As I am sure is the case with many consultants, I follow the tweets generated by my clients. Most colleges and universities seem to use Twitter to publicize events, highlight news stories, or direct attention to alumni or student accomplishments. It’s nice to stay in touch with what’s going on at the campuses though I don’t know how much these tweets advance the marketing agenda.

I was really excited to see this tweet from Tufts:

TuftsAdmissions RT @PamOmidyar: Pres. Bacow’s wise words! be an active citizen, as the founders of Tufts envisioned in 1852

First, a little decoding: TuftsAdmissions is a young officer in the Tufts admissions office. Pam Omidyar and her husband are co-founders of Ebay and active Tufts donors and alumni. Larry Bacow is the President of Tufts.

The reason I get so excited is because this tweet encapsulates a major theme of the brand strategy that was developed for Tufts four years ago. The plan was to promote active citizenship as a key element in the personality profile of Tufts and to reach back into history to give weight to the claim and build a sense of tradition.

Yes, the statement in this tweet is a marketing construct. It is the deliberate result of research into audience preferences and Tufts’ competitive position. Yet like all effective brand themes, there is a high quotient of truth here as well. The concept rolls off the tongue because it feels natural and true to the institution.

So here we are four years after the marketing work was done and the President, a leading donor, and the admissions staffer are all voicing the theme perfectly in less than 144 characters. How did this occur? First, in developing the brand strategy, there was a high level of investment at the top of the institution, from the board to the president to the deans of the colleges and the major administrative officers. Second, at the center of the effort was a gifted leader, Larry Bacow, who acknowledged the importance of market research and professional message crafting and who made it his mission to study and internalize the theme. Finally, there were a number of key administrators, including this young staffer in the admissions office, who studied the strategy document and made it their priority to advance the message. That’s the recipe for getting lasting value out of a brand strategy. And that’s one way to build a tweet that will advance your brand.