Major advertising networks are recommending brands to be cautious on Twitter. According to media reports, both agencies and brands are concerned with Elon Musk’s actions and reactions. Musk recently acquired Twitter for $44 billion. Many global brands are pausing their advertising on the micro-blogging site because of the uncertainty at the company.
As per a Bloomberg report, Twitter plans to start cutting its workforce by half. 3,700 jobs are at risk. The company sent an email to its employees about the layoffs which has been circulating online. Musk also intends to introduce new plans on monetisation, which include charging for verification badges aka the blue tick, which can help differentiate real users from fake accounts. He is also considering bringing back the app’s discontinued short-video tool Vine. This comes at a time when consumption of short-video content on TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube is on a rise.
However, these moves are making brands and agencies nervous. Currently, marketers across the globe are concerned about how the new leadership will pan out for advertising on the platform. 90 percent of Twitter’s revenue comes from advertising. Musk recently told Twitter advertisers in a note that he aspires for the microblogging site to be the most respected advertising platform in the world.
Advertising giant Interpublic Group has recommended clients of IPG Mediabrands to suspend all paid advertising on Twitter for some time. The network has asked its clients to wait for more clarity on the social network’s plans for trust and safety.
The Wall Street Journal reported that companies like General Mills Inc., Oreo maker Mondelez International Inc. and Pfizer Inc., among others have temporarily paused advertising on Twitter.
The report further stated that Musk participated in a video call with WPP, the world’s largest ad company, and some of its clients such as Coca-Cola, Unilever, and Google, where he briefly presented his plans. He also mentioned rolling out an $8-a-month subscription program and how advertisers can benefit from it.
After that WPP chief executive officer, Mark Read said in a media report that the network’s clients will work as normal for now.
French ad network Publicis Groupe is also planning to host a call with Musk and the company’s key clients.
In an interview with Bloomberg TV, WPP Plc founder and S4 Capital Plc chairman Martin Sorrell, shared some candid views on the current state and challenges of online advertising business. S4’s clients are adopting a “wait-and-see” approach to the platform, Sorrell said.
“Clients don’t want conflict, they don’t want controversy,” said Martin Sorrell.
“It’s not clear yet from Elon Musk where he is” on moderation, Sorrell said. “The question is: how is that going to operate?” “Clients don’t want conflict, they don’t want controversy,” he added. “They want a stable environment, and what we’ve seen in the last week or so is too much inconsistency,” he said in a report.
While Indians use Twitter a lot, Indian marketers don’t pay to be on Twitter and that a brand can strike a deal to be on Twitter for an entire year for about Rs 8 lakh, whereas a top content creator for a post on Instagram charges lakhs of rupees.
In India, too, marketers are concerned about how the new leadership will pan out for advertising on the platform.
A Moneycontrol report indicated that advertisers say while Indians use Twitter a lot, Indian marketers don’t pay to be on Twitter and that a brand can strike a deal to be on Twitter for an entire year for about Rs 8 lakh, whereas a top content creator for a post on Instagram charges lakhs of rupees.
The average cost for a promoted ad on Twitter ranges between $0.25 and $2 whereas follower ads are about $2 to $4 per follow. Twitter is not a primary platform to advertise while platforms like Google, Meta and Snapchat have dominated the market with a larger user base in India.