“Those who define the debate will determine the outcome.”

Frank Luntz, American political and communications consultant

In early April, days after the Mexican government decreed the health emergency derive from COVID-19 and thereby defined essential economic activities and restricted others, the United States Ambassador to Mexico, Christopher Landau, posted a tweet referring to the need to harmonize the productive chains (all the companies involved in the elaboration of a product) among the countries that make up the new NorthAmerican free trade agreement, the USMCA.

The message went viral in a matter of minutes (more than 11,000 Likes, 2,000 retweets, and 600 comments), was picked up by the media, and reached key audiences. It opened the debate in Mexico, which then served as pressure for the Mexican government to consider a few days later expanding its definition of essential activities.

“If it´s happening anywhere, it´s happening on Twitter”, so says the slogan of this microblogging system, and so it is. There are no social media more powerful than Twitter if what it is about is to be informed in real-time about a certain event or topic and to be a participant in it. Users react in seconds; for, against, or with indifference, as if it were a public square.

The public agenda is no longer only established by a politician or public figure through generating news in the mainstream media, now it is equally important to position a topic in Twitter trending topics.

Twitter has positive and negative characteristics that should be taken into account. One of the most effective aspects is the speed with which information can circulate and the knowledge about the public’s reactions to it. However, the universality, access to any user, even anonymously, can cause genuine movements to be annihilated and fake news to acquire relevance. While it is true, some users use Twitter to inform themselves and give their opinion respectfully and with support on public affairs, there is also a good part of them who only have the objective of killing the messenger … and the message.

Twitter is information, and although it sounds trite, it is power, if used properly. The key is how to use it.

On Twitter, authorities, legislators, non-governmental organizations, companies, business organizations, the media, and society in general converge, segmented into different key audiences. It is the social media that every organization with an interest in monitoring or participating in the construction of public policies related to its sector, should not lose sight of.

Used well, Twitter is fast, accurate, and direct. The interaction is horizontal, so it is much easier to connect with key audiences. But it requires opportunity, strategy, and planning. A focused and forceful message can go viral in a matter of minutes, reach specific users, generate trends, and influence the public agenda of the day. On the contrary, an unfortunate tweet, either because of its tone, content, or because it is posted at an inopportune moment, can generate controversy and even destroy the reputation of an organization and its representatives in just a few minutes.

These 5 tips will help you to manage better your organization’s Twitter account:

1.- Track the stakeholders of your organization. – What do they publish, who do they send the message to, who do they follow, who are their followers, and what are their interests. Define up to what type of interaction they could have with your organization in this social media. This will help you to create a key actors map and you can identify the “who is who”, their connections, and identify communication opportunities.

2.- Consider Twitter as a source of information. – Check the trending topics, public figures of the day, and what the mainstream media tweet (front pages, columns, and articles). On Twitter, you can also identify and follow key organizations and actors related to your sector. Keep a log, identify and evaluate the narratives of the stakeholders of your interest. Learn to listen to what is said about your organization or the sector to which it belongs. Identify relevant topics of interest and opinion currents. Not all topics that matter to you always become a trend, but it´s important to identify them and observe their evolution.

3.- Join the debate with strategy.- If you consider that your organization has something to say about a topic that is trending topic or you want to position a message in the public debate, prepare one or more messages that establish a position. Do it with opportunity. The key is that you first define the objective, who are the direct or indirect users and how far you want to go. Be brief, clear, direct, but above all, forceful.

Key audiences that are looking for information and keeping track of how the debate unfolds on different trending topics will identify you as an important actor. Remember that there is an infinity of topics that are part of the public agenda, which are not always a trending topic, but they do have a permanent presence on Twitter and are identified through the hashtags that were generated long ago and are still used.

No overreactions. It will not always be necessary to join the debate (even if it is directly or indirectly related to your organization) and actions such as blocking users or responding impulsively do not help at all.

4.- Listen, and where appropriate, attend.- It´s not always good to get into the fighting ring. Don´t confront positions that are contrary to those of your organization or even question or attack it. You would enter into a sterile debate. Instead, you can generate a balance in the information, a narrative through several independent messages and without specific users, which offer a broader context and support.

Threads are effective as long as the first message is compelling and forceful enough. Other key audiences that are part of the debate will have information to contrast the different positions.

5.- Don´t abuse Twitter.- Maintain a respectful relationship with your stakeholders. Don’t pressure or harass them by tagging and texting them for anything and everything. Certain public relations tactics remain effective, and correct, as they have always been carried out, such as sending a newsletter or press releases via email. For example, tagging a journalist to see your press release is not a good idea. Take advantage of Twitter for what it is: short messages that attract your stakeholders. A good introduction to your blog with its respective link or an infographic with an invitation to visit your website is ideal. If it is of interest to your stakeholders, they will come and find the information they require.