Twitter Super Follows Revenue: A Disappointing Start

Twitter’s Super Follows Feature Sees Modest Initial Revenue

According to app intelligence data from Sensor Tower, Twitter’s Super Follows creator platform generated approximately $6,000 in U.S. iOS revenue during its first two weeks of availability. Revenue from Canada reached around $600 during the same timeframe.

Initial Launch and Revenue Streams

Twitter initially unveiled plans for Super Follows during its Analyst Day event in February, outlining upcoming initiatives designed to diversify revenue streams. Currently, Twitter heavily relies on advertising, and this feature represents a key attempt to broaden its income sources.

The company is also exploring other avenues, including Ticketed Spaces for live event access and Twitter Blue, a premium subscription being tested outside the U.S.

However, Super Follows, specifically aimed at content creators, possesses the greatest potential for attracting a wider user base.

The Creator Economy and Twitter’s Role

This initiative capitalizes on the expanding creator economy, empowering content creators to generate revenue directly through subscriptions. This reduces their dependence on advertising and brand partnerships.

Platforms facilitating this model typically retain a small percentage of earnings to fund the development of creator tools; Twitter currently takes a 3% cut.

How Super Follows Works

Twitter’s platform already fosters interaction between prominent figures and everyday users. Super Follows enhances this connection by allowing fans to gain closer access to their preferred creators.

Creators can establish monthly subscription tiers – $2.99, $4.99, or $9.99 – granting subscribers exclusive content, such as additional tweets, Q&A sessions, and other personalized interactions.

Limited Creator Access and Subscriber Base

At launch, access to Super Follows was restricted to a select group of creators, including @MakeupforWOC, @TarotByBronx, and @KingJosiah54, among others. Twitter reports that fewer than 100 creators currently have access to the feature.

While creator access is limited, subscription availability is not. Any Twitter iOS user in the U.S. or Canada can subscribe to any of the participating creator accounts.

Twitter boasts 37 million monetizable daily active users in the U.S. as of Q2 2021, representing a substantial potential customer base.

Revenue Analysis and Future Prospects

Despite this large potential audience, current revenue suggests that only a small fraction of users have subscribed, with many top in-app purchases occurring at lower price points.

Sensor Tower’s data indicates that U.S. iOS users spent $100 on Twitter from August 25-31, primarily on Ticketed Spaces. The $6,000 revenue from September 1-14 suggests a minimal contribution from Ticketed Spaces.

In Canada, iOS in-app purchase revenue totaled a modest $600 from September 1-14, encompassing both Super Follows and Twitter Blue subscriptions.

Additional Data and Twitter’s Response

Worldwide, iOS users spent $9,000 on Twitter during the same period, including revenue from Ticketed Spaces and Twitter Blue. (Twitter’s Tip Jar, which facilitates direct payments to creators, does not utilize in-app purchases.)

Appfigures calculated $12,400 in gross revenue in the U.S. from September 1-17, attributing most of the revenue to the first week of the period.

Twitter acknowledges that it is still early to draw definitive conclusions about Super Follows’ performance. A spokesperson stated, “Our main goal is focused on ensuring creators are set up for success and so we’re working closely with a small group of creators in this first iteration.”

Revenue Sharing and Platform Evolution

Twitter’s revenue sharing model allows creators to earn up to 97% of revenue after in-app purchase fees until they reach $50,000 in lifetime earnings, after which the share decreases to 80%.

Unlike features that emerged organically from user behavior, such as hashtags and retweets, many of Twitter’s newer features represent attempts to redefine the platform’s core functionalities.

Recent product launches encompass tools for creators, e-commerce, content organization, newsletter subscriptions, community building, audio conversations, fact-checking, trend monitoring, and private messaging.

Correction, 9/16/21: Twitter mDAU was 37 million in the last quarter, not 169 million— the latter was the international figure. This has been updated.