Posts on X that get read. One point, under 250 characters.

A good business post on X makes one sharp point in 120 to 250 characters, well inside the platform's 280-character limit. It opens with the most surprising fact in your story and carries at most 1 hashtag. That's how to write a post on X that people stop to read. The sections below take each of those choices in turn, then the order to work in and the slips to watch for.

This is Corantr Media Desk's guidance for X (Twitter), written for small businesses, member organisations and the agencies that post on their behalf. It assumes the story already sits on your own site and you want a short post that sends readers to it.

How long should a post on X be?

The hard limit on X is 280 characters. The best length is shorter: 120 to 250 characters.

Treat 280 as a ceiling. You have to stay under it; you don't have to reach it. When a draft climbs towards the limit, look at what has crept in. It's often a second point, or background the reader can get from your site.

The rule in one line: make one sharp point in 280 characters or fewer, with everything included. Everything means the point itself, any link to the piece on your site and any hashtag. They all share the same space. There's no follow-up post to finish the thought.

Some quick arithmetic helps. A draft of 270 characters is allowed on X, but it's 20 characters over the top of the target range. Cutting 20 characters is usually one clause: a phrase of context, or an adjective that adds nothing. A draft of 90 characters is 30 short of the bottom of the range, and it probably hasn't said enough for a reader to act on. Aim to land between 120 and 250.

What should go first?

Lead with the most surprising fact in the story.

A common habit is to open with something else: the organisation's name, a greeting, or a line such as "We've been looking at the new rules for...". The opening words are the part a reader sees before deciding whether to stop. Spend them on context and the decision has already been made. Put the fact there instead.

This method works on any piece you've published.

1. Read the piece on your site that you want to share.
2. Ask which single fact a reader wouldn't expect. It's often a date, a figure, a deadline or a change that reverses what people assumed.
3. Write that fact as the opening words of the post, in plain language.
4. Add only what the reader needs to see why it matters to them.

Suppose a piece on your site explains a change that affects your members. The background takes three paragraphs; the surprising part is a single figure in the fourth. On X, that figure goes first. The background stays on your site, where the link takes anyone who wants it.

If you can't find a surprising fact, that's useful to know. It may mean the story isn't worth a post on X, or that the piece itself needs a sharper point before you share it.

How many hashtags, if any?

Use 0 to 1 hashtag per post. The recommended maximum is one.

None is a sound default. If the opening fact is strong, the post doesn't need a tag to explain it.

If you do add one, it has to earn its place. Its characters come out of the same 120 to 250 as everything else, so a long tag costs you words you could have spent on the point. Ask whether it helps a reader find the post or understand it. If it does neither, take it out.

The habit to drop is stacking several hashtags at the end of a post. It makes the post longer and harder to read, and it goes past the limit of one.

Should you add a link or write a thread?

Link to an article: for a business sharing its own news, that's the full piece on your site. The post on X is the short version; the article is where the detail lives.

On threads, the advice is simple: don't write one unless someone asks for it. A thread splits a single story across several posts, and it's better to make one sharp point in a single post. If your story seems to need a thread, it usually needs a tighter point and a link to the article.

Turning one of your stories into a post

It helps to work in a fixed order. Write the point first, as one plain sentence, before you think about characters. Then move the surprising fact to the front, add the link and decide on a hashtag. Count last. Counting early means trimming words from a sentence you're about to rewrite anyway.

When you count, count the whole thing. Put the finished post, link and tag included, into whatever you draft in, and check the total against the 120 to 250 range before anyone signs it off.

Then a person reads it and approves it. A post on X is short, so a wrong figure or a misleading opening has nowhere to hide. Whoever drafts it, someone should check it against the article, claim by claim, and decide whether it goes out. That person should also be the one who presses post.

For agencies managing several client sites, the same order applies to each account. The point, the fact and the voice change from client to client. The length, the hashtag limit and the single-post rule don't, which makes them easy to check across every account in the same way.

Common mistakes

Cutting the wrong words. When a draft is over 250 characters, it's tempting to trim the fact, because it's often the longest phrase. Trim the context instead. The fact is the reason the post exists.

Letting the link or the hashtag take the opening. A post that starts with a tag or a web address has spent its first words on something that isn't the story. Both belong after the fact.

Hedging. Keep the tone plain and confident. Phrases such as "this could potentially affect some businesses" or "might be worth a look" weaken a fact that's true. You don't need to apologise for posting or dress the fact up with adjectives. State it, say why it matters to your readers, and point to the article.

Posting a different claim from the article. Shortening a fact can change it. "Up to" becomes "all", or a date loses its year. Read the post against the piece it links to, and make sure a reader who clicks through finds the same fact in the same terms.

How long will this advice hold?

This is current good practice on X as of October 2026. It isn't permanent. Check it again from time to time. If the platform changes its limits or how posts are shown, the right length and format may change with it.

Some things won't change. A clear point, an honest fact and a link to the full story will still serve your readers. A person should still read every post and decide whether it goes out. Nothing should be posted by itself.

See how the Desk takes a story from your site to an approved post, step by step.