Twitter’s ‘Super Follows’ generates disappointing returns

Twitter’s debut creator feature Super Follows gets off to a rocky start generating only $6K within its first two weeks. 

The social media giant first revealed Super Follows during its Analyst Day event back in February, before officially rolling it out at the start of this month. Since its launch, the premium subscription feature has contributed around $6,000 in U.S. iOS revenue and an estimated $600 in Canada, according to app intelligence data provided by Sensor Tower. 

Super Follows was intended to help Twitter diversify its revenue stream by capitalizing on the growing creator economy, decreasing their own dependence on advertising as a result. The feature allows users to subscribe to their favourite creators’ accounts for a monthly subscription fee in exchange for exclusive content such as extra tweets and Q&As. Creators that implement Super Follows can continue to build a following and generate revenue directly through subscriptions by charging $2.99, $4.99 or $9.99 a month. 

With Super Follows creators can earn up to 97% of subscription revenue after dealing with third-party fees until they reach lifetime earnings of $50,000, across all Twitter products that are monetized. Once they hit the $50,000 threshold, users can then earn up to 80% of revenue after those third-party fees. However, access to Super Follows is limited. As of yet, Super Follows has only been available to a handful of creators including the beauty and skincare-focused account @MakeupforWOC; astrology account @TarotByBronx; sports-focused @KingJosiah54; writer @myeshachou and internet personality and podcaster @MichaelaOkla; among others.

The Super Follows feature is just one of the many new features Twitter plans on introducing as the company attempts to redefine the use cases for its platform. The upcoming months will see the social media platform launch tools not just for creators, but also for e-commerce such as subscribing to newsletters and fact-checking content. Twitter is also planning to test new privacy-related features aimed at giving users greater control over how users manage their reputations and identities on the service. Such features include the ability to edit follower lists, and a tool to archive old tweets so that they’re no longer visible to others after a specific amount of time.

Twitter does not seem too concerned about the less than stellar results as the company believes it is still too early on to make any determinations. Time will tell whether the new product sees any transaction. 

According to a Twitter spokesperson, “This is just the start for Super Follows. 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 to ensure they have the best experience using Super Follows before we roll out more widely.”

The spokesperson also noted Twitter Super Follows had been set up to help creators make more money as it scales. 

“With Super Follows, people are eligible to earn up to 97% of revenue after in-app purchase fees until they make $50,000 in lifetime earnings. After $50,000 in lifetime earnings, they can earn up to 80% of revenue after in-app purchase fees,” they said.

SiGMA iGathering

Join us for the next SiGMA iGathering networking event in Barcelona on the 21st of September at 19:30. Indulge in a delish dinner at the El Restaurant Barceloneta while interacting with like-minded individuals as well as the region’s top industry leaders.

For more information on the event please contact Emily on [email protected] or visit our website to find out more about upcoming iGathering events on the SiGMA calendar.