Twitter Is Testing Ads On Profile Pages

Twitter is starting to include Promoted Tweets, the company’s signature ad unit, on profile pages in a new advertising test on the platform. In other words, when visiting the page of another user, you may now see a targeted Twitter ad in that user’s stream.

Re/code has announced the news along with confirmation from a Twitter representative that the company is testing the new ad placement on its network. The new ads appear separated from other Tweets by a small bumper that creates a break in the stream, along with a label that reads “Suggested by Twitter.”

“We’re experimenting with this feature, as we do with all our ad features, in order to create great experiences for our users, advertisers and partners,” Twitter’s representative told Re/code.

Currently, Twitter is only testing the new ads for a small number of users. At this point, the targeted ads will only show up when a user is logged in, but it’s possible that this will change in the future to capitalize on people who visit Twitter but don’t actually have an account.

Importantly, at least for now, these ads will not be displayed on verified accounts, even though they are generally the profiles that attract the largest number of visitors who do not have their own Twitter accounts. Why would Twitter be making this choice?

As Re/code speculates, this is most likely to avoid having awkward ad placements. For example, Nike, which sponsors verified athletes such as LeBron James, isn’t going to want to see an Adidas Tweet in LeBron’s stream. Therefore, Twitter may be choosing to avoid the complications that would arise from managing those relationships.

How could auto dealers utilize this new ad type?

If Twitter decides to make its new ad type widespread, it will open up a new avenue for marketers. Although the new product is only in a testing phase, it’s likely that if it gets fully launched, the targeting will be focused on geographic screening and other key aspects of user information. For auto dealers, location is an essential part of effective targeting, so this ad type could prove to be a valuable way to target local users when they’re visiting other’s profile pages. However, the fact that the ads will not show up on verified pages is a major limitation, and it will be interesting to see if Twitter finds a way to change this in the future.

There has been a great deal of talk in the digital marketing industry about the need for Twitter to find ways to increase its revenue. At the same time, it’s important for the social media network to find effective ways to attract advertisers without alienating its users by including too many ads on its platform. It will be interesting to see if the company’s testing of its new ad type proves to be successful and becomes a widespread offering in the future.