The Do's and Dont's of Weather Twitter
Weather Twitter is a weird, magical place. It can also be tough to navigate. Because of that, here are a few Do’s and Don’ts of #wxtwitter.
#1 - Don’t: Tag a million people in your post
This is strategy used to encourage people to share your tweet. It doesn’t work and actually discourages sharing. If you really want a few people to see your picture, feel free to tag them but don’t go overboard!
#2 - Do: Post satellite imagery
There is never enough satellite imagery on Twitter. So please, please post the latest GOES loop or a stunning MODIS shot. Your followers are awaiting glorious imagery.
#3 - Don’t: Download and re-uploaded someone’s video
There’s a retweet button for a reason. If you’re looking for instant retweets and likes, this strategy actually works but not before you’re stripped of your dignity. Give a proper retweet and make the OG a happy Tweeter.
#4 - Don’t: Oversaturate everything
There are a few photographers who destroy the beauty of the atmosphere on daily basis by ramping up the saturation and contrast levels of every image. It’s terrible and makes me cry. Never go full saturate. In fact, never go half or partial saturate either.
#5 - Do: Respond with GIFs
Can’t think of something snarky to say? Use a GIF! They normally produce a few chuckles and convey the message better than a tweet. As they say, a GIF is worth a thousand tweets.
#6 - Don’t: Capitalize the first word in every tweet
WOW! I CAN’T BELIEVE PEOPLE STILL DO THIS. IT’S AMAZINGLY TERRIBLE! WHY ARE WE YELLING.
pls stop.
#7 - Do: Share your latest pet picture
It may be called weather Twitter but we’re all a bunch of softies. Nothing breaks up the misery of daily news and political rantings than your fluffy friend. Cat, dog, rabbit, chinchilla… whatever the animal, let us see them! Extra points for moose.
#8 - Don’t: Use automated watches and warnings
Nothing makes me happier than seeing six people clog the feed with the same exact warning with separate tweets for each county. /sarc
There is a case to be made for having automated tweets but for me it loses the authentic, personal feel that your Twitter should have. People (generally) use Twitter to follow a human not a robot.
#9 - Don’t: Share 200hr+ model output
Wait a second… the GFS shows a nasty blizzard, 360 hours out? No... You don’t say? That’s definitely gonna happen.
Clown snowfall maps sure are pretty but they’re worthless.
#10 - Do: Tag @weatherdak in all GOES GIFs.
Please and thank you.
