Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009
If I may be so brash:
When simply re-posting someone else’s tweet or adding a small comment, use RT. Example:
@shay_will says: “New blog post about kittens and cheeseburgers. http://frsk.me/f4″
I want my followers to see it, too, so I tweet:
“RT @shay_will New blog post about kittens and cheeseburgers. http://frsk.me/f4″
or
“Great burgers. RT @shay_will New blog post about kittens and cheeseburgers. http://frsk.me/f4″
When someone tweets a link that you want to re-tweet, but want to write your own message (and take theirs out), use via. Example:
@shay_will says: “London Freeze results posted. http://frsk.me/f4″
I’m psyched that Russ Henshaw won, but I want to give CREDIT to @shay_will for showing me the link, so I tweet:
“Nice work, Russ Henshaw. Sick tricks. blah blah blah. http://frsk.me/f4 (via @shay_will)”
Credit is the key there. “via” is just used to show where you found the link; give credit where it’s due.
You should NOT use “via” when simply retweeting. It’s confusing. Example:
@shay_will says: “I love sunsets in Laguna Beach.”
And I tweet:
“I love sunsets in Laguna Beach. (via @shay_will)”
It reads that I’m saying “I love Laguna Beach!” when really, @shay_will is saying it. So tweeting:
“RT @shay_will I love sunsets in Laguna Beach.”
makes it clear that @shay_will is talking, not me.