Long before Twitter itself devised how to monetize its platform, enterprising third parties found their own ways. Firms like SponsoredTweets, Ad.ly, Assetize, Magpie, and 140 Proof assembled networks of celebrity, specialist, and ordinary-folks tweeters willing to incorporate sponsored messages into their Twitter stream. Or they inserted sponsored messages into the streams displayed on third-party Twitter clients like Tweetdeck, TweetUp, and Echofon.
Now, Twitter is entering the fray with its own Promoted Tweets service. In a blog post describing the move, Twitter pointed out that it had moved slowly and with such deliberation, that pundits like comedian Stephen Colbert were scoring laughs with lines like, "So, I assume that 'Biz' in 'Biz Stone' does not stand for 'Business Model.'"
Under the Promoted Tweets system, businesses will bid to promote their own tweets into conversations on particular topics. Say you’re promoting Kim Kardashian's line of cosmetics. You might create a tweet triggered by her name, her reality show or other relevant terms. Your tweet then appears atop Kim-related conversations (identified by the label "Promoted Tweet").
Twitter has devised a quality-scoring system similar to that of Google Adwords: If your promoted tweet is frequently clicked, re-tweeted, or favorited, it will remain highly listed for its key-terms. If not, it will sink into obscurity.
So the important thing here, as with any social media advertising, is to recognize that these environments were designed primarily to be social, personal and honest. They're just not designed for traditional advertising. Blatantly commercial messages served up as promoted tweets will surely backfire – turning off the receivers, and turning them against the platform. To be warmly received, and passed along to friends, family and business contacts, a promoted tweet will need all the ingredients of a winning “natural” tweet:
• Be hilarious, offbeat, fascinating, heartwarming, or remarkable, or
• Make a powerful offer (deep discount, cool contest, or giveaway), or
• Appeal to people’s instincts for social good or other strongly-held causes, or
• Fit a tangible need for specialized information (recipes, how-to, breaking news, events, top-ten lists)
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