This Week on #Twitter: 40 Million Never See Twitter Ads, Social Media Multitasking, Twitter Shopping

Need a little weekend reading? We’ve compiled our top ten Twitter stories of the week, which includes news that 14 percent use third party apps for Twitter (which means 40 million never see ads), a study that reveals that 52 percent of social networkers use two or more platforms, another clue that Twitter shopping could be coming soon, Puma’s “flock to unlock” program and Twitter’s latest experiment: showing you tweets from accounts your friends follow. Here are our top 10 Twitter stories of the week. 1. 14% Use Third Party Apps for Twitter (Which Means 40 Million Never See Ads) Twitter released its second quarter earnings report last week to much fanfare, and rightly so, as the figures beat Wall Street expectations across the board. The most closely-watched metric in Twitter’s report was, as usual, its monthly active users (MAUs) tally, which has now reached 271 million. However, buried deep in the presentation that accompanied the release was a worrying statistic: 14 percent of Twitter accounts log on or connect to the service via third party apps, which means that close to 40 million of its active users are never served ads. 2. 52% Use Two or More Social Networks (And Six in 10 Have Unfollowed Brands) [STUDY] More than half of U.S. adults are active on two or more social networks, favouring different platforms for different interests, reveals a new study. 3. Twitter Shopping Could be Coming Soon as ‘Payment & Shipping’ Option Appears in Apps Last month we reported on news that a “buy now” button had been seen in the wild by some users of the Twitter mobile app. While this feature was not functional and only appeared for the usual very small subset of folks, it did appear to be an early indication that some form of e-commerce was coming to Twitter. Here’s an even bigger clue: a “Payment & Shipping” option has materialised for some users of Twitter’s official Android app, which suggests that shopping functionality could be right around the corner. 4. Puma to Be First to Test Twitter’s ‘Flock to Unlock’ Ad Program Twitter is rolling out a new advertising program called Flock to Unlock, and has partnered with Puma for the launch. 5. Twitter’s Latest Experiment: Showing You Tweets From Accounts Your Friends Follow Twitter experiments with at least one new feature each and every day, and while most of these are simply that – experiments – some do move out of the beta process and become system-wide. The platform’s latest venture, which it’s testing on its usual small subset of unsuspecting users, is slightly controversial – tweets from accounts that your friends follow are appearing in your stream. 6. Twitter Has More Users in Asia Than North America (And That Gap is Getting Wider) [STATS] Slightly less than a quarter of all Twitter users – about 60 million profiles – are based in the U.S., a number which was risen by 50 percent since the third quarter of 2012. Not bad. However, what this means is that three-quarters of Twitter users worldwide are based outside of North America, which isn’t even the number one region on that platform. 7. More Than Six in 10 Access Social Networks on Their Smartphones, Tablets [STUDY] 64 percent of smartphone owners and 65 percent of tablet owners in the U.S. access social networking sites on their devices, reveals a new study. 8. Are You Suffering From ‘Twitter Psychosis’? If you’ve suspected that your hours upon hours of staring at your timeline might be bad for you, you’re about to be vindicated: There’s a new psychological disorder on the books, and it’s apparently caused by too much Twitter. 9. The 10 Most Popular People on Twitter [STATS] Katy Perry, who became the first person to reach 50 million followers in January of this year, remains the most-followed individual on Twitter, with a lead that is now closing in on two million followers over second-placed (and former number one) Justin Bieber. 10. How to Use Bitly to A/B Test Your Tweets If you have no clue why some of your tweets get dozens of clicks, retweets and replies while others seem to fall on deaf ears, you might want to try a more scientific approach. Did you know we have a newsletter? Sign-up to receive a daily digest of all things Twitter, sent straight to your inbox. Click here to sign up for the AllTwitter Newsletter. (Twitter image via Shutterstock.)

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This Week on #Twitter: 40 Million Never See Twitter Ads, Social Media Multitasking, Twitter Shopping

Shea Bennett

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Shea Bennett