With the recent explosion of Twitter accounts, it's hard to know who to follow these days. But we all love a clever tweet. Who is "The Cleverest Twitterer"? Turns out, it's Howard Greenstein (@howardgr).
Howard was recently named the 2008 winner of the Old Saying Game. Part Balderdash, part New Yorker Caption Contest, the Old Saying Game sets out to answer the simple question: Who is "The Cleverest Twitterer"? Follow @OldSayingGame here
Here's how Old Saying Game (#OSG) works:
Every Wednesday at 5pm, #OSG tweets out the first half of an obscure old saying.
e.g. English Old Saying: "Milk the cow that…"
Anyone with a Twitter account can direct message back with their cleverest second half of the old saying.
e.g. English Old Saying: "Milk the cow that is closest to the Oreos."
The #OSG editors select the best five entries and post them on the #OSG blog at www.oldsayinggame.com along with the real old saying. Users can visit the blog to vote over the course of the week.
As an example, here's the December 30, 2008 game…
a. "Milk the cow that is the government bailout."
b. "Milk the cow that is closest to the Oreos."
c. "Milk the cow that stands still."
d. "Milk the cow that will give 100%, even if the end product is less than 2%."
e. "Milk the cow that gives chocolate milk."
f. "Milk the cow that has the least amount of hormones, antibiotics, and genetically modified supplements."
#OSG awards 100 points for a win, 50 for a second place finish, and 25 for third place.
#OSG started in mid-December 2008 and quickly gained over 1,500 followers on Facebook in its first two weeks. One of those followers is now the official "Cleverest Twitterer of 2008": Howard Greenstein.
Howard's Twitter profile reads "A man of mystery and power, whose power is exceeded only by his mystery." So who is Howard Greenstein really?
Howard is a Social Media Strategy Consultant and the owner of the Harbrooke Group (http://harbrooke.com) which helps a diverse group of clients communicate better with their customers using Social Media technologies like Twitter, Blogs and Social Networks. He's been a blogger (http://howardgreenstein.com/) since 1999 and on Twitter since November 2006.
Howard won the title of "Cleverest Twitterer of 2008" by scoring 675 points with four 1st place #OSG entries in 2008. Here are some of our favorites:
- Estonian Old Saying: "You cannot know a girl before she has friended you on Facebook."
- Kurdish Old Saying: "He who eats for two is probably one of those transgender pregnant men. "
- West African Old Saying: "Whenever a rat teases a cat there's probably an anti-cat-bullying group organizing a protest."
Says Howard: "I love the Old Saying Game because the concept is so simple - using Twitter to promote the game and to do the entries, and a very simple blog and voting widget. And yet it gets people playing and involved. To me, the #OSG shows some ingenuity and the kind of community building I admire."
Congrats to Howard Greenstein, the "Cleverest Twitterer of 2008."
To join #OSG, please follow @OldSayingGame and vote at www.oldsayinggame.com. If you want to receive a direct message every Wednesday with the new Old Saying for the week, follow @OSay.
For more details, please contact Old Saying Game at: oldsaying@gmail.com
