Elon Musk has appointed Linda Yaccarino as the CEO of X (formerly Twitter) in an attempt to lure back advertisers who left during Musk’s takeover and controversial policy changes. However, major brands are still hesitant to return, as they have already allocated their budgets to other platforms for the upcoming holiday season, which traditionally generates the highest ad revenue.
According to Natasha Blumenkron, vice president of paid social at Tinuiti, marketers typically secure their holiday budgets by August. Tinuiti’s advertisers are planning to increase spending on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, instead of X. Ad agency Mekanism’s CEO, Jason Harris, stated that their clients are shifting away from X towards more stable platforms like TikTok and YouTube Shorts.
A large advertising agency revealed that their spending on X has decreased by over 60% compared to the previous year. X has been making efforts to entice advertisers back with deals and incentives, but some marketers remain concerned about the platform’s permissive attitude towards harmful or abusive content.
Lou Paskalis, chief strategy officer at Ad Fontes Media, believes that few, if any, advertisers are considering increasing their investment in advertising on X. Recent moves by X, like retiring popular ad types and planning to remove the block feature, have further displeased advertisers.
Since Linda Yaccarino’s appointment as CEO, X has implemented tools to give brands more control over ad placement. However, some agencies have lost their optimism as they feel Yaccarino lacks power and assertiveness. Her absence at industry events and her cheery posts on the platform have added to this perception.
Some executives overseeing paid social media at advertising agencies have yet to hear from Yaccarino. Yaccarino’s contract with NBCUniversal initially prevented her from working on conflicting deals, but she has been engaging in conversations with brands, talent agencies, and ad agency executives since assuming her role.
Although X has added new members to its sales and agency teams, ad revenue has not recovered and remains down by 60%, as acknowledged by Musk. Stephen Brandow, vice president of paid social at Mediahub, suggests that it may take time for Yaccarino to fully integrate into her role.
However, some believe that X is no longer relevant or worth the trouble. Marc Beckman, CEO of DMA United, has not been encouraging clients to advertise on X.
Credit: The Star : Tech Feed
