Did you know that Twitter started in 2006 as an online SMS-based platform for sharing messages with groups of friends? Today, this social network is one of the most relied on for real-time news and information.
Twitter has more than 400 million users worldwide who share roughly 500 million tweets daily. This corresponds to 350,000 tweets per minute and 6,000 tweets every second. Because of its wide adoption, Twitter is a powerful platform for reaching and engaging with your target audience and advertising your business.
Getting Started With Twitter Advertising
If you are new to Twitter advertising, allow us to walk you through the steps to create a successful ad campaign. You will learn how Twitter ads work, the benefits of advertising on the platform, and the categories and features available on ads. Last but not least, we will answer nine frequently asked questions about Twitter advertising.
What Are Twitter Ads, and How Do They Work?
Twitter ads are promotion campaigns created and run on the Twitter platform. These ads appear in the form of tweets. They look similar to organic tweets, and you can interact with them in the same way as non-sponsored content. The only difference is they come with a “Promoted” label attached.
Twitter ads get displayed to users based on their account activity and profile information. For example, when users search for a specific term, Twitter shows them a related ad campaign. Twitter may also display ads based on a user’s location and interests. Thus, ads will always be relevant, covering topics users will most likely interact with.
Benefits of Twitter Advertising
You now have an idea of what Twitter ads are and how they work. Let’s now go over why you may want to consider this advertising solution for marketing your business, products, and services.
Pay for Action or Performance
Like most social networks, Twitter utilizes a pay-per-click (PPC) model where you only pay once a user performs an action on your ad. Twitter, however, takes it a notch higher by allowing you to pay when you achieve your marketing objective.
For example, if your objective is to get more app installations, you pay only after a user installs your app. If you want more followers, you only pay each time someone follows your Twitter account.
Twitter’s pay-for-performance model applies to all marketing objectives. It helps you stay within your budget and achieve what you want with your ad campaign.
High Click-Through Rate (CTR)
Various marketing studies show that Twitter ads obtain higher click-through rates than Facebook and other social networks. This could be because they integrate seamlessly with organic content, and competition is low. Twitter does not have as many ad campaigns as platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Reports show that only 65% of businesses utilize its advertising solution.
Due to the reduced competition, your ads are most likely to be seen by your target audience. Customers are also more likely to act on them.
Ability to Target by Keywords
One benefit that makes Twitter ads stand out over Facebook ads and other social network campaigns is the ability to target by keywords. Keyword targeting enables you to target users based on the hashtags or words they use in their Twitter updates. You can also target users who previously interacted with tweets containing those keywords. Such precise targeting increases your chances of reaching your intended audience.
Retargeting Capabilities
Twitter offers you a tweet engager targeting feature that enables you to reach users who recently saw or interacted with your tweets. You can also select the kind of tweets they engaged with, whether promoted or organic tweets.
With such retargeting capabilities, you may not reach as many users are available on Twitter. You’ll, however, cover that small segment most likely to want your product or service and who’s shown interest in your business.
Tailored Audience
Among other targeting capabilities, Twitter also allows you to show your ads to custom audiences. All you need to do is upload a file containing email addresses, Mobile Advertising IDs, or Twitter handles. This method will make your marketing highly relevant.
Categories of Twitter Ads
Twitter offers five categories of ad campaigns to achieve your marketing goals and objectives.
Promoted Ads
Promoted ads appear in the same way as organic tweets. The difference is that you pay to display them on a user’s feed. Like organic tweets, users can like, comment on, and retweet these ads. Let’s look at the variety of Twitter ads.
- Image ads
These appear with a single photo attached to them and are great for increasing leads and creating brand awareness.
- Video ads
This ad type has a single video attached and obtains more engagement since it brings a product, service, or brand’s story to life. Video ads give instructions or explain something about your product or business.
- Moment ads
With these ads, you can create and promote a suite of tweets that exceed the 280-character limit.
- Carousel ads
These ads allow you to display multiple products and services in a series of six video or image tweets.
- Text ads
Text ads appear similar to a standard organic tweet with no photo or video attached. They are great for reaching an audience wider than your scope of followers.
Follower Ads
Follower ads help you increase brand visibility on Twitter by encouraging users to follow your account. Use this ad category if your marketing objective is to get more Twitter followers.
Twitter Amplify
With Twitter Amplify, you can align your ad campaign with premium video content from relevant publishers on Twitter. This ad category is available in two formats:
- Amplify Pre-Roll
With this format, you can select the video content category where your ad will appear.
