There is a lot of discussion about Elon Musk, Twitter, and the madness that has erupted since the recent buyout. Curious as to how that affects your small to medium-sized business and the potential risks? Our experts at Rebel Interactive Group have you covered.
If you advertise on Twitter, the cost may go down for at least the short term.
With bigger corporations like General Motors, Walmart, and Pepsi, along with some of the largest agencies (IPG), pulling out their investments on the platform due to the instability at the driver’s seat – the cost per clicks are likely to take a big dip. That’s a good thing for your advertising dollars, so, if you want to promote your product on Twitter, now may be the time.
There is undoubtedly concern about reputation management.
With Elon Musk’s opinions on free speech and the elimination of censorship on the platform, specific forms of hate speech are on the rise (500% since the takeover as a matter of fact). If you fear Elon putting the platform on Autopilot and leaving moderation driverless, perhaps it’s time to consider alternate options. Or… it could be an opportunity to lean in and start productive conversations to build your own brand reputation. There is a difference between a lack of censorship and the promotion of factually inaccurate hate speech, perhaps Elon deserves the benefit of the doubt he knows the difference and ultimately has a plan?
Verified?
That plan apparently is not the long-coveted ‘blue check mark,’ previously the pillar of authority and credibility. There is now potential for users to be ‘verified’ simply by paying a nominal fee. In an era where facts and truth seem to be endlessly manipulated, whether we liked what a verified account had to say (or not) we could at least have some trust that the commentary was factually accurate. So, does that mean it’s time for you to ask whether Twitter (as it currently stands) is right for you (or your brand)? Millions, if not Billions of people still engage in forums, Discords, Subreddits, and the like using common sense and moral judgment to determine the credibility of the author. Are we not giving ourselves enough credit to believe we could ultimately self-police?
Values v. value.
Questioning popular networks’ ethics is not new (nor are threats to pull ad spend). Whether the discussion focuses on the broad impact of social media through the lens of The Social Dilemma, or specific concerns like the Cambridge Analytica/Facebook data harvesting for election ad targeting, Snapchat ‘speed filter’-esq dangers, or Bath Salt, Boiling Water, Tide Pod, NyQuil challenges, ultimately it comes down to value-provided v. value-delivered. We can even acknowledge the market’s willingness to seemingly completely ignore the FCC’s concerns (not saying they are true or false) over TikTok’s use as spyware by the Chinese gov’t because that’s where the elusive GenZ is ($24B in projected revenue by 2024 is helping too). Brands, marketers, and consumers are constantly rebalancing and relocating their online interactions based on where they see the overlapping value (entertainment, financial, or otherwise).
Ultimately, it will likely come down to dollars.
Almost 3 years ago Tesla’s stock sat at $13/share. After hitting a high above $400, today it sits at $223. For all the altruistic motives Musk shares around the carbon footprint and the longevity of civilization, those beliefs alone did not make him the richest person on the planet. It’s difficult to believe he’d sink $44B into a network without a broader strategy in place. One that is intended to further his agendas and that he needs capital to achieve by way of more users, more ad revenue, etc. Polarizing users, driving sane-minded folks out of the community and bankrupting the company just don’t align with his track record.
The disruption and extremities stemming from the recent changes are undeniable. But, people are now talking about a platform that has struggled to gain mass visibility and consistent use. As a small to medium business – all this chaos can be relevant should you choose to pay attention to it. The world’s now tuning in, non-users are curious what all the talk is about, and he’s positioned Twitter for quite the turnaround story. And, if that’s not the case? Well, we all move on to the next network, where the conversation is relevant and the next challenge grips our audience, followers, and customers.
