Relatively unnoticed, Twitter launched professional accounts in Germany in October 2021. Since then, Twitter for professionals has been rolled out more and more. We explain what you should know about the new account type.
New account type: Twitter rolls out “Twitter for professionals”
Back in October 2021, Twitter developers James Kelm and Jameel Gbajabiamila introduced Twitter for Professionals in a blog post. However, the new profile type, which is called Twitter for Professionals in German, has received relatively little attention.
Without much announcement, Twitter is rolling out its professional accounts in Germany as well. Interested users will find the corresponding tab “Twitter for Professionals” in the menu bar in the app and on the desktop.
What are professional accounts on Twitter?
Basically, the new profile type is comparable to the Instagram business account. It is therefore aimed at professional Twitter users. This includes companies as well as journalists and influencers.
Professional accounts enable companies, brands, creators and publishers to expand and strengthen their presence on Twitter. Professional accounts act as a gateway to a wide range of professional tools that are not available to the average Twitter user.
How do I activate Twitter for professionals?
If you are interested in a Twitter Business profile, you can simply open the menu in your Twitter app and check if you can find the corresponding feature. If you don’t discover an option there, you can first check the App Store for an update.
Likewise, Twitter has set some exclusion criteria for professional accounts.
- You must not have (repeatedly) violated the user agreement.
- Your profile must be complete. It needs an account name, a completed bio, and a profile picture.
- Your profile must be genuine – and this must be made clear. That means: On the one hand, business accounts are not allowed for animals or “fictional characters”. This also applies to parody or fan accounts. On the other hand, you may not use a false identity or impersonate another company or person.
Instructions: How to get a professional Twitter account
If you don’t violate any of the above rules and you already spot the tab on your menu, you can get your Twitter Business account right away.
- Click on “Twitter for professionals” in the menu.
- Agree to the terms and conditions.
- Choose your category. You can choose from dozens of options. These range from restaurants to automotive, journalists to education.
- The next step is the account type. Here you can choose between Company and Creator.
Once you’re done, Twitter invites you to update your profile and follow new topics. There is also a hint that “more to come soon”.
What are the benefits of having professional accounts on Twitter?
If you have high hopes for the Twitter Business Account, you may be disappointed. Basically, the new account type is decorative for the time being. A quick-promote function for advertisements is available. However, this is not exciting for all accounts.
In the official announcement, Twitter talks about the fact that there will be more functions for professional accounts in the future. However, the short message service does not mention a concrete date yet.
For example, Twitter already presents functions for three profile extensions:
- An about function with opening hours, address and phone number. This should be of particular interest to store operators.
- A store function. Selected products that you can buy appear immediately under your description text in the so-called store module.
- A newsletter function. The newsletter module might be interesting for journalists and professional content creators. For this, Twitter relies on the Revue technology.
Conclusion and outlook
At the moment, the Twitter business accounts in Germany are more of an optical adornment and technical gimmick. The new account type does not yet offer any serious advantages.
Should Twitter actually roll out some or even all of the announced functions, the situation could change, of course. After all, shopping functions like those Twitter is currently testing with Walmart are of interest to many companies and influencers.
The direct implementation of the new functions directly in the profiles of the corresponding accounts should also have a positive effect on the conversion rate.
