Whether  you're a veteran Twitter user or brand new to the platform, the goal of every tweet is still the same: engage your followers and encourage them to share your content with theirs. However, this is often easier said than done. While many factors contribute to the "re-tweet-ability" of your messages, the quality of the tweet should not be one of them. Use the following tips to optimize your tweets and make them as re-tweet-able as possible.

Keep it Short & Simple

Twitter lets you post up to 140 characters per message, but that doesn't mean you need to use them all. In fact, most experts recommend keeping tweets (including links) between 100-120 characters so that people can add a quick comment when they re-tweet your message to their followers. Tweets that are too long are also overlooked by users who only scan their Twitter feed.

While keeping tweets within the suggested character range can be challenging, it is most easily accomplished by sticking to one thought per message. If you find yourself using the words. "and" or "like" you might want to consider crafting two separate messages. Using shortcuts like ampersands (&) and numerals is also acceptable when attempting to trim down a tweet.

Less is More

If your brand or current promotion has an active #hashtag campaign, be sure to utilize it with all relevant messages. If not, using one or two hashtags per message makes your tweets more searchable, which increases the chances they'll be found by someone not currently following you. Using more than two hashtags per tweet is generally deemed as excessive and uses up valuable characters.

The same can also be said for @mentions. Mentioning one Twitter user per tweet insures that at least one person will read it and, hopefully, share it with their followers. However, you don't want to start mentioning random users for the sake of spreading your message - this may get you blocked for spamming. Mentions are most commonly used to address or reply to other users, brands, or credit the author of a link - be sure to use them correctly.

Always Include a Call-to-Action

As a general rule of thumb, you should try to include a link in every tweet. Whether it's embedded media or the URL of an article you're sharing, adding a link is a way to share useful content with your followers and position yourself as a reliable source of information. Tweets that include links are also three times more likely to be clicked on and shared.

Be Consistent

Lastly, there is a ton of varying information out there regarding how often you should tweet and at what time, but a recent study by social media scientist, Dan Zarella shows that you are more likely to achieve a higher click-through rate by only tweeting 1 - 4 times per hour, especially midweek and on weekends.

This may seem excessive, but the purpose is to keep your brand visible in your followers' news feeds at all times. Scheduling your tweets in advance through a third-party system, like Fission CMS' Social Tools, is an easy and time-efficient way to organize and execute your tweets without spending all day on Twitter.