Twitter Marketing: PPC Tweets | The Digital Clicks Blog
Twitter recently introduced promoted PPC ads, which seem to have disgruntled certain users of the service. Promoted tweets have previously been restricted to keyword streams in Twitter search feeds. The new ads aren't restricted to search streams, but their visibility is limited to who is following the brand in question. Users will only see the ads if they have opted into updates from individual brands, and the ads function as other tweets. They show once and get pushed down the feed as others update. The only difference is the reassurance that users will see the tweet as it is inserted at the top of their feed. This form of promoted tweets will be welcomed by anyone in Internet marketing, who will now be able to ensure that their PPC or PPI ads are noticed where they may otherwise promote the same content repetitively for it to be seen by as many of their followers as possible. In some cases, Twitter advertising may become more subtle as a result of guaranteed visibility. Brands have been toeing the line between engaging fans with quality content and self-promotion for a long time, so it is difficult to imagine that promoted tweets will be seen as too much of an intrusion if users are already following a brand. The ads are effectively ‘opt-in’; if a user is following a certain brand, it generally means that they are interested in what it has to say. If this isn't the case, the ads can be removed by clicking on them. While there might be a possibility of brands exploiting the insertion of promotional tweets, if they are deemed too invasive, then they will be unfollowed. If anything, brands will be forced to optimise their Twitter marketing strategies to a greater degree. From an online marketing perspective, this type of promotion seems like it has the potential to benefit all sides. It ensures that followers hear the latest from the brands that they've followed, increases the visibility of marketers’ PPC ads, and provides Twitter with another form of sustainable revenue.