What Happened? 

Twitter announced the platform will charge $8 for its Twitter Blue service, (previously $20) which includes its sought-after “verified” badge, in Elon Musk’s push to monetize the service and make the social media network less reliant on ads for revenue. The update allows paywall bypassing and the ability to post long video and audio, amongst other features.

Why Does It Matter?

Twitter users are invited to join by purchasing a Twitter Blue subscription first through the Apple or Google stores, if they have not already. The ability to purchase verification allows the feature to be more accessible to users and less of an aspect only celebrities and influencers can utilize to their advantage. The new update may cause an upheaval with user experience; already many influencers are threatening to leave the platform for good. Anyone being allowed to verify themselves could create confusion on the platform as to who is actually providing reliable information.

What Does This Mean for Brands?

The subscription provides users with tools to increase engagement and have “priority” within the platform. With Twitter Blue subscriptions potentially on the rise, brands may have to strategize paid ad campaigns to reach audiences with the paid subscription. 

How Brands and influencers can take advantage of this new feature:

• Revenue from the new Twitter Blue could go toward a fund to “reward” creators, though no details are finalized. This could incentivize creators to be verified. 
• Brands can utilize this feature to create premium content to encourage audiences to buy a Twitter Blue subscription to gain special access to their content.

Key Takeaways

• Twitter’s new update will create a new revenue stream for influencers, content creators, and smaller brands. It will also allow brands and users to gain credibility.
• Verification will somewhat lose its meaning and no longer symbolize unquestionable authority.
• The new update will most likely affect paid campaigns, forcing brands to re-strategize for the platform if they want their ads to be seen, since verified users will see half as many ads as unverified users.
• The paid verification process will be changed. So far, Twitter has announced that they have people handling the applications for verification, however, they have limited time to review applications and they are not approving accounts from all industries. 
  • Users can apply for account verification through  their account settings on the Twitter app and on twitter.com, however, if you don’t belong to one of these six categories,the process for paid verification will be delayed: 
    • Government
    • Companies, brands and non-profit organizations
    • News organizations and journalists
    • Entertainment
    • Sports/ESports
    • Activists, organizers, and other influential individuals

For more social media news and updates, subscribe to our newsletter!