Twitter Expanded Tweets

Are Twitter Expanded Tweets Good or Bad for Marketers?

Social media marketing is a hot topic in marketing now and seems to be the wave of the future. Not only do you have social media giants like Facebook and Pinterest, but Twitter is a big player in this industry too. Some media companies now have access to a new feature on this site. This new feature is referred to as Twitter Expanded Tweets and media outlets such as Time and The Wall Street Journal are already making use of it.

When you expand a Tweet linking to a news article…you can see a preview with the headline, the introduction and sometimes the Twitter accounts of the publisher and writer. You can continue to read the article, follow these accounts, and reply, favorite or retweet the Tweet,” notes the official Twitter blog post.

There are some benefits for the companies choosing to make use of this feature, but there are pitfalls also. Only when all are considered will people be able to determine whether or not this is of assistance or if it is actually harmful.

Is the New Expanded Tweets Feature Good or Bad for Marketers?

The main benefit to the media companies making use of these expanded tweets is that their information will be seen by more people. Now when someone clicks on this type of tweet, they will not only be able to see the the headline of the article, they will also be able to see a preview and introduction among other things. Song links can be embedded in these tweets along with photos or videos. Users love the fact that they don’t have to click on a link to get the information they are most after.

Media companies may find that this is a lifeline for them as it brings their content to a wider audience. Those who see this selected content may opt to visit their site and learn more about what it is the media company has to offer. The problem with this though is that the reader of the Twitter Expanded Tweets does not have to go to this site. They can get the basic information they need right from Twitter and move on to the next tweet. This helps Twitter more than anyone else as it keeps viewers on this site rather than having them move to another. By doing so, they add value to their company.

Another drawback of this feature is that it doesn’t create an even playing field for all media outlets. Only certain outlets have access to the feature. Certain media corporations also state that their content is being stolen as the viewer can find what they need through the tweet and no longer need to visit the original site. As this feature is fairly new, it’s not certain yet how things will play out. Will the new expanded tweets help those who make use of them or will they actually do more harm than good?  Leave a comment below.