Highlights
- Elon Musk’s vision of Twitter is not working for everyone. Turns out, over half of Twitter’s top 100 advertisers have pulled out of the website.
- A report from Media Matters for America claims that these 50 advertisers have shelled out almost $2 billion on Twitter ads since 2020, and more than $750 million just in 2022.
- Besides the loss of 50 advertisers, seven additional advertisers are now slowing their ads on Twitter. The report, published on Tuesday, claims that these companies have paid Twitter over $255 million since 2020.
Elon Musk’s vision of Twitter is not working for everyone. Turns out, over half of Twitter’s top 100 advertisers have pulled out of the website.
A report from Media Matters for America claims that these 50 advertisers have shelled out almost $2 billion on Twitter ads since 2020, and more than $750 million just in 2022.
Besides the loss of 50 advertisers, seven additional advertisers are now slowing their ads on Twitter. The report, published on Tuesday, claims that these companies have paid Twitter over $255 million since 2020.
Companies are checking out of Twitter
NPR reported that Chevrolet, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., Ford, Jeep, Kyndryl, Merck & Co. and Novartis AG had all issued statements about stopping Twitter ads. Many other advertisers have halted advertising on Twitter for a “significant period of time following direct outreach, controversies, and warnings from media buyers.”
Even amid these pullouts, Twitter’s new owner Elon Musk has “continued his rash of brand unsafe actions — including amplifying conspiracy theories, unilaterally reinstating banned accounts such as that of former President Donald Trump, courting and engaging with far-right accounts, and instituting a haphazard verification scheme that allowed extremists and scammers to purchase a blue check,” the report added.
Pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Co. pulled their ads from Twitter after Elon Musk’s $8 verification plan was enforced. “We are excited to announce insulin is free now,” an account impersonating the company Tweeted. Many fell for the same, and it sent the company’s stocks plummeting.
It began with verification. As part of a monthly Twitter Blue subscription, Twitter was verifying all users. This quickly lead to a rise in impersonations, hate speech, and confusion for regular users of the platform.
Since then, Elon Musk has talked about a colour-coded verification plan that ought to roll out this week. After the Eli Lilly fiasco, about 12 pharmaceutical giants have stopped buying Twitter ads, Endpoints News reported.
That’s not all! Elon Musk is in the process of reinstating all permanently suspended accounts. He began this exercise with the return of former US President Donald Trump’s Twitter account.
In the long run, such moves could hamper advertisers’ confidence in the brand, consequentially affecting its profits. And Musk has made one thing clear from the day he took over Twitter – that the company needs to start making money as soon as possible.
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