Promoted Tweets from companies like StarBuck’s and Best Buy are appearing in Twitter search results. And, even though I new they were coming — like most other tweets — I barely noticed their arrival.
Twitter search results are ALREADY SO CLUTTERED with random content, that an advertisement added to the top still seems innocuous to me. The only thing that seems to make Promoted Tweets stand out, is they’re often more interesting than typical results.
Twitter agrees: “There is one big difference between a Promoted Tweet and a regular Tweet. Promoted Tweets must meet a higher bar—they must resonate with users. That means if users don’t interact with a Promoted Tweet to allow us to know that the Promoted Tweet is resonating with them, such as replying to it, favoriting it, or Retweeting it, the Promoted Tweet will disappear.”
Promoted Tweets are REAL TWEETS given preferred placement.
After Promoted Tweets were announced, it surprised me that the greatest concern among Twitter users was a fear of SPAM. According to a recent study by Crimson Hexagon, 42% of Twitter users were concerned that Promoted Tweets would result in SPAM. That’s ironic! When I conduct a Twitter search on ‘Coffee’ the promoted tweet from Starbucks is the only interesting result. The rest? drivel. (“I’m drinking my coffee…”)
According to the Crimson Hexagon study, 27% of Twitter users think Promoted Tweets are a sensible business model and 31% are cautiously-intrigued. I’m mostly indifferent to promoted tweets. Why? Promoted Tweets only show up in the search stream, so users will rarely see them. Also, Promoted Tweets are clearly labeled as “promoted” (aka ‘paid for’) and they all begin as ordinary brand Tweets. Brands arre just paying to get their tweets in the top of you ever-flowing Twitter search results stream.
The real test for promoted Tweets will come in the not-to-distant future when they appear outside of search results. According to Twitter, the company plans “to allow Promoted Tweets to be shown by Twitter clients and other ecosystem partners and to expand beyond Twitter search, including displaying relevant Promoted Tweets in your timelines…”
Every post goofy tweet that says “I’m drinking my coffee” can be paired with a Starbucks promoted Tweet.
Onion’s Opinions
The Onion, a Madison native, provided these fresh perspectives on Promoted Tweets.
About Troy Janisch
Pingback: Tweets that mention Promoted Tweets: Attention or distraction? Brand interaction? #socialmedia #twitter #marketing -- Topsy.com