A top advertising firm has recommended that its clients cease spending on Twitter with the “chaotic” instating of Elon Musk as owner.
Interpublic Group, known as IPG, is the parent company of Universal McCann. This week, their media intelligence branch, MAGNA, sent an email warning against working with the platform during such a hostile transition.
“The current situation is unpredictable and chaotic, and bad actors and unsafe behaviors thrive in such an environment,” the message stated.
As of Thursday, L’Oréal and GM suspended advertising spending on Twitter. Unfortunately, more instances such as these are expected in the forthcoming weeks.
Ahead of this grim advice, Musk tried reassuring advertisers that Twitter was still “brand safe.” Obviously, he was not very convincing, which prompted MAGNA to move forward with their direction to marketers and agencies.
While Musk scrambles to keep his ad dollars rolling in, his promotion of hateful free speech is hurting his bid to keep companies interested in having Twitter in their marketing budgets. Musk has stated that he will reinstate former President Donald Trump’s account after it was disabled in January 2021 for spreading misinformation. Musk has also enacted mass layoffs at the tech giant, firing the entire board of directors and making himself the sole director.
Another concern is billionaire Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal and his Kingdom Holding Company investing a combined $1.89 billion in existing Twitter shares. This move makes him the company’s largest shareholder, aside from Musk. Politicians have expressed disdain for this massive stock ownership, considering that the Prince has been accused of censoring political speech.
These factors, along with several others, are not ideal for advertisers, who rather not have their names attached to the storm brewing. Some people, such as Twitter’s chief customer officer, Sarah Personette, have willingly left the company following days of changes and controversy. Personette served as a proxy between Twitter and advertisers, often helping bridge the gap and initiate seamless campaigns.
Advertising makes up more than 90% of Twitter’s revenue. However, after tweeting his disapproval of advertising on the site, it is no wonder that his relationship with one of the biggest marketing companies in the world is beginning to sour.
