Twitter announces new Lead Generation feature for tweets

This week Twitter announced the launch of a new Lead Generation card function which I think could revolutionise the way brands use the social media channel for marketing in the future.

As a marketing mechanic, it is wonderfully simple in its application. The person reading the tweet simply clicks it to expand the message to see more details about the offer or promotion.  To find out more about the offer the reader is invited to click a button to register their interest.  As soon the button is clicked, the person’s name, twitter account details and email address associated with their twitter account are sent straight to the promoting company.

As a marketing device I think it’s got so much more going for it than a simple Facebook like, a retweet or an Instagram favourite.  With this information, you now have the option to email your customer a voucher, a menu or a ticket for a special event.  With a bit more imagination you could stretch the potential of a function like this further still by offering priority seating in a VIP area, a raffle ticket for a special prize (to be handed in at venue) or even details regarding recruitment for a new position in your business.

The main plus about this feature is that it is so simple for the general public to use.  Granted, to take full advantage you’ll need to be set up to gather the emails and respond to requests asap.   However, with a little organisation, even the smallest businesses have the potential to take advantage of this great new customer lead generator.

At present, the option is being tested by a select number of Twitter accounts.  From online comments I’ve seen so far, the tweet does not have to be a ‘promoted tweet’ for this option to work but that still has to be confirmed by Twitter. 

According to Mitali Pattanaik, Product Manager for Revenue at Twitter, “Today, the Lead Generation Card will only be available to our managed clients; we have plans to launch this Card globally and to small and medium-sized businesses soon.”

On further research I’ve found a live version of this format being run by ‘Make IT in Ireland’, an organisation that promotes working in the Irish IT sector.  You can see it for yourself here at: https://cards.twitter.com/cards/af799r/1k

So what do you think?  Do you think this is a marketing tactic that you’ll want to use as soon as it goes live?