Twitter To Profit From Deal Promotion Program

According to DM News: "As it searches for ways to cash in on its popularity, Twitter is set to become the next e-commerce vehicle.

"The microblogging site has launched @earlybird Exclusive Offers, a program in which Twitter and select advertisers will partner to promote time- and supply-sensitive deals on products and events, such as concert tickets. Twitter users who subscribe to @earlybird will see the offers in their timelines. After a couple of clicks, they could find themselves making a purchase.

"Twitter will earn money through the sales. The move is the latest attempt by Twitter, which until late 2009 appeared to lack a business model, to generate revenue. Other recent attempts have included promoted tweets and trending topics.

“'It seems like a fairly modest early entry,' said Augie Ray, senior analyst at Forrester Research. 'In fact, I'm not even sure I'd call it e-commerce at this point. It seems to be much more positioned as a bit of an advertising play, to be honest. It's a different strategy for them because they haven't been content producers'

"It is unclear when the first deal will be posted. As of July 7, the @earlybird page, which had more than 15,000 followers, included only a link to frequently asked questions about the program.

“'What @earlybird on Twitter does is it gives brands an extra opportunity to reach more eyes, and certainly this @earlybird account will draw plenty of eyes,' Ray said.

"While Twitter says it plans 'to choose exciting deals,' retailers will determine the prices of items and how many will be available.