In its latest effort to beef up advertising offerings, Twitter is aiming to get in on the rise of retargeting and programmatic, real-time ad buying. The company is gearing up to launch a new ad retargeting exchange that would function much like the successful Facebook Exchange (FBX) and allow brands to retarget ads to site visitors when they are on Twitter.
According to a report from AdAge, Twitter has been looking into the ad exchange idea since last year and meeting with FBX partners to learn about their approaches to retargeting on Facebook. No launch dates have been discussed, and Twitter would not comment on the matter.
In addition to the traditional ad exchange buying process in which brands must go through an approved partner, Twitter is eyeing the possibility of allowing brands to buy ad inventory on Twitter’s exchange directly. AdAge says Twitter has discussed the idea with at least one multi-channel retailer.
Twitter launched its Ads API in February of this year to allow automated ad buying through third-party partners like Hootsuite and Adobe. The ad exchange would further strengthen Twitter’s real-time ad buying options for brands and open inventory to retargeting, which brands have been embracing as they’ve seen success with other ad exchanges.
While Twitter’s 200 million active users are a fraction of Facebook’s billion-plus, Twitter’s audience and targeting capabilities, which now include keyword targeting, will likely appeal to brands looking to expand their retargeting efforts and programmatic ad buys. And, while, FBX tends to be e-commerce-centric, Twitter could open up interesting opportunities for lead-gen brands on its exchange if, for example, it integrated the new Lead Generation Card that’s been tested by brands like Priceline, New Relic and Full Sail with its promoted tweet inventory.
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