Twitter users can see what topics are the most popular for tweets at any given moment and often use the "hashtag" to find information.
Last week the Iranian elections and the launch of the new iPhone were among the biggest topics on Twitter.
Habitat attempted to capitalise on this by using tags such as #mousavi and #iphone so that more people would read offers such as "Join the database for free to win a £1000 gift card".
The retailer has since deleted the tweets, although some .
However, while the tweets may disappear, the company is already being held up as an example of how not to use social media.
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