Twitter tests Promoted Tweets ad platform

US brands have been able to create Promoted Tweets that appear in Twitter search since April. However, this is the first time that these ads will appear in users’ timelines.

Twitter said in blog post yesterday that this was a "testing period" for its ad proposition and it was experimenting with when and where the Promoted Tweets should appear in users’ timelines.

They will only be rolled out on the third-party platform, Hootsuite, that syndicates tweets. Not all Hootsuite users will see Promoted Tweets, however, and those who do may see them appear in different places in their timeline.

The Promoted Tweets that appear will be relevant to the user, based on who they follow.

"We want to display Promoted Tweets in a way that’s both useful and authentic to the Twitter experience. We will expand the rollout only when we feel we're delivering a high-quality user experience," it said.

According to Twitter its users have engaged with promoted products at rates "that far exceed typical forms of online advertising".

In October, Twitter announced it is "entering a new phase" with the launch of its Promoted Accounts service, which allows advertisers to buy a place in its ‘recommended users’ list.