The Everyman Theatre is one of the best theaters in Baltimore. They make great art. They consistently sell out their shows. Everyman gets big props.

They also just climbed on board the Twitter wagon.

Now, I’ve got nothing but love for Everyman. And there’s nothing really wrong about how they’re using Twitter. They’ve set it up just like anyone else would. They’ve got a link on their homepage (next to the link for their Facebook page), they’ve got a decent list of followers already (although a fair number of those are fake tag-back followers, like WholeFoods, or BarackObama), and they’re usually posting in a personal, genuine way (although they’re still getting warmed up to the style of a good Tweet, which counsels against awkwardly retrofitting a marketing moment by painting it in the guise of a personal update, or giving in to the lure of generic filler).

All in all? A great company that’s smart enough to know Twitter is something worth investigating.

So why mention them? Because this is a good example of what I think Gavin Clabaugh means when he says:

From the nonprofit’s perspective, [...] despite the increasingly ubiquitous nature of technology, they’re never too sure that they’ve put it to the right use. It may not be true. They may be using it very well. But they’re never too sure that it really fits. [...] It doesn’t ever seem to be fully formed, fully realized.

— Gavin Clabaugh, CIO at the Charles Stuart Mott Foundation

Everyman has every reason to go whole hog on Twitter. They’re already the smaller, hipper alternative to the heavy monolith in town—who, by the way, is also on Twitter, but shows less evidence of understanding why they signed up, and isn’t confident enough in the value of Twitter to announce it on their homepage. Everyman already has the feel of being an accessible, personal organization woven from the people of this city. They’re pros, and they’re our pros. So Twitter is a perfect fit to Everyman. They’ve already shown they want to have a personal relationship to their city. Twitter is a way to do that.

And yet…it feels…tepid. Like they’re sure they don’t want to get left behind…but they’re not completely sure it’s a good fit.

Dear Everyman: Show some confidence! It’s a good fit!

You’ve stumbled on a chance to distinguish yourselves even more as the company that’s connected to Baltimore. Don’t pussyfoot around, man, go for it.

Do it simply—no over-worked slogans that come off as trying too hard to be cool—tone and savvy are everything here. You can’t afford to try to be cool, you have to actually be cool. Your audience can spot a marketing bullshitter from a hundred city blocks.

The key is that you don’t have to be a marketing bullshitter to let people know you really, genuinely care about having a relationship with them, in a small way, each day.

And the way you do that is by starting with an understanding of what the heck Twitter is, and what people might be trying to get out of it. (You’re not just jumping on the wagon because everyone else is, right? You actually have a specific underlying reason why you think that Twitter is a good idea, right?)

The consequence of achieving that understanding is it lets you know how to talk to the people who might care. It lets you know how simple you can go with this.

A Digression: How to Spot a Company that’s Uncomfortable with Technology

Look for an overcompensating explanation.

“Check out our new blog, where you’ll get to hear the inside scoop from Artsy Pants Theatre! You’ll get production updates, thoughts from the Artistic Director, and more!”

Reality check: anyone who might care about your blog already knows why they will. At best, explaining it is just patronizing. At worst, it’s a red flag that you don’t know why you’re doing it—if you feel the need to clarify the point, maybe it’s because the point isn’t very clear to you. You don’t spend time explaining your phone number, so why your blog or your Twitter account? If they don’t already understand phones, they’re not going to call you.

Anyway, back to Everyman

Okay, Everyman, so you’re committed to Twitter. You understand both the possibilities and constraints of a Twitter relationship. You know the etiquette, you know what makes a Twitter account worth following, you know it’s a two-way street, and you’re ready to use all this to lift the Everyman experience even further away from the “generic theater company” brand. Sweet.

Show me that commitment.

You’ve put it on your web site. That’s a good start.

Add it to your business cards.

Put it on every poster you make.

Create an insert for every program.

Make a 30-foot banner for your building.

You’re selling out shows. Every one of the people who walk in your door should see that banner. They should not be able to get to their seat without that thing landing right at eye level at some point on their journey.

You should, and you easily can, have way more than 82 followers.

Keep the campaign simple. You don’t need to explain anything. You’re making an offer to enter into a relationship. All you need to do is make that offer. Do it directly and in good faith. You can relate every piece of information I need with two words and an at sign. Simple. Focused. Easy. The people who get it will appreciate that you respect their intelligence. The people who don’t get it may well be curious enough to figure it out. And the people who don’t get it and don’t care? No harm, no foul.

Sure, you can use Twitter just like everyone else. But being just like everyone else doesn’t win you any points. You guys rock, but you can rock harder.

Photo Credit: Ange Soleil, who has specified that some rights are reserved.