Tweets that target… now is the time consider advertising on Twitter

12 January 2015

Twitter have opened the doors for small to medium sized business to advertise, and they’ve extended the targeting options to make it a very interesting proposition.

Alice McDonald | Monday 15th December 2014

As Australians and the rest of the world for that matter are engaging increasingly in social media, advertising in this space, although once frowned upon, is becoming more readily accepted. And let’s be honest – it’s the ideal way to really target your potential customers.

If you can ‘drill down’ to reach those who will resonate with your brand and product or service offering and if users can discover businesses and products of interest to them – it’s a Win-Win.

Twitter offers two advertising options to small to medium sized businesses only.

1. Businesses can advertise via ‘Promoted Tweets’ which are regular tweets with the bonus of reaching both current and potential followers you target. And targeting options are vast, allowing for broad focus such as location, right down to the ability to use Lists, identifying specific accounts that you wish to advertise directly to.
2. Promoted Accounts’ – Twitter will allow you to base your targeting options on your existing followers who are already your biggest fans.

The advertising feature is easy to use, by connecting your account to the Advertising area of Twitter and being taken to a ‘Campaign’ screen. This is the central hub of advertising and will show all campaigns, with stats on how successful they were.

When creating a new campaign, you can set objectives including building followers, website clicks or conversions, tweet engagements, app installs or engagements, leads on Twitter, or a custom setting.

Twitter is the Australia’s 8th most used social media platform* with approximately 2,791,300 active users. (You can see the ranking of the various platforms below).

For the latest updates on Twitter Advertising follow @TwitterSmallBiz or call Pitstop Marketing to discuss if Twitter advertising is right for you.

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Social Media Statistics Australia – November 2014

1. Facebook – 13,600,000 users (steady)
2. YouTube – 13,200,000 UAVs
3. WordPress.com – 6,000,000
4. Tumblr – 4,500,000
5. LinkedIn – 4,500,000
6. Instagram – 4,000,000 Monthly Active Australian Users (Facebook/ Instagram data)
7. Blogspot – 2,950,000
8. Twitter – 2,791,300 Active Australian Users
9. TripAdvisor – 1,750,000
10. Yelp – 1,500,000
11. Tinder – 1,500,000 Australian users
12. Snapchat – 1,070,000 Active Australian Users
13. Flickr – 710,000
14. Pinterest – 340,000
15. Reddit – 170,000
16. MySpace – 130,000
17. Google Plus – approx 60,000 monthly active Australian users
18. StumbleUpon – 50,000
19. Foursquare – 25,000
20. Digg – 18,000
21. Delicious – 16,000
(All figures represent the number of Unique Australian Visitors [UAVs] to that website over the monthly period unless otherwise stated).
*Source: http://www.socialmedianews.com.au

What This Looks Like in Practice

For example, when working with Great Southern RV, the focus wasn’t simply creating more ads. The strategy centred on positioning their caravans and motorhomes around a clear lifestyle promise – the freedom to travel and explore Australia on your terms. That clarity shaped campaigns, show promotions and social content that resonated strongly with buyers already dreaming about the road.

With St Patrick’s Technical College, the challenge wasn’t marketing activity – it was perception. By repositioning the brand to highlight the strength of vocational pathways and industry partnerships, the messaging shifted from “alternative education” to a powerful career pathway, changing how the college is seen by parents and students.

And for Succoris Psychology, the work went beyond promotion. It involved clarifying how the brand speaks to both clients and clinicians across multiple clinics, creating a structure that supports long-term growth rather than just short-term marketing activity.

In each case, the goal wasn’t simply “more marketing”. It was better-aligned marketing built on clear strategy.

The Pitstop Approach

At Pitstop Marketing, we believe marketing should be a growth engine for the business, not just a collection of activities.

That’s why we focus first on understanding the commercial goals, the audience and the positioning — and then build marketing that supports those foundations.

If you want your marketing to stop feeling like guesswork, get in touch. We want to work with businesses who want to grow.