Social media is a great medium to market products, but twitter ads? It’s a trend I’ve seen popping up lately, and I’m not the only one noticing. The NY Times wrote about it this weekend in their article A Friend’s Tweet Could Be an Ad. The basic concept is that companies target “influencers” (people with a ton of followers – think celebrities like Ashton Kutcher, John Mayer, and Ellen) to tweet about their product. Another company called Tweet for Cash is a program you can purchase that teaches you how to make money by twittering. A friend forwarded me this article (which is really an ad for Tweet for Cash disguised as an article… tricky tricky) about how an unemployed fast food worker now makes over $10,000 a month just by posting links on twitter.
The controversy arises because this concept dilutes the “authenticity” of Twitter. No one wants to be bombarded with ads in her social media conversation, and followers can probably easily see through the paid-for ad-tweets. I suppose it’s smart for companies to target key influencers on Twitter to help get their message out, but I also have to wonder if this is the smartest tactic. I’m not saying they shouldn’t do it, or that it’s an ineffective strategy for marketing. It’s just not believable. It’s just that if tweets aren’t coming from an authentic place, they feel low-grade and the whole process feels kind of unscrupulous. Then again, no one ever said Twitter was a place to engage in genuine, quality, thought provoking conversation – the whole premise is built on an in-one-ear-and-out-the-other mentality.
So, go ahead, Tweet for Cash! Why not! Mix those paid-for tweets in with your quotations from Nitche and Ghandi, and your profound reflections on life! I’ll forget about it just as fast as you can tweet it.
Fans of Brands 