Tweeting on Twitter can be both fun and profitable (a new writing client found me there recently.)

But risks abound too.
And one of them semi-bit me on the a#$ci this morning.

Take a look at the screenshot from my samuraiwriter99 twitter profile and see if you can spot 2 howlers that have me more than blushing!

The timeline went like this:

I checked out my new Twitter followers and saw Rodney Edwards – a freelance journalist and radio presented from my home country, N.Ireland.

For some reason, my brain then recalled a headline I was working on for an Elance writing bid that involved the phrase “KING of email copywriting”.

And I’d spent 20 minutes before opening twitter trying to get my SkypeIn telephone number to work properly (it would ring ‘busy’ when I called to test) because I was expecting to hear from a possible writing client in Los Angeles.

Rodney – King – LA
Geddit?

I tweeted about Rodney without thinking, and out came the first tweet shown above – “Norn Iron’s Rodney King”

Yikes!!!!!!!!!!!!

So I tweeted again using the correct family name and attempted to somewhat humble myself with the “What a twit” comment. (That’s what comes with living in Japan for 15 years.)

And crikey… I see another howler!

“What a twit” looks like a sardonic dig at Rodney and his ace freelance journalist site. (btw – It really is a great design!)

When I actually meant that dumb ‘ole me was the real twit… but it didn’t come out that way on the screen…

‘Course this one’s just a storm in a teacup – I wasn’t slagging Rodney off at all and my mistaken naming was just an innocent slip.

I’m using this example to make a point. Which is – that the immediacy of social media tools like twitter should be respected. If you’re in business then stay mindful and respectful of other people and what they’re about.

Now, if Rodney were a mean so-and-so, I guess he could go produce some exclusive scoop on how:
“Belfast Born Twit Now Cyber Stalking Local Journalist From Tokyo Capsule Hotel”

Nah! He wouldn’t do that.. would he?

- Mark ‘samuraiwriter99‘ McClure

PS – If you work as an employee, be even more careful about the legal implications of tweeting. See #1 on the top 10 reasons why your company should not tweet. (A timely blog post by B.L. Ochman.)

Mark McClure is a freelance b2b writer, specializing in white papers and case studies for the computer networking industry. About Mark