Twitter is making companies pay for check marks to advertise

SAN FRANCISCO – Companies that wish to advertise on Twitter are now required to pay for verification or reach a minimum monthly spend on ads, the social media platform told advertisers this week. 

As at Friday, advertising will be available only to verified accounts, including individuals

who pay US$8 (S$10) per month for Twitter Blue

and “Verified Organisations” that pay US$1,000 for a gold or grey check mark, the company wrote in an e-mail seen by Bloomberg. 

Businesses that already spend US$1,000 a month on ads will be allowed to continue and will be given a gold check mark, the company added. 

The change to Twitter’s advertising rules is part of a wider strategy to remove fake accounts and bots and “elevate the quality of content on Twitter and enhance your experience as a user and advertiser”, the company said in the e-mail.

Twitter has been experimenting with different monetisation strategies since it was acquired by Mr Elon Musk last year, including charging for verification and application programming interface access.

Its paid-for verification model initially failed to gain traction, as many prominent accounts had been verified for free in the past.

However, this week the company

stripped these “legacy verified” accounts of their blue checks

and restricted some product features, including the ability to edit tweets, to subscribers of Twitter Blue. 

The new advertising policy has caused some digital marketing businesses to change strategy. 

“We are already moving budget away on projects launching next week, with the uncertainty on whether clients want verification, or how long it will take to process,” said Mr Tom Davenport, managing director of British-based media agency Digital Marketing Specialist. 

Revenue from advertising had waned after Mr Musk’s takeover, with the SpaceX and Tesla boss’ online activity causing concerns for the brand safety of the platform. Several large media agencies advised clients to suspend campaigns. 

Social media consultant Matt Navarra said the change could be the “last straw” for advertisers already losing their patience with Mr Musk.

“If he had any hope of inspiring brands and advertisers to return to the platform or to spend more, things like this are going to completely go against him,” he said.

After Twitter removed legacy blue checks on accounts on Thursday, Mr Musk disclosed that he was “personally paying” for the Twitter Blue subscriptions of three accounts: Those of basketball player Lebron James, author Stephen King and actor William Shatner.

Twitter did not meaningfully respond to a request for comment. BLOOMBERG