We here at the Blue Ridge Caucus are always on the alert for new trends. Here’s a possible one we sighted in Salem: A yard sign for Anthony Flaccavento, the Democratic challenger to Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Salem, features the “@” symbol.

Those who use social media sites will recognize it as a symbol used to designate a Twitter handle.

In this case the “@” has a double meaning, since it could also stand for the “A” in the candidate’s first name.

Is this the first time a candidate — at least around here — has incorporated a Twitter address into a yard sign?

The first candidate we remember using a web address in a sign was Republican Bob McDonnell for governor back in 2009. Perhaps there were others, but that’s the first one that comes up in our memory banks. But that was a more standard “www” address.

Will we see more of these?

Oddly, Flaccavento’s Twitter handle is not quite as straightforward as the sign might suggest — it’s twitter.com/afor9th — so maybe the “@” really is just an “A.”

Griffith’s, by contrast, is simply twitter.com/morgangriffith

As of Thursday night, Griffith had 744 followers, Flaccavento had 129.

By the way, our Twitter address is twitter.com/BlueRidgeCaucus and we’re at 465 and counting.