Tweets That Shocked

Now that the dust has settled on Tom Daley’s announcement on Twitter and the apparent split opinion between shock, support and surprise for the use of social media for updates of this type of personal nature appear to have made a positive consensus, I thought that it might be quite apt to look over some of the historical Tweet shocks we have been subjected to.

For me, people in the public eye using Twitter to be controversial, make a statement or simply get more media coverage is now pretty much standard but I still recall some of the Tweets that caused a fuss (for varying reasons), a few of which are below.

Celebrity Tweets

It almost seems unfair to pick on iconic celebrities like Danny Devito but when he first turned to Twitter to share his inner thoughts and ramblings, his initial toe dip was less of a gentle ‘test the water temperature’ Tweet and more of a ‘Devito dive bomb’ into the pool.

The question has to be raised whether first time Twitter users require some form of tips and advice beforehand, but where would the fun be in that, eh?!

Danny’s opening gambit was:

Seems heart felt, concise and displaying his vulnerable side – not sure what all the fuss was about.

Bette Midler, expert Tweeter:

Some celebrities carry their grace and conversational skills through online mediums like true naturals and @BetteMidler is certainly one of them:

Tweets like this are great because they often lead to knee jerk replies and (in almost all instances) a mellow consensus of cease and desist of all Tweet interaction between accounts.

Football #tweetnightmares

If I had never heard of Twitter before and someone gave me a 10 second synopsis of what Twitter was and how you use it, I would probably have guessed that some of the biggest Tweet mishaps would be from football players.

Many of them tend to stem from the immediacy of Tweets and saying what you think rather than saying a more measured variation of your thoughts.

A couple of good examples are below:

Robbie Savage

I could have picked one from almost every game where he adds commentary on Twitter but a couple that stand out that are a little more repeatable:

Where footballers really come into their own on Twitter is with schoolboy humour (and I mean this as a genuinely positive critique as they have real talent in some instances) – Ferdinand, in the context of Robbie Savage’s career, once joked:

This type of light-hearted interaction is an often undervalued element of social media channels like Twitter which can become valuable assets when used correctly.

To balance out footballers Tweets, I should say some offer an inspiring insight into promoting learning and development of the self; Ex-Celtic player, Cillian Sheridan, offered this pro-language Tweet:

“Watching the #superbowl in Turkey with German commentary! Even Rosetta Stone would struggle.”

Even attempting the above should raise people’s perceptions of the average IQ of a footballer player, surely!

Political Tweets

Using Twitter updates for positive surprises can be great too. Many politicians use the power of the Tweet to engage instantly en mass. Arguably, no other political Tweets were as widely read and engaged with pre-2013 than @BarackObama when he famously tweeted a personal thank you message to everyone that had supported him:

If you take one thing away from this post, it should be that Twitter can be used for many messages outside of simply promoting a free guide or white paper. Some of the most remembered and engaged-with Tweets offer more than something for free; they offer a glimpse into the personal side of the Twitter user – something that has to be offered rather than bought.

In fear of sounding like one of Jerry Springer’s final thoughts, reflect on how you Tweet and who you are tweeting to. Do your Tweets express you or do they simply suggest a goal that you want to achieve?

via Business 2 Community http://www.business2community.com/twitter/tweets-shocked-0724272?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=tweets-shocked