Aims to boost revenues as it prepares for 2014 flotation
Twitter has developed a new app allowing advertisers to automate and manage their campaigns across the social networking site for the first time. The development follows in the footsteps of Facebook which introduced a similar app in 2010, with Twitter testing the water by signing up five initial partners that oversee social media advertising purchases for large multinationals.
Facebook notched up more than $3 billion in revenues the year after its app was launched, and Twitter – which claims 200 million active users – similarly hopes to boost revenues as it gears up for flotation early next year.
Research firm eMarketer estimates Twitter revenues will grow nearly 90 per cent this year to $545.2 million and reach more than $800 million in ad revenues worldwide by the time of its IPO.
Before the new platform, advertisers had to manage their Twitter campaigns manually with paid tweets dispersed in a user’s timeline, amid posts from people and companies they have chosen to “follow.”
Twitter insists, however, that in the short term users will not see more ads as a result of the new system but pricing might increase for advertisers as slots are auctioned off.
The new app automates the process of placing ads, giving advertisers more tools to target the right audience on both desktop PCs and on mobile devices.
It also lets ad buyers integrate Twitter campaigns with those on Facebook and LinkedIn, as well as search and display.
