Twitter released its sticker feature in June and now plans to monetize it by allowing brands to create and promote stickers, it said in a blog post. Pepsi is the first brand to embrace Twitter’s promoted stickers, and so far, it has introduced 50 custom stickers in 10 markets.
To help brands engage users in new, creative ways
Last year, Twitter decided to sell branded emojis to brands, and at that time, it was believed that its next move would be to move towards more visual media. The aim of promoted stickers is to increase engagement, as they act as a visual hashtag.
“We recently introduced #Stickers, a fun new way for Twitter users to add a pop of creativity to photos and connect them to the world on Twitter. Since then, millions of photos have been Tweeted using #Stickers in creative and dynamic ways across sports, news, and entertainment,” the micro-blogging giant said in a blog post.
Brands will be allowed to make four or eight stickers that will act as a visual hashtag, thus making it possible for users of the same sticker to see each other. At the same time, it will allow brands to track and engage users in new and creative ways.
Twitter further said that its stickers are somewhat novel: each is searchable, making it easier for people to create conversations around events and experiences taking place currently. There will be a #Stickers library where users will be able to find all the stickers for a particular brand or event.
Stickers may boost Twitter’s revenue
Twitter’s second quarter earnings were quite disappointing, and the company will be hoping that promoted stickers will provide a much-needed boost to ad revenue. Snapchat and Line are examples of social media platforms that have monetized sticker features and have seen success with this strategy.
Geofilters and lenses have proven successful for Snapchat, generating hopes for successful partnerships between branded content on social media platforms. Line, an Asia-based messaging company, has created stickers for which both users and brands pay, and it generates nearly one-third of its $1 billion revenue from branded advertising.
Twitter has high hopes from its Pepsi partnership as it expect it to help jumpstart this new revenue feature and also keep it competitive.
On Tuesday, Twitter shares closed down 2.21%. Year to date, the stock is down more than 8%, while in the last year, it is down almost 30%.