- Amplify Sponsorships
This format offers the option to pair your ad on a one-on-one ratio with a single publisher.
Twitter Takeover
Twitter Takeover ads appear in the Times and Explore tabs. They have the most reach and the best positioning for driving results and growing your brand. These ads are available in two formats:
- Timeline Takeover
This ad appears as the first one on a user’s timeline.
- Trend Takeover
In this option, your ad appears alongside trending news and information on the Explore tab.
Twitter Live
Twitter Live showcases your ads in real-time to allow your audience to become a part of them. They help you maximize your reach on live videos. Use this ad category for product launches, fashion shows, conferences, and parties.
Features Available on a Twitter Ad Campaign
Twitter ads come with a multitude of features available across all five categories. Here are some of the features you’ll find in a Twitter campaign:
- Website Buttons
A website button adds a call-to-action that leads to your site’s landing page. This feature is available on image and video ads.
- App Buttons
This feature allows you to add a call-to-action that leads to the App Store or Play Store, where a user can download your app. If the user already has your app on their phone, you can configure the link to lead them to that specific app.
- Conversation Buttons
A conversation button adds a call-to-action or hashtag that prompts your audience to tweet about your branded content.
- Branded Hashtags
You will use this feature to add a branded hashtag along with your ad.
- Branded Notifications
With this feature, users can opt-in to receive content directly from your brand or business.
- Polls
Use polls to prompt your audience to express their opinions by choosing two options.
Steps to Advertise on Twitter
Now, we will take you through the steps to advertise on Twitter.
1. Open Twitter Ads Account
The first thing you need to do is set up a Twitter Ads account. Log in to your Twitter account and head over to ads.twitter.com. Choose your country and time zone and click the “Let’s go” button once done. Twitter will then grant you access to your Twitter Ads Manager, where you will create and manage your campaigns.
2. Select Your Advertising Objective
Your next step will be to a pick a campaign objective – what you want to achieve with your ad. Twitter offers the following advertising objectives:
- In-stream Video Views
- Reach
- Website Clicks
- Video Views
- App Installs
- Followers
- Engagements
- App Re-Engagements
Once you select your objective, Twitter will direct you to the campaign setup process. This section is where you’ll name your campaign, choose a payment method, set your budget, and schedule the time to start your campaign.
3. Enter Your Bid Amount and Ad Group
You’ll also need to set up your bidding and ad group. If you are new to Twitter advertising, it’s better to work with one ad group. As you become more familiar with this method, you can set up more ad groups to target different categories of audiences and test different budgets and creatives.
You’ll also need to indicate how much you are willing to pay for the campaign. Again, if you are just starting out, you can select automatic bidding to allow Twitter to set the best bid for you.
4. Choose Your Target Audience
This stage will require you to select your target audience – the users you want to reach with your ad campaign. Twitter allows you to target your audience based on:
- Demographics (age, gender, language)
- Location (a specific area, postal code)
- Device (operating system, carrier)
- Psychographics (interests, behaviors)
- Keywords (specific keywords that users use or interact with)
- Retargeting (filtering users who recently saw or interacted with your posts)
5. Select Ad Placement
Next, choose where to display the ad, whether on users’ timelines, profiles, or search results.
6. Create and Launch Your Twitter Ad Campaign
In the last step, you’ll need to review and launch your selected ad campaign. Remember to add a call to action and use high-quality videos or images.
Frequently Asked Questions
Have any questions about Twitter advertising? Let’s answer them for you.
1. How much does Twitter advertising cost?
There is no minimum or maximum budget for advertising on Twitter. It depends on you and your financial capabilities. You can pay as little or as much as you want. Once you indicate your budget, Twitter will not charge anything higher than it.
2. What are the best media specifications for Twitter Ads?
There isn’t a universal answer to the best media specifications for Twitter adverts. Twitter displays its ads across many platforms, screen resolutions, and devices. Go for the specs that work best for your target device or screen resolution. For example, if you want your ads to display on mobile devices, try using a 1:1 media specification.
3. Why can’t I see any creatives on my Twitter account to add to my campaign?
You can’t see any creative content for your ad campaign probably because it is incompatible with your ad type and campaign objective. For example, if you want a video ad, you need a tweet containing a video. You can’t run a video ad with an image tweet.
