Why Twitter's Coupon Service is a Great Idea

Twitter has always been a little off beat, at least when it comes to social networks. The character limit, the constantly updating feed and the attitude of its users can make for a quirky network. In that vein, Twitter has a quirky revenue idea to increase audience engagement and expand overall revenue generation: adding coupons to the service.

Coupons aren’t a game-changer, but there’s a little more to it than one might expect. According to the New York Times Bits Blog, “After buying a promoted tweet — a paid ad that appears as content inside a user’s Twitter stream — a marketer can insert a deal, such as a time-sensitive discount, which users can redeem on their smartphone.”

The service, dubbed “Twitter Offers,” is powered by Cardspring, which Twitter acquired in July.