"Retweeting" is one of the silliest-sounding terms floating around Twitter. But don't be fooled, because it's also one of the most important.
Retweeting is simply the act of reposting somebody else's cool or insightful or helpful tweet and giving them credit. Retweets (or RTs) help important messages work their way around Twitter. They also suggest esteem: when you RT somebody else, you implicitly say, "I respect you and your message." Indeed, as we discuss in Chapter 2, being retweeted a lot can be a sign of influence on Twitter.
In addition, as we describe on the last page, when you use the @ symbol to refer to somebody else on Twitter—always part of a retweet—you automatically create a link to his account. Retweeting is thus part of the network system on Twitter, and it's not unlike bloggers' linking to another blog.
In Chapter 3, we give you a bevy of tips on retweeting clearly and classily.
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