesome Comment Plugins for WordPress: ow.ly/QwErTy”
Are many beginners already so intimidated that they don’t even dare to click? Put yourself in their shoes. What was it like for you when you first started with WordPress? Sure, that was six years ago, you’ve grown into it by now. But we all started somewhere. And we’ve all been at our wits’ end. At some point. Dig into your memory and remember how on that cold weekend in 2007 you just couldn’t figure out how to create a link. Or where on earth to put the Google stats code. And imagine how it felt, as a child, to arrive in a country where you didn’t understand the language.
Drop the jargon. Write:
3. Your tweet should make your target audience very curious
Not a little bit. We are all too busy for that, online. But very. Very curious. And better yet: irrepressibly curious. So that we click, even when we don't have time. Even when we are about to leave the house. Even when the taxi meter is running - we really have to read this first.
How do you do that?
By writing tweets about topics that are close to your target group's heart. With remarkable content. And above all: tweets that indicate that an answer will be provided in the link. That's why a tweet with a question is often better than an answer. Compare this tweet:
“Today a conversation about entrepreneurs and fear
With this:
“What fears do you encounter when you want to profile yourself at a networking event? 3 smart solutions: wp.me/A1B2C3”
If your target audience consists of entrepreneurs who want to get rid of their networking anxiety, there is a good chance that they will click.
Good tweeting
Seems too simple to be true?
Just try it out. And oh yes, make sure that the piece you link to actually gives good answers. Nothing is worse than a promising tweet that ends in a piece full of open doors. So: we will never blindly retweet again. Agreed?