SAN FRANCISCO ― Twitter Blue is Elon Musk’s flagship initiative for the new version of his social network. However, Twitter’s fee-based subscription is getting a warm welcome from brands. According to a study, a majority of them aren’t interesting in paying a single cent for a verified account.
To get verified status, you have to pay. But brands aren’t a fan of the concept. Capterra’s survey of 300 US marketing and advertising professionals found that 53 per cent of them are unlikely to pay the $8 monthly subscription fee to get a verified account on Twitter.
Fifty-one per cent of those surveyed acknowledged that account verification is “very important.” Three out of five merchants even felt that losing their Twitter certification badge could have a significant impact on their advertising and social media goals, AFP reported.
Brands would rather put their money towards better promotion of their content (58 per cent), better targeting of users (56 per cent) and better security (43 per cent) rather than verification (41 per cent).
With the rise of trolling commentary and misinformation, many brands are rethinking their need to be on Twitter. While 23 per cent have already suspended ads on the platform, 36 per cent plan to do so.
Sixty-five per cent of advertisers on Twitter said ads on the platform are currently “risky” for their brand. Yet 60 per cent of respondents plan to increase their ad spend on Twitter in the next six months, and 61 per cent also plan to do the same on other online platforms. Only 21 per cent plan to decrease their budget.
While many online users predicted the death of Twitter, some brands are increasingly turning to Instagram (76 per cent), Facebook (75 per cent) and TikTok (60 per cent). This is followed by YouTube (57 per cent), LinkedIn (37 per cent), Reddit (29 per cent), Snapchat (27 per cent), Pinterest (23 per cent) and Twitch (20 per cent).
