it doesn’t matter if you’re a job seeker, career changer, career builder or aspiring entrepreneur — it’s important that you figure out your 2010 Social Media Strategy. So, if you’ve chosen Twitter as one of the social networking tools in your toolbox, read on for Three Tips to Create Your 140-Character Pitch.

Three (3) Tips to Create Your 140-Character Pitch for the Twitterverse.

1. Determine your target audience: Your message will be different depending on whether you’re aiming to reach potential employers (job seeker) vs. potential clients (business owner/entrepreneur) vs. potential “champions” or supporters (career builder/changer).

NOTE:**** There are many companion sites to Twitter that can help you to do research, and even gain more visibility. To find people to follow in your target industry or geography, consider a site such as wefollow. You can search this directory via “Top Cities” or “Top Tags” (keywords that are relevant to you/your industry). You can even find the “Top Twitter Users” (lots of celebrities), and decide if it would be relevant for you to follow any of them. For 9 more ideas on how to find people on Twitter, check out this Mashable article.

2. Consider your desired outcome: Your message will vary depending on the action you’re hoping the person will take. Will this pitch help you prove your expertise (perhaps via an article you’ve written), or will it highlight your accomplishments (perhaps via a link to one of your online profiles)?

NOTE:**** Remember, as with all networking platforms (live and online), Twitter is about sharing valuable, relevant information. Be sure to balance your “pitch” tweets with objective, non-promotional tweets that will provoke your followers to think. This helps you become to be seen as a helpful person who is interested in other people’s interests in addition to your own.

3. Craft and refine your primary message: Your initial message may not fit the 140-character limit right away. But, don’t let that stop you — it may help to do some brainstorming and free writing first to get your creative juices flowing.

Start with your target audience: What do you know/can you offer that they care about? What keyword or phrase will get their attention? What skills or accomplishments would generate their interest in you or your brand?

Then, return to the desired outcome: What action do you want them to take?

Once you have come up with your initial pitch, use the “Word Count” feature in MS Word to determine how long it is (including spaces), and begin editing to take out words that won’t diminish meaning. Also, you can use symbols for words like “and” to reduce space. If you are linking to an article or your online profile, shorten the URL link also to reduce space.

Want a sample 140-Character Pitch? Here is a pitch I’ve created: “Coach Colette helps team leaders define their 2010 vision and motivate members via helpful tools and seminars**: http://bit.ly/6fRJsF”

What do you think? Share your comments here on the blog or tweet me your pitch on Twitter for feedback: @Coach_Colette

Colette Ellis, Founder & Head Coach
InStep Consulting LLC
Creator – Competent Advantage Community**