Twitter has been trying to expand its creator monetization tools suite, and the latest addition to that toolbox is a new ‘Subscribe’ button on certain users’ profiles. This is a very helpful tool for newsletter creators and links back to the company’s recent acquisition of the platform Revue, which was a service that helped users create and charge for their newsletters.
The ‘Subscribe button will give profile visitors information regarding the user’s newsletter and will be visible right below the main profile information panel. It’s designed to help visitors easily sign up for a creator’s or a company’s newsletter directly from the app, which means there’s no need to look up a website or leave the platform. When it’s opened, the visitors will also get a chance to read a sample issue of a newsletter or choose to go into the next stage of the signup process. The next step in that process is sending out a confirmation email to the visitor, whose email is linked with their Twitter account.
This latest effort from Twitter comes after the company’s announcement that it’s looking to add about 123 million new users to the platform over the next three years. The subscribe feature is one of many of a growing range of creator monetization tools. That feature was announced after the company said that it was working on a ticketed Spaces feature, on-profile tipping options, as well as subscription options for creators directly on their profiles, with “Super Follow”.
Most of the new features are only available to users through an application process which includes signing up to the platform’s new rules around paid activities. For example, with the ticketed Spaces events features, users will be able to schedule a future event, select a number of tickets as well as their price, and get 80% of the earnings from their ticket sales.
Then, the on-profile tipping option titled “Tip Jar” will allow users to collect payments from their followers, as a way to support creators’ efforts. All users need to do is connect to the payment provider of their choice after clicking the cash icon on a profile, and send a tip to an account. The “Super Follow” feature, which is going to be shown as a number next to the regular number of followers on a user’s profile, is aimed at providing creators with a monthly fee from their “Super Followers”. Those followers will get access to some additional engagement features, as well as content from the person they’re subscribed to.
However, the latest addition to this suite of monetization tools, with the newsletter option, seems to be more aligned with Twitter’s experimental “Professional Profile” directed at brands and professional creators. This allows companies to present themselves on the platform in a new way and get a dedicated set of tools and features that are solely made for businesses. It also means that those profiles are going to be showing specific information that relates to the business, such as location and contact information.
Ronn Torossian is CEO of 5WPR.