Twitter, well all I can say is that I have noticed myself checking it first thing every morning and last thing at night. It is just so convenient nowadays with having a smart phone being logged in and checking the updates at anytime. I have only been a member since February but I’m more than addicted.
“Many think of Twitter as a shotgun approach promotional tool, and hence tend to underestimate how valuable of a tool it can be in promoting and sustaining their business” posted by Mohammed Osman. At first I would have thought the same.
However, Twitter has grown exponentially over the past couple of years and its importance can no longer be ignored according to Chris Voss. Twitter over the past 6 years is now valued at 3.7billion. It is expected to bring in a revenue of $259 million from advertising in 2012. If it isn’t clear enough, i think this shows how viable Twitter is as a business model.
How does Twitter make their money?
First of all, it is importantto highlight that all tweets aresearchable on the website, and they feature in the search results of Google, Bing, and Yahoo search engines. Has it clicked yet– Yes, Twitter sells it’s tweets related to a particular topic to the search engines, and that’s one way of making money. Twitter sells the rights to publish live tweets on any hot, trending topic. Search engines get live data, and unique comments through each tweet. As a by-product, Twitter gets more users. It is a win-win situation!
Another money-generating model is “Promoted Tweets”. The Advertisers pay Twitter to show their tweets in top search results, along with their company name. The advertiser’s product related trends are featured on the website. For example, major companies like Coca cola and Disney have made deals with Twitter to promote their products.
Twitter is moving forward and its revenue is increasing. So I think this answers the question people have been asking whether it is a viable business model.
sarahmcmanus 