Twitter Adds New Features in 2016
In 2015, Twitter's growth stagnated. This may not come as a surprise considering 77 percent of Internet users are not on the platform. But those numbers aren't stopping the platform from adding eight new features to its offerings in 2016.Check out what's coming soon and how the changes will impact how marketers and communication professionals can use the platform.
1. More Characters
In March, the character limit for tweets is rumored to change from 140 to 10,000.Most words are approximately six characters long, and with this new character limit, users will be able to fit around 1,650 words in each tweet. In other words, the platform that has been long associated with abbreviations will shift towards full-fledged blogging.How so? Well, the new format would only highlight 140 characters, but then allow a user to expand the tweet to read the rest. For communication professionals and content marketers, this change may provide a new way to distribute and promote longer-form content.
2. Conversational Ads
Twitter's latest ad products will appear like a poll in users' timelines. Conversational ads will ask users to respond to a question with a pre-selected hashtag. The difference between current Twitter ads lies in the call to action.For communication professionals and marketers, this will provide a hyper-targeted advertising opportunity. If that doesn't work for your brand, don't fret. More tools are rumored to come shortly after conversational ads.
3. Twitter Camera
#vmas hangin wiff meeesahhhh meeeee$$$$ @waynecoyne pic.twitter.com/CsrvyxSaOe
— Miley Ray Cyrus (@MileyCyrus) August 25, 2015
Currently only available to celebrities, this new tool would allow users to take Snapchat-style pictures on Twitter. While it seems cool, it may not be as useful in a one-to-many setting as it is for Snapchat. All users will see this roll out later this year.