Brief:
- Kraft Heinz, Nestlé and Coca-Cola are among the top five spenders on Twitter ads, making the social network a key media outlet for the world's biggest consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands. In contrast, Facebook has only one CPG brand among its top five advertisers, ad tracking firm Pathmatics said in a blog post.
- An average of 75% of media budgets on Twitter go to video, making it the primary ad format for top-spending brands. About 42% of internet users worldwide have a Twitter account, and its revenue is forecast to grow 10% a year through 2021, per Pathmatics.
- Pathmatics provided the data while announcing that its U.S.-based customers now have access to its insights and analysis of paid Twitter ads, among other metrics. Earlier this year, Pathmatics introduced Facebook ad tracking in the U.K., Germany and Canada.
Insight:
The concentration of CPG brands among Twitter's top advertisers this year indicates they see value in a platform that focuses on immediacy and real-time activities. That focus has made Twitter popular among audiences who gather on the platform to find real-time news or to share commentary about live happenings like sporting events. Twitter has touted its ability to support engagement with other media channels like TV, complementing the effectiveness of ad campaigns.
While CPG brands run ads on Twitter, they also use the platform for organic campaigns that go viral as people re-tweet the posts of other users. Recent examples include a campaign by DiGiorno, the frozen pizza brand marketed by Nestlé, that urged Twitter users to vote for limited-time pizza delivery in their hometowns. Busch, Lay's, Skittles and Snickers this year also have run contests that urge participation on Twitter and other social platforms.
Twitter's bigger push into video ads that broaden its appeal among major advertisers have helped to boost sales. Twitter in August introduced a video ad-bidding option that lets advertisers run video ads of 16 second or less, and only charges them after the video is watched for six seconds with 50% of pixels in view. To help brands with video production, the company in July created an in-house group called "Art House," whose services include digital strategy, livestreaming and influencer management.
Twitter's shift toward video appears to be paying off for the company, whose revenue grew 18% to $841 million in Q2 from a year earlier, alongside a 21% gain in ad revenue to $727 million. Monetizable Daily Active Users (mDAUs), an audience metric that Twitter introduced in place of monthly active users, rose 14% to 139 million worldwide for the period. The company is expected to report Q3 results on Oct. 24.