4. What is the best bid amount to set?
If unsure how much to use in your campaign, choose the automatic bid type. This way, Twitter will automatically set a bid on your behalf based on the competitiveness in the auction. Automatic bidding helps ensure your bid is not too high or low compared to the others.
5. Can I create Twitter ad campaigns without a Twitter Ads account?
No, you need a Twitter Ads account to run advertisements on the platform.
6. Can I use private tweets to run a Twitter ad campaign?
You can’t run Twitter adverts using private tweets – they need to be public. You also cannot advertise on Twitter with a deactivated or suspended account.
7. Can I have multiple Twitter Ads accounts?
Yes, you can have multiple Twitter Ads accounts, but you may need to inform Twitter about this before running your ads. You may also have to clarify the account from which you will be running your ads to eliminate any billing confusion.
8. What are the accepted payment methods for Twitter Ads?
Twitter offers two payment options for ad campaigns. You can either use your credit or debit card or set up an insertion order (IO). With an insertion order, your campaigns will get billed on an invoice. You won’t have to worry about reaching your monthly credit limit and paused Twitter ads.
9. How do I know if a tweet is an ad?
The behavior and appearance of a Twitter ad are more or less the same as an organic tweet. The only difference is that Twitter ads have a “Promoted” label or icon attached.
Conclusion
Millions of people use Twitter every day to discover global news and trends. Regardless of who your target audience is, you should be able to reach them on this social network.
To start advertising on the platform, you’ll need to set up a Twitter Ads account alongside your Twitter account. Once you do that, select your campaign objective and enter your ad group and bid amount. You’ll also need to choose your target audience and ad placement. Finally, launch your campaign and track its performance using Twitter Analytics.
Resources
In this section of the post, we’ll go over a few resources to help you expand your knowledge about Twitter advertising. Along with services you can use if you don’t want to advertise yourself.
The resources lead to search results, so you always have the latest and most popular information at your disposal anytime you use the page.
Ad Examples
Once you have your ad ready, you can post it and start to collect data, and then you can track your results and optimize as needed. One of the challenges is starting with your ad.
One way to begin is to study the examples of ads already successful in gaining ideas. Take some time to go through ads, look for what many of them have in common, and note the characteristics you like. Then begin to create your ad.
Have a look at the latest search results for Twitter ad examples. Also, see, How To Write a Classified Ad for tips and insights to help start with your first ad.
Ad Agencies
You now have an overview of advertising on Twitter; however, you may not have the time or desire to advertise and would rather outsource this function. Below you’ll find a link to the latest search results for agencies that deal with Twitter advertising.
If you plan on taking this route, take some time to research the agencies that stand out for you. Searching for reviews for the agency may bring up results allowing you to find out what others have experienced.
Have a look at the latest search results for Twitter advertising agencies.
Books
Books are another source of information to broaden your understanding of advertising on Twitter.
I like non-fiction books because you don’t have to read the book from cover to cover but can look at the index or table of contents and jump to the chapter you are interested in.
Keep in mind when it comes to many online advertising platforms, changes are constant, so you can get a strong foundation by studying a book and keeping up to date with the changes online.
View the most recent books related to advertising on Twitter from Amazon.
Courses
Taking a course related to Twitter advertising is another option to get a strong foundation. I like using online courses that offer lessons through video, and that’s because I’m a visual learner.
Many online courses offer lifetime access, and you can benefit from this because you can review the information anytime. You may want to do some research for any course you consider.
Search for reviews to get feedback about the course, and you’ll have an idea of what to expect.
Google’s search results related to courses for advertising on Twitter.
News
Searching for Twitter advertising on Google’s News site will list the most recent and popular newsworthy stories. You can also get a list of archived ones.
When I’m researching a topic, I frequently will search the news sites because if the media is covering a story, there is some merit there.
See Google’s news search results related to advertising on Twitter.
Tweets
Twitter is another site I’ll go to for information. For example, I’ll type “Twitter Advertising” in the search bar to get a list of the latest tweets.
I like to use Twitter because Tweets are short, and I can go through many of them in a few minutes. I also keep an eye out for those tweets that offer a link when I can get more information.
See the most recent tweets related to advertising on Twitter.
YouTube Videos
Videos are an excellent tool for learning, especially for visual learners. For example, you can look at the length of the video and decide if you want to spend a few minutes right away or bookmark the longer videos to view later.
As a time-saver, you can also adjust the playback speed. Also, keep an eye out for the related topics that appear as you watch. Many of those topics are ones you may not have considered.
See the most recent videos related to advertising on Twitter.