Twitter: Editorial-free, moderation-free, bird-free

With the horrific attacks in Paris, the threat of terrorism suddenly entered the collective consciousness. The slogans «Charlie Hebdo» and «Je suis Charlie» were shared millions of times. The social media platform Twitter played the biggest role in this: 12 million mentions of the hashtag within 36 hours. News sites covered the story by commenting on the tweets.
 
Why Twitter? Because it’s shorter, faster, more up-to-date, and unfiltered than the rest. Twitter is the alternative «Tagesschau»: no editorial staff, no moderators, no restrictions, no ombudsman, no public service. Twitter is a public forum. Anyone can tweet anything from anywhere: opinions and reports, accompanied by images, videos, and links. For decades, a spot before the «Tagesschau» was the advertising slot «to be.» Chronically fully booked and expensive, it was reserved for a wealthy brand elite. An ad spot on Twitter isn’t cheaper overall. But it’s different. Quite different. In impact, form, creation, and execution. Twitter is well-suited for advertising, marketing, and communication. What follows is an overview featuring statements about Twitter, each limited to 140 characters. Tweets on paper, so to speak. The continuation can be found via the link provided at the end.
 
CREDO – Twitter is committed to the open exchange of information. Communicate freely and openly to build trust. CENSORSHIP – In the first half of 2014, 25 profiles and 224 tweets were deleted worldwide. Is that all? TWEET – Length: 140 characters. Ideally 120 or fewer. Tweets with embedded videos and images spread more effectively than those containing only links. RETWEET – With a single click, users can share tweets. 20 retweets mean the tweet appears on the feeds of 20 Twitter users. NOTIFICATIONS Users receive an email as soon as they are mentioned in tweets with @username. Users like being mentioned. @PROFILE – Only those who have a profile can take part in everyday life on Twitter. There are 270 million profiles, 400,000 of which are in Switzerland. BOTS – 10%: All Twitter profiles are bots. These are computer-run profiles. The risk of deception is also present on Twitter. HACKS Twitter profiles can be compromised. It's important to monitor your own profile regularly. Tools like Hootsuite can help. SHITSTORMS Flaming often breaks out on Twitter. Ms. Leuthard just got torn apart. Empathy helps. But so does thinking before you tweet. OPINION LEADERS – Recruiting influencers with a large following and high-quality content is the most important task when building the network. PR – Journalists, editors, bloggers, and celebrities: They have a particularly strong presence on Twitter. Twitter is the most important PR tool. 24/7 – Twitter users couldn't care less about office hours. Opportunities and risks lurk around the clock. Long live shift work. CAMPAIGNS – Twitter gives messages wings—provided they’re relevant, presented in a cool way, and the team is fully committed. HASHTAG – # Jesuischarlie is a hashtag. Anyone who mentions it in a tweet right now is automatically contributing to the coverage. NEWSJACKING – The lights go out at the Mercedes-sponsored stadium. Audi tweets live: “We’re sending you some LEDs.” 12,000 retweets! EVENTS Thanks to users tweeting live with hashtags, the event’s reach extends far beyond the event community. This offers brands opportunities for conversation. SECOND SCREEN – 95%: Discussions about TV shows take place on Twitter. TV and Twitter—a dream team. But the creatives are still lacking ideas. PROMOTED TWEETS are tweets that are paid to be promoted. Warning: Twitter users react strongly and vocally to irrelevant tweets. PROMOTED VIDEOS are sponsored tweets with videos. The service is currently in beta and is designed for second-screen campaigns. Example: #SelfieABC. Click here for the link. BUY BUTTON – In-Tweet sales are currently available in the U.S. as a beta feature. When it comes here, you should be ready. REPLIES Responding to tweets is a priority. Acknowledging compliments, answering questions, or calming heated tempers. Speed is important. FAVORITE It's a small token of appreciation. Users appreciate things like that. Favorites are added to the favorites list and can be viewed. DIRECT MESSAGES are those reservations that follow one another. And only they can see the content. TWITTER LISTS is a feature that allows you to create user groups. This is where the printed version of this post ends. Beat Hürlimann
 
You can find out more about Twitter on Storify via huerlimanncc.com.