Having worked as a communications professional in and around Capitol Hill for the past seven years, I've learned that the best way to teach important decision-makers about a modern medium is not to get them personally using the platform -- but rather to show them the information they're missing by not being a participant. In Washington, information is the only currency that counts.
One medium used to pass around information which has likely been a hot topic on the D.C. holiday party circuit is Twitter, the real-time micro-blogging community which asks its users to answer one simple question in 140-characters or less: "What's Happening?"
While interest exists for Twitter, there is anything but an all out rush to embrace the medium. Indeed, some senior political consultants and business leaders still do not "get" Twitter. They don't understand how to use it or realize its strategic value.
To that end, this week I'm rolling out a new product, the Capitol Hill Tweet Watch Report, a free daily email of important Tweets from Capitol Hill. This daily digest gets rid of the clutter and highlights the most important tweets coming from Capitol Hill.
The purpose of this daily digest is to help shine a light on the important conversations happening in direct media all the time.
Twitter has become a news source in and of itself as lawmakers, reporters and other major players use it to send out important bits of information about what's happening in Washington. Twitter provides a nearly real-time feed during major events - including votes on policy items like the health care bill. It also provides unique insight and updates on the state of major pieces of legislation as well as official decisions by the administration - decisions which may have a direct impact on you and your business or organization.
The target audience for the Capitol Hill Tweet Watch Report is not necessarily those who are already a part of the online discussions but rather the folks who have not yet warmed up to or embraced the medium.
Our goal with regard to content is to identify the best nuggets regardless of political perspective - the must-see tweets of the day. When I worked on the Hill for Rep. Jack Kingston I used to compile and send along a similar email to help show folks what was happening in the blogosphere. My hope is that this will have a similar effect at helping push and pull communicators and decision-makers to a better understanding of the modern world and direct media.
The Capitol Hill Tweet Watch Report is still a work in progress. If you have any ideas or suggestions, or want to suggest a Tweet for that day, we'd be happy to hear them. Feel free to send an email to capitolhill@tweetwatchreport.com.