Twitter tries to lure advertisers back with incentives and assurances
What's the story
Twitter and Elon Musk badly want advertisers back on the microblogging platform. As part of the plan to lure them back to the platform and increase their spending, the company is offering attractive incentives, reported The Wall Street Journal. To allay the fears of advertisers about its policy changes, Twitter even assured them with a blog post saying none of its policies have changed.
Context
Why does this story matter?
Twitter has been going through many changes since Musk came to the helm. Some of these changes made advertisers wary of the platform's security. This made them leave Twitter or pause their advertisements as their brand safety was at stake. For a company that depends heavily on ad revenue, this was a huge loss. Will Twitter's reassurances bring them back? Let's wait and watch.
Incentives
Twitter is offering to match advertisers' spending in some cases
Twitter's offers to advertisers are better than generous. To advertisers that reach a certain level of incremental spending, the company is offering what is called 'value add.' As per the new plan, advertisers who spend at least $500,000 will get a '100% value add' up to $1 million, which means Twitter is offering to match the spending of advertisers.
Blog post
Twitter reassured brands through a blog post
Twitter's strategy to bring back advertisers doesn't stop there. Many of them have been spooked by the platform's lack of content moderation and policy changes. In the post titled Twitter 2.0: Our continued commitment to public safety, the company attempted to explain what Twitter 2.0 is and how it is committed to brand safety, innovation, and transparency.
Information
The 'value add' program is absurdly high by industry standards
Twitter's incentive program for advertisers is only till the year-end. Those who spend a lesser amount will get a lower matching amount. According to Marketing Brew, a 100% value add is "absurdly high." Even 20% is quite rare without spending millions first.
Reassurance
No policy has changed, says Twitter
In the blog post, Twitter says nothing has changed except its "approach to experimentation." It wrote, "brand safety is only possible when human safety is the top priority." Twitter assured advertisers that none of its policies have changed. It wrote, "Our approach to policy enforcement will rely more heavily on de-amplification of violative content: freedom of speech, but not freedom of reach."
Safety
The company talked about the safety of the platform
Recently, Twitter's former head of safety and trust Yoel Roth commented that the platform is not "safe" under Musk. In the blog post, the company said, "Our Trust & Safety team continues its diligent work to keep the platform safe from hateful conduct, abusive behavior, and any violation of Twitter's rules." It added that automatic detection plays an important role in eliminating abuse.
Tough spot
Twitter's ad revenue is declining rapidly
The incentive program and the blog post show how badly Twitter wants advertisers back. Musk has bemoaned the decline in ad revenue, as major brands such as General Motors, Audi, and Pfizer, among others departed the platform. Platformer reported that Twitter's ad revenue is down 15% in Europe and the Middle East. Musk has even resorted to personally calling the CEOs of major brands.