Knowing when to tweet, what to tweet, if to tweet and how to tweet are all important decision points when actively engaging your brand on Twitter. Having guidelines and a plan is critical to be prepared for the possible moments when something, well…unexpected happens!

Keep in mind that while authenticity is important, that does not mean that you just blurt whatever first comes to your mind. If you are tweeting on behalf of a brand or you represent a brand your tweets must reflect that brand’s values, voice, personality and tone. Authenticity and being prepared are not mutually exclusive. They can work together. In fact, being prepared can support a more authentic voice. It does not mean having a script or canned sound bites. Defining how your brand expresses itself on Twitter and elsewhere in social media conversation is central to your efforts.

Pick a scenario, anything that someone might tweet in response to, search on that keyword and see how different brands respond to the same situation. You might be surprised.

Stay tuned for an up-coming iMedia article…”What Would You Tweet if…” you can also search #WWYTI for already tweeted scenarios or follow me @dzimmerman for scenarios you can respond to or just “think about”.