Rethinking Twitter marketing in 5 charts

Advertisers are ditching a tumultuous Twitter in the wake of Elon Musk’s erratic behavior, combined with an underwhelming (or downright concerning) earnings season for Big Tech.

As it stands, Twitter will make $2.63 billion in US ad revenues this year and $4.67 billion worldwide. The app is useful for establishing brand voice, but less fruitful for paid social advertising. If you’re considering divesting from Twitter, here is some data you’ll want to consider.

1. Twitter’s not a safe bet.

The app is past its peak in terms of monthly active users. We project it will lose 1.4 million US users in the next four years, landing at 56.1 million active users in 2026. (However, internal documents reported “all-time highs” of user growth in the past week following Musk’s takeover.) In comparison, Facebook will still have 178.3 million monthly US users this year, and TikTok already has 94.1 million monthly US users. Keep a brand presence on Twitter, but keep and eye on paid advertising.

2. YouTube is one option.

US consumers already trust YouTube significantly more than Twitter for purchasing products. Granted, the platform is completely different from Twitter, so it’s not an alternative, but it is a good bet. Some 90% of Gen Z adults use YouTube, compared to the 58% that use Twitter.

3. Explore a younger app.

BeReal doesn’t feature paid ads yet, but it has a lot of buzz surrounding it right now. Mastodon, Gas, Discord, and Substack are also after a share of Twitter’s disillusioned users. The up-and-coming apps (OK, Discord and Substack are a bit more established) allow opportunities to take risks with marketing and messaging, even if they don’t yet have paid ads.

4. Speaking of messaging ...

Discord is already eating into Meta’s Messenger and WhatsApp dominance. Some prominent Twitter users are adopting Discord (and Mastodon) as a backup of sorts for Musk-era Twitter. Discord’s popularity has been increasing for years. As Meta looks for new marketing options could messaging platforms be next?

5. Or look to any of the top smartphone apps.

Twitter already ranked at a fairly low No. 23 in June. Apps ahead of Twitter by unique visitors included YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Spotify, TikTok, Snapchat, and Pandora.