I just received the following Tweet from JCPenney…

Honestly, the first thing that struck out to me was the use of the word “Tweeps.” Now, I don’t know if I’m thinking about this too much, but is “tweeps” being used appropriately in this context? According to UrbanDictionary.com, Tweeps is defined as:

  1. Tweep (or The Tweep) is a nick-name given to Michael Grosheim by Twitter Followers and Facebook Friends. Michael is the owner of TheSocialTweep.com.
  2. A “tweep” is a Twitter user who is a rookie or a novice by virtue of their low number of tweets. It is also someone on the bottom of the Twitter hierarchy. The opposite of “tweep” is “twitterian.”…
  3. Twitter Creep
  4. A plaintive cry, usually on twitter: so a cross between tweet and weep.

I personally see the word “Tweeps” as a negative connotation. It is what got me to think in the first place about researching the overall lingo of “tweep.” To me, when I first read it, it gave me a negative feeling and reminded me of the words “twerp” and “creep” meshed together.

Also what’s up with “The Facebook”? Is the brand poking fun at itself by calling Facebook, “The Facebook” and putting it in quotations as if saying, “You know, that thing that everyone uses and you should be on it already but we’re saying it in a way as if it’s something we just learned about and started doing.” I don’t know, I just get an overall negative feeling from this tweet that to me does not help JCPenney’s brand.

When I put together a Tweet or status update for a client, it usually takes me 10-20 minutes to compose it. I take many factors into consideration such as the overall meaning of words like “Tweeps” and how it may come across not only to the general audience, but to those that may not be familiar with the latest Twitter lingo.