Retweet or like? That is the question

Purpose Due to the size and importance of social media, user-generated content analysis is becoming a key factor for companies and brands across the world. By using Twitter messages’ content, the purpose of this paper is to identify which elements of the messages enable tweet diffusion and facilitate eWOM. Design/methodology/approach In total, 30,082 tweets collected from 10,120 Twitter users were classified based on four assorted brands. By comparing with multiple regression techniques high vs low purchase involvement and hedonic vs utilitarian products and using the theory of heuristic-systematic processing of information, the authors examine the causes of tweet diffusion. Findings The authors illustrate how the elements of a tweet (hashtags, mentions, links, sentiment or tweet length) influence its diffusion and popularity. Research limitations/implications This study validated the use of information processing theories in the social media field. The study showed a picture on how different Twitter elements influence eWOM and message diffusion under several purchase involvement situations. Practical implications The results of this study can help social media brand community managers of all types of companies on how to write their Twitter messages to obtain greater dissemination and popularity. Originality/value The study offers a unique deep brand analysis which helps brands and companies to understand their social media popularity in detail. Depending on product category, companies can achieve maximum social impact on Twitter by focusing on the interactivity items that will work best for their products or brands.