Twitter Spaces Expands Hosting Capabilities to Users with 600+ Followers

This just in: Twitter is taking its Clubhouse clone to the next level. Today, Twitter said Twitterati members with 600+ followers can host Spaces, the platform’s live audio chatroom feature. You know what that means: It’s open to a wide variety of brand Twitter accounts now.

• Spaces also basically just scaled from a living room game of Dance Dance Revolution to a pre-2020 music festival. Before, only a small group of celebs (hi, Taylor Swift) and beta testers had access to hosting privileges.
• Twitter also shared a few Spaces features that are still in the oven. One is ticketed Spaces, in which hosts can actually sell tickets to their discussions. Per Twitter, hosts will be able to set ticket prices and keep the majority of revenue.

Why it matters

Twitter has been plugging Spaces as a more inclusive alternative to Clubhouse. But despite the brand safety pitch and increased accessibility, some argue that Clubhouse and Spaces have yet to become part of the core social channel rotation for marketers. Perhaps that’s because they aren’t sure if their audiences are into the whole live chatroom trend...and if they’ll still be interested in a post-pandemic world.

A marketer’s take: “My biggest advice for brands [testing out new platforms] is first and foremost, guide yourself by research. You really have to know your audiences, know where they are, and then decide,” ALSAC CMO Emily Callahan told Marketing Brew about researching Twitter Spaces and Clubhouse. ALSAC is the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

• “Just because something's new or cool doesn't mean it's necessarily right for your audience. People get excited about the next greatest thing, [but] direct mail might be the very thing you need for your audience,” Callahan continued.
• She added that above all else, she’s a big believer in understanding your brand, doing the research to know where your audience is and who they are, then engaging.

Where the magic research happens: Callahan’s team is taking lessons learned from testing out TikTok into its Clubhouse and Twitter Spaces trials.

• “There was a ton of secondary research out there that we could go get for free and read and study. But then a big part of it was [that] we participated,” she said.
• “Our teams who are advising in the strategy participated and explored the platform [and] really paid attention to who was popular [and] what they were talking about.”

Bottom line: Yes, the Twitter Spaces vs. Clubhouse race is heating up—but it’s important to slow down and figure out where your audience is before letting a few fancy new updates carry your brand to somewhere it might not belong. — PB