Less than a month ago Twitter (with over 100 millionactive users) quietly rolled out their ad platform with around 20 sponsors, accepting payment through credit cards. AdAge states there are over 2,400 advertisers on Twitter: sales teams handling Fortune 250 accounts and the internal team with its focus on small and medium seized businesses, including major global brands and firms with a few employees.
“Our promoted products can help small and medium-sized businesses build their audience on Twitter and better engage with the people they want to reach. As with all of our advertising efforts, we’re starting small, testing carefully and making improvements as we learn what works. We will slowly roll this capability out to more advertisers in the coming weeks and months.” (Source: AdAge)
The platform resembles Facebook’s self-serving platform and Google AdWords, with the end objective to enable advertisers set up their campaigns, independently on having direct contact
with Twitter team.
As reported by Mashable:
“This is an important step in continuing to grow Twitter’s business,” said Twitter rep Matt Graves via email. “Our Promoted Products can help small and medium-sized businesses build their audience on Twitter and better engage with the people they want to reach. As with all of our advertising efforts, we’re starting small, testing carefully and making improvements on as we learn what works. We will slowly roll this capability out to more advertisers in the coming weeks and months.”
So, how profitable is Twitter when it comes to their global ad revenue?
eMarketer estimates that by 2013, 88% of Twitter’s revenue will come from US advertisers, and they could reach $400 millions by the end of the year.
“Since their debut in April 2010, Twitter’s Promoted Products have proven successful in the US,” said eMarketer principal analyst Debra Aho Williamson. “Marketers have shown solid engagement rates with Twitter advertising—in some cases better than those on Facebook—despite Twitter’s relatively smaller audience.”
How does the Twitter Ad Platform Work?
Sponsors use credit cards to pay for Promoted Tweets and Promoted Products campaigns and bid on the marketplace based on their allocated budget.
With Promoted Tweets, sponsors pay each time someone clicks on, replies to, favorites or retweets their Promoted Tweet.
When it comes to Promoted Products campaigns, advertisers pay when somebody followers their Twitter account.
Other features:
- Unlimited ad campaigns
- Keyword targeting by location (country and state) or group of users (e.g., brand’s followers)
There is no official information on the minimum bid pricing or campaign commitment.
What you think about the new Twitter Ad Platform?
Would you advertise your business or market products on Twitter?