MIAMI — It may be known for its fast-paced and bite-sized status updates, but Twitter wants to tell brands they can both go shorter and longer with the formats they use on the platform.
Twitter agency development director Dave Roter says pre-roll, in-feed video ads are working well – but he offers best practice, and alternative options.
“The feed moves really fast, so it’s key that we make an impact early on by using product logos upfront, by using personalities, humans and pets and celebrities that draw attention,” Roter tells Beet.TV in this video interview. “We know, if somebody stays for two, three, four seconds, (then) they go on to stay for eight, nine, 10, 11, 12 seconds.”
Brevity is important because about 90% of Twitter’s ad revenue comes from mobile devices – and we all know about users’ attention on mobile.
Something’s going right – or at least, okay. In its Q4, Twitter’s ad revenue jumped 48% year-over-year to $641 million, but it lost two million monthly users in the same period.
Roter is keen to point out the platform has multiple marketer opportunities beyond standard pre-roll video. Whilst Twitter’s live streaming app Periscope is not taking advertiser money, there are ways in which it helps Roter do so, when brands promote tweets that link to live streams.
“There is an amazing life after 30,” he adds. “I’m not talking about how old we are. I’m talking about 30 seconds. In the old days, life started and ended with the 30. Now you’ve got this incredible spectrum of creative formats.
“On the other end of the spectrum is Periscope. It’s complete white space. We’re talking about brands becoming live broadcasters, tapping in to assets that maybe they never thought about as assets before – like a Target, that’s taking what used to be a product launch in front of 20 people in the store and broadcasting it to hundreds of thousands of people that can now watch at home.”
This video was recorded at the 4A’s Transformation conference in Miami. For additional interviews, please visit this page. Beet.TV’s coverage of the 4A’s was sponsored by The Trade Desk.
