Twitter Advertiser Boycott Ends as Brands Return to the Platform

Elon Musk has announced that the advertiser boycott of Twitter is all but over, with most brands having returned or committing to return to the platform. Speaking at the VivaTech 2023 conference in Paris, Musk expressed optimism about Twitter's future and noted that Disney is among the high-profile advertisers that have come back. However, the return of these brands is not without caveats, as overall ad revenue remains significantly lower than before the boycott.

According to advertising spend data from SensorTower, Disney never really left Twitter, having maintained a weekly spend of around $268,398 since October of last year. Other major brands, such as Mondelex, Sky, Kia U.K., and Bank of America, have also been spotted advertising on the platform in recent weeks. However, it is likely that these brands are not spending at their previous levels, as evidenced by Twitter's sharp decline in ad revenue.

For the five weeks between April 1 and the first week of May 2023, Twitter's U.S. ad revenue reached $88 million, a 59% decrease from the same period in 2022. This drop in revenue indicates that although advertisers have returned to the platform, their overall spending has not returned to pre-boycott levels. The reasons for this reduced spending remain unclear, but it is possible that brands are exercising caution as they reenter the platform or that they have shifted budgets to other platforms during the boycott.

Despite the lingering concerns about ad revenue, Musk also highlighted the platform's growing user base, stating that Twitter is currently experiencing "all-time highs" in terms of usage. Apptopia data supports this claim, showing that Twitter's daily active users (DAUs) are 3.3% higher now than they were last October. This increase in usage could help to attract more advertising dollars in the future as brands seek to engage with the platform's growing audience.

In conclusion, the advertiser boycott of Twitter appears to be coming to an end, with major brands returning to the platform and expressing their intent to continue advertising there. However, it remains to be seen whether these brands will ramp up their spending to pre-boycott levels and whether Twitter can successfully capitalize on its growing user base to attract even more advertising revenue in the future. For now, the platform's prospects seem cautiously optimistic, but only time will tell if this return to normalcy is truly sustainable.