"What the Heck is...?" is our series about the most important updates and changes in social media and how it will affect YOUR goals, presence and ranking.
Twitter just started rolling out a great new feature for brands looking to increase exposure and engagement on Twitter - 'First View' ads.
How It Works
These video ads appear in the top ad slot (between the 1st and 3rd tweet) in users' timelines for a 24 hour period the first time they see it, hence the 'First View' name. Currently managed clients are getting this first, with a larger rollout in the coming months.
This is likely to be a premium ad unit, but pricing has not yet been revealed.
WHAT SHOULD YOU DO ABOUT IT
While the #RIPTwitter tag has been gaining some momentum, Twitter seems to really be focusing on on revitalizing the platform for both users and advertisers. The focus on video as the sole creative medium for now is no surprise given how native video is performing across platforms.
Since most brands won't have access to this ad unit for quite some time, the best plan would be to focus on building and testing short-form creative video content using Twitter's native format, and on other platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.
