If you’re an advertiser and you love Twitter now, get ready to fall in love with it even more. The microblogging site recently announced that they are rolling out new ads for their official mobile apps (iPhone and Android). This is a very wise move, considering that 55 percent of Twitter’s active users access the site using mobile devices.
This isn’t Twitter’s first mobile feature for advertisers though. In fact, according to their blog, “Promoted Trends and Promoted Tweets in search have been available on Twitter for iPhone, Twitter for Android and the mobile web (m.twitter.com) for some time,” while “Promoted Accounts and Promoted Tweets in the timeline have been available on mobile web for several months as well.”
With the new updates, Twitter will push Promoted Accounts beyond the mobile web and into the actual Twitter apps. This means that people who browse the site using the smartphone app will begin to see Promoted Tweets on top of their Twitter feeds from brands that they already follow. According to Twitter, this “will help ensure that people see important Tweets from the brands they care about.”
These tweets will appear like any other tweet, and users will see it only once. When it comes to Promoted Tweets in search, Twitter says that they “will only display Promoted Tweets in the timeline when they are relevant.” If a user encounters a tweet that isn’t relevant to them, they can get rid of it with single swipe. According to Marketing Land, the microblogging site disclosed that “there will be limits on the number of Promoted Tweets that a user will see each day.” This way, users can won’t be bombarded with ads and promotions while using their smartphones.
Promoted Accounts on the other hand will appear on the “Who to Follow” list that recommends accounts that users can follow.
What to Expect
At present, it looks like the new features are only coming to smart phones running on iOS and Android, and there’s no word yet on when they’ll be available on tablets and other mobile operating systems. However, as Marketing Land put it, “it’s logical to assume they’ll eventually make their way to the iPad as the fourth stage of Twitter’s ad expansion (which began on Twitter.com, then rolled out to the m.twitter.com mobile website and now includes the iPhone and Android devices).”
What You Can Do Now
If you’re not ready to jump into mobile just yet, and wish to dip your toes in Twitter’s advertising waters first, consider registering for Twitter’s self-serve ad platform. They teamed up with American Express to allow small businesses to try out their advertising solutions, which include Promoted Tweets that work at a cost-per-engagement method, as well as the Promoted Accounts product that works on a cost-per-follower product. Both products provide geo-level targeting allowing merchants to zero-in on local consumers.
If you’re an American Express merchant or card member, you could be eligible to get $100 in free Twitter advertising when you sign up. The platform isn’t expected to launch until late march, but businesses are encouraged to register right now.